Nien fish are also called Cai-lin by the Hre ethnic minority, while the Cor people call it Ca-da-let or Jia-liếc. This fish species is mainly distributed in rivers and streams in mountainous areas, where the water is fresh and flows strongly all year round.
Nien fish often live in schools, concentrated in deep water areas along rivers and streams upstream. However, their favorite "area" is the area at the foot of waterfalls, rocky rapids, especially where white water foam is released, and the flow is swift.
Although capable of swimming against strong currents, Nien fish almost never cross waterfalls. Their main food is moss and small creatures clinging to rocky rapids. Nien fish are quite modest in size, on average only slightly larger than an adult's thumb. However, in some mountainous areas such as Tra Bong, Son Tay (Quang Ngai), many caught Nien fish are larger in size, reaching about 2-3 fingers.
During the day, Nien fish are very agile and skillful, and live in dangerous areas, so it is very difficult to catch. When night falls, they move slower, this is also the time when local people use lights to hunt.
Currently, the price of specialty Nien fish ranges from 450,000 - 500,000 VND/kg, becoming one of the "expensive" dishes of the mountainous region of Quang Ngai.
Nien fish can be processed into many dishes such as soup, boiled, crispy fried, braised, cooked with turmeric or made into salad... but the most delicious is still grilled trui.
Grilled Nien fish does not need to be marinated elaborately. Just wash it, skewer along the fish body with sharp bamboo sticks and then grill it on a charcoal stove, turn it evenly to cook the fish from the inside out, the outer skin is golden and crispy. When the fish is cooked, the fragrance spreads seductively.
Enjoying grilled Nien fish, diners can hold a whole one that is still hot, dip it in chili salt, fully feeling the sweetness of the fish meat, fatty, buttery, slightly chewy, mixed with a bit of characteristic bitterness from the flesh, a rustic and unforgettable flavor of the mountains and forests.
