Types of Edible Bird's Nest: How Do Raw, Feather-Removed, Refined and Nest Feet Differ?

There are three common ways to group them. The first is by processing level: raw nest, feather-removed nest, refined nest and nest feet. The second is by where the swiftlets built the nest: house-farmed nest and cave nest. The third is by colour: white, pink and red ("blood") nest (according to Dien May Xanh (opens in a new tab)).

When shopping, processing level matters most: it decides how much cleaning you do at home and the price of each box. The other two groupings tell you about origin and the risks worth asking the seller about.

The three differ in how clean they are. Raw nest is barely treated. Feather-removed nest has had its feathers picked out but keeps the nest shape. Refined nest has been cleaned and then pressed back into a shape. Long Chau pharmacy (opens in a new tab) also lists raw nest, whole feather-removed nest and refined nest as the three main kinds of dried bird's nest.

Raw bird's nest

Raw nest is the original nest, not yet processed, still mixed with feathers and impurities (Long Chau (opens in a new tab)). Its advantage is that it keeps the nest's original shape and natural smell, so it is easier to inspect the strands to tell whether it is genuine. In return, you must soak it and pick out the feathers carefully yourself before double-boiling.

Feather-removed bird's nest

Feather-removed nest is nest whose feathers have been picked out by hand while the nest keeps its shape (Dien May Xanh (opens in a new tab)). The dried feather-removed nest from Yến Sào Uyên Nguyên has about 95% of the feathers removed, so after soaking a few fine feathers may remain to be picked out.

Refined (reshaped) bird's nest

Refined nest has been soaked, fully cleaned of feathers and pressed back into a nest shape (Dien May Xanh (opens in a new tab); Long Chau (opens in a new tab)). It is the most convenient, since you only soak it until it swells before double-boiling, but buyers find it harder to check the strands than with raw nest, so it matters even more to choose a clear, trustworthy seller.

Nest feet are the base that fixes the nest to a rock wall or the wall of a swiftlet house. This part is usually a thick, firm block with few feathers, but its strands are not as long as those of the body of the nest (Long Chau (opens in a new tab)). Also according to Long Chau, nest feet are harder and need to be soaked for at least 1 hour before they soften enough to be pulled into strands.

Loofah-style nest is named after the shape of the finished product: cleaned nest strands woven loosely like a loofah sponge, not pressed into a nest. At Yến Sào Uyên Nguyên, nest feet are the base of the nest where it attached to the swiftlet house wall, and Refined Bird's Nest – Loofah-Style is cleaned nest packed in loofah-style form instead of being shaped into a nest; Nest Feet + Loofah-Style combines nest feet and loofah-style nest.

The table below pairs the general features of each type with the products sold at Yến Sào Uyên Nguyên. Strand ratios and prices are taken from the product pages on 8 November 2026; cells marked "Not disclosed" are details the shop does not publish.

For a general market reference, Dien May Xanh (opens in a new tab) (April 2026) lists raw nest at about 2.5–3.5 million dong per 100g and refined nest at about 3.3–4.5 million dong per 100g. Actual prices depend on the seller, strand ratio and cleanliness.

House-farmed nest is built by swiftlets in a swiftlet house built by people. Cave nest is built on natural rock walls in island caves (Dien May Xanh (opens in a new tab)). According to Tuoi Tre (opens in a new tab) newspaper, most bird's nest on the market today is house-farmed nest.

In Vietnam, the swiftlet islands in Khánh Hòa are managed by Khanh Hoa Salanganes Nest Company; in 2015 the company's guard team watched over 32 islands with 169 swiftlet caves (VietNamNet (opens in a new tab)). Yến Sào Uyên Nguyên sells house-farmed nest, sourced from swiftlet houses in Khánh Hòa, Phan Thiết and Vũng Tàu; the store does not sell cave nest.

White nest is the most common type. Pink and red nests are rarer and are usually advertised at higher prices (Dien May Xanh (opens in a new tab)). What buyers should know: the red colour of red ("blood") nest does not come from bird blood.

• Paydar et al. (2013) (opens in a new tab) found no hemoglobin (a component of blood) in red "blood" nest samples.
• But et al. (2013) (opens in a new tab) showed that white nest turns red when exposed to vapour from sodium nitrite in an acidic environment, or to vapour rising from a layer of bird droppings in hot, humid conditions.
• Kumpook et al. (2023) (opens in a new tab) noted that natural red nest is found only in certain caves, while artificial red nest is made by exposing white nest to nitrous acid vapour.

The products currently sold on the Yến Sào Uyên Nguyên website do not include any pink or red nest.

Because the strands have been cleaned and pressed back together, refined nest is the type most easily tampered with. Tuoi Tre (opens in a new tab) (April 2022) quotes industry experts listing some common kinds:

• Sugar refining: soaking the nest strands in sugar water before drying to add weight.
• Oil refining: dripping cooking oil into the soaking basin so that feathers float up faster, which lowers the quality of the nest strands.
• Fake strands made from jelly-like substances or gum karaya, mixed into the nest.

Also according to this article, genuine refined nest in 2022 cost from about 3.3 million dong per 100g; prices from 100,000 to under 1 million dong per 100g are very likely fake. For ways to check at home, see the article on how to tell genuine from fake bird's nest.

No type is "best" for everyone. Choose according to the processing time you have, your purpose in buying and your budget:

• Want to process it yourself and inspect the strands: raw bird's nest.
• Want the nest to keep its shape with little cleaning work: dried feather-removed nest.
• Busy, or buying as a gift: refined Grade 1 or Grade 2.
• Buying for the first time and want to try it: small boxes of 30g, 20g, 10g.
• Everyday use, no need for the nest shape: loofah-style, nest feet + loofah-style or nest feet.

Each type needs different soaking and double-boiling; see the details in how to double-boil bird's nest by type. If you want to see the nest in person before buying, visit the Tân Định store, 53 Trần Nguyên Đán or call the hotline 0901 312 279.