Eating in Vietnam
One of my favourite elements of my recent whirlwind travels through Vietnam was without a doubt the delicious food. Wandering the streets of all the cities and towns I visited one of the constant features was often having a tempting scent of something yummy fill my nostrils.
Exploring the many different markets of Vietnam (and there are SO many) it became clear to me that fresh, locally sourced ingredients are at the core of every Vietnamese meal. The markets I visited were always full to the brim with vendors, normally tiny, beautiful Vietnamese ladies, selling their fresh produce to both locals and visitors who are looking for some local flavours.
The majority of Vietnamese meals are simple, yet full of flavour and that’s one of the reasons I love Vietnamese food so much. Most of the dishes are not hard to make and as such you’ll find street vendors selling delicious meals on bustling street corners and in tiny stalls inside markets.
Pho photo from http://bit.ly/J6ktPh
One of the most popular dishes in Vietnam is without a doubt Pho. Pho is a simple staple dish which consists of a a salty broth, fresh rice noodles, a multitude of fresh herbs and chicken or beef.. It’s a cheap, tasty, and easily sourced meal and it’s also easy to make if you wish to try it at home and bring a taste of Vietnam home.
I visited a popular new restaurant, Ngon (which is apparently the Vietnamese word for delicious!) in Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon) and was blown away by the scrumptious and highly inexpensive meal I feasted on. Ngon features dishes from both the North and South regions of the country and the menu is so large I found myself rifling through its pages for about 15 minutes before finally deciding.
I ended up choosing a ‘hot plate’ which consisted of a stove with a broth like mixture with chilli and onions. I had a plate of thin strips of beef, calamari and white fish to put into the bubbling mixture and cook them to my own preference. This was all accompanied by rice papers, vegetables and rice noodles. Yummy!
Another thing the Vietnamese do so well is noodle dishes. Oh my goodness they’re to die for! There are noodle dishes with fresh vegetables of all kinds (including many you may not have heard of let alone tasted before) and whatever type of meat or fish you’d like.
Vietnamese noodle dishes are usually served with soy sauce and chillies or chilli sauce on the side so that you can add the flavours and spice level that you want. It was perfect for me since I love my food spicy. The hotter the better as far as I’m concerned!
Have you been to Vietnam and sampled some of their delicious dishes? What are your favourites?
I’m Emma, a twenty-something Scottish girl who’s obsessed with travel.
I’ve been to 38 countries so far and had some incredible adventures around the world.
My passion for travel and writing led me to create my person blog Emma’s Travel Tales.