There are many different wonderful cuisines in the world, and Vietnamese cuisine is one of them. Vietnamese food is becoming popular all over the States, especially in California and Massachusetts, and it’s mostly known as Pho- traditional Vietnamese noodle. However, there are other dishes of Vietnamese food that stand out too.
Vietnamese foods use a lot more spices compared to American food. And the ingredients that compose one dish are usually different too, since Vietnam is a tropical country, with the weather and natural condition and resources hugely different from America’s. One of the most famous and core sauces, which creates the uniqueness in Vietnamese cuisine is the Fish sauce. Here are some highlights of Vietnamese food that I want to introduce to you guys.
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Pho
A simple rice noodle soup often eaten as breakfast at home or street-side cafes, but also served in restaurants as a meal. Two varieties dominate the Vietnam scene: Pho Bo, containing beef, and Pho Ga, containing chicken.
Vietnam’s national dish, Pho, has been named as one of the Top 5 Street Foods in the world by GlobalPost.
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Thit kho tau – Slow cooking meat and egg with fish sauce and spices.
If I could name one of the many comfort foods in Vietnamese cuisine that brings back warm, delicious memories to all my Viet friends and family, it would be this dish: Thit kho tau, braised pork belly (or shoulder/butt) with boiled eggs. It’s the comfort of pork slowly cooked in sweet caramel, till the soft meat becomes rich and flavorful that makes all of us salivate with homesickness when we’re far away from home. To complete the dish, add some boiled eggs to braise amongst this amazing pot of pork comfort, and some warm jasmine rice with some cool, crunchy, pickled mustard greens for contrast and texture. Thit kho tau is one of the many classic examples of Vietnamese home-cooking at it’s best. This humble Vietnamese braised caramel pork dish speaks volumes to me about who I am and the simple dishes in life that I need to keep me satisfied, sane and happy.
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Banh khot – Fried flat rice cake with shrimp
If you love crispy savory pancakes, you’re going to love Vietnamese Banh khot! It’s a famous Vietnamese dish of miniature pancakes served with herbs and vegetables with spicy sweet fish sauce for dipping. The batter is made of a combination of mostly rice flour, and even leftover grains of rice, with a hint of turmeric to give them a beautiful yellow tinge and mixed together with coconut milk to make it extra creamy and rich. Finally, the topping is usually shrimp and diced up green onions, and in this case, extra coconut milk.
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Banh cuon
Banh Cuon (Vietnamese Steamed Rice Rolls/Crepes) is the perfect holiday detox food. Banh cuon is a very light crepe often with ground pork, minced wood ear mushroom, and onions. It’s eaten with Vietnamese ham (cha lua), steamed bean sprouts, and cucumbers. Another variation arising from a village in Northern Vietnam famous for their banh cuon is called banh cuon “Thanh Tri” a style where the crepe is not rolled but kept in sheets without any filling, and sprinkled with fried onions