Coke Can Birds

Here's a question: what are the culinary uses of an empty aluminium coke can? Hack them in half with a pocket-knife to form individual muffin molds? Cut carefully with scissors and flatten for a makeshift plate? Pop art kitchen mobiles, perhaps?

In Hanoi, a quarter of a chicken is jammed into this icon of western culture, along with an assortment of medicinal herbs, roots, seeds and berries and sat to steam in a big old pot of simmering water. This unique 'soft drink' is called ga tan, which essentially means 'fall-off-the-bone chicken'. Originating in China - the dish, not the coke can ingenuity - is said to have restorative benefits, including easing of ailments such as constipation, asthma, backache and menstrual cramp. Add in diarrhoea and hangover assistance and the chemist would be out of business. 'Ga tan, the miraculous cure-all!'

Much as I would like to take credit for experimenting with this innovative technique myself, it would be a big porky pie if I did. I picked up my bird stuffed coca-cola tins at a little ga tan stall that sits on a platform on the side of Yen Phu Street, which runs parallel along the north end of West Lake and is itself a bloody interesting grub street. They had been cooling their claws in my freezer for a week when I had an 'I-can't-be-stuffed-going-out-to-eat-moment' the other night.

I banged the birds on the thaw for a bit - no time at all, in the oven that is Hanoi in summer. Mother Hubbard tossed out some gourmet Thai rice which just had to do as a bed for the chook. Half an hour or so later, I tipped my birds out of their steamy coke cages, their sluiced juices awash with a medicine of lotus seeds, angelica root, artemisia, a single prune (aha...the constipation remedy) and....who knows what the little orangey berries are?

The result is luscious, much like a slow braise where the flesh falls off the bones and, inexplicably defying gravity, falls into one's mouth. The juice tonic is delicately bitter, which surely means I'm cured of that which ails me.

Details
Four cans - 40,000 VND (USD$2.50, AUD$3.30)

Ga Tan,
88 Yen Phu St.

Comments

[spinkick]

I believe the red fruit to be the following: (a very frequently used Chineses herbal remedy)

Lycii, Fr **

Mandarin: gou~ qi~ zi~
Common name: wolfberry fruit
Bot. family: Solanaceae
Bot. name: 1, Lycium chinensis Mill.; 2, L. barbarum L.

Primary function: Tonify Blood
2ndary functions: Tonify Yin
Thermal qual.: neutral
Taste: sweet
Merid./Organ domain: Lv, Kd

Functions:
Nourishes and tonifies Yin and Blood of Liver and Kidneys; especially for chronic symptoms of sore lower back and legs, mild persistent abdominal pain, impotence, nocturnal spermatorrhea, Wasting and Thirsting syndrome, and consumptive disorders.
Benefits Essence and brightens the eyes; used for dizziness, blurred vision, and diminished acuity.
(See Deficiency of Liver Blood; Deficiency of Liver Yin; Deficiency of Kidney Yin; Wasting and Thirsting syndrome.)

Cautions:
Contraindicated in Exterior Excess Heat.
Contraindicated in Spleen Deficiency with Dampness.
Use cautiously if Interior Heat is present.

Dosage: 2-5 qian.
Toxicity: Relatively safe.
Preparation: Presoak at least 1 hr. in warm water, then simmer 60-120 min. Drink decoction; in addition, the cooked herb is edible.

[Sticky]

The good old wolfberry, eh? Thanks for the insight. Looks like the nocturnal leaks might be on the heal, too!

[korc]

88 Yen Phu... there are two possibilities here, right? I tried both a few times, couldn't find her at either. Pity, she closed her shop down?

No "older posts" or similar at the bottom of your pages? I found this one only because I had part of the text saved somewhere, and googled that.

And what about the trung vit lon gung??

[Sticky]

Korc...she is definitely still operating at the same address, up on a little platform above street level under a tarpaulin. Only in the mornings from about 7-10 and then again in the evenings from 5-10ish. Occasionally, she'll have a day off. Keep trying! Still working up the guts for the duck egg!

[korc]

Umm ok, thanks... I was looking twice on Saturday / Sunday noon. I think I know where she is now. Trung vit long, here I come!

Let her take off the eggshells and put it in a bowl. Add pepper, salt, herbs and (hmmmm) ginger. Then eat it with a spoon, and in bits.

I tried my first one in Haiphong, and the whole crowd at the stall was watching. When I rolled up my eyes (in delight) and ordered a second one, I got applause :)

[chalazion surgery]

They had been cooling their claws in my freezer for a week when I had an 'I-can't-be-stuffed-going-out-to-eat-moment' the other night.