Vietnamese Cuisine: Local Dishes you must not miss on your next trip!
What do you usually look forward to, the most on a vacation? Splendid scenaries? Enjoyable activities? Or a beautiful hotel room? Well, for many people, including myself, trying out the local food is the most exciting part of a trip. Although Vietnamese food is easily accessible almost everywhere in the world — through numerous Pho stores — but Vietnamese food is more than just Pho! Here are some delicious dishes you can enjoy in Vietnam
1. Dive into Sweetness! Bun Cha
Bun Cha, at first glance, may seem like a strange noodle dish that does not have any soup in it. Well, it is not odd to Hanoi people! Bun Cha is a local Hanoi dish in which ordinary components of a noodle dish — vermicelli noodles (called “Bun”), broth with grilled pork and vegetable toppings are all separately served. The great taste of it, which former President Obama loved, comes from the sweetness of the broth and the grilled pork called “Cha.” If you want to feel the real Hanoi vibe, don’t forget to try this sweet Bun Cha!
2. World of Rice! Pho bo & Pho Ga
Well, we cannot forget the well known one! Vietnam indeed is famous for its rice — being one of the biggest producers of rice in the world. Similar to other Asian countries, Vietnamese serve rice as cooked rice or fried rice. In addition, there is one unique way Vietnamese serve a “rice dish” — by making rice into a noodle! Pho Bo and Pho Ga are both Vietnamese rice noodle soup. Pho Bo has the beef broth, and Pho Ga has the chicken broth. The rich taste of Pho comes from its robust and savory broth along with the utterly smooth beef!
3. French Legacy in Vietnam? Banh Mi
Baguette. One of the bases of traditional French food. In Vietnam, Baguette is the backbone of Vietnamese fast food and street food. Banh Mi is the sandwich that places local Vietnamese ingredients into a freshly baked French Baguette. While the taste of this sandwich is indeed the strength of this dish, the price of this sandwich is also unforgettable! With only 7 cents, you can enjoy the full taste of sandwich as you would do in Subway (and pay 5 dollars!)
4. Love Vegetables? Goi Cuon & Cha Gio
Cha Gio from “Saigon” — Photo by Colin Jun
Goi Cuon and Cha Gio are similar yet different dishes. These both use rice papers, these both include tons of vegetables in them, and have to be rolled by humans to become a dish! The only difference between them is that Cha Gio is the fried version of Goi Cuon. Indeed, they are great dishes by themselves, but they are best when they are with Pho Bo or Pho Ga. If you want some rich taste of vegetables to be filled into your mouth, don’t hesitate to check out Goi Cuon or Cha Gio.
Author: Colin Jun
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About the Author: Colin Jun is a Korean student currently studying International Relations at King’s College, London. Having visited Vietnam a couple of times, he joined Better Life Vietnam as a Volunteer in their Tours For Books division, in order to learn more about NGOs and help BLV in giving better future to Vietnamese children. In his free time, he enjoys reading autobiographies and listening to K-Pop songs.
