There’s
no doubt that Vietnam has very diverse cuisine, from top royal delicacies to
humble, mouth-watering everyday dishes or even simple snacks that make you
cannot stop eating. And yet, there is no lack of bizarre dishes with a smelly
element, which will make you cover your nose as soon as you see it. But believe
me, they can be super-addicting.
1. Nước mắm/ Fish
sauce
Everywhere!
A lot of Vietnamese believe that every dish needs a touch of nước mắm to be
complete. They add it to everything: fried, steamed, raw, boiled, stir-fried,
and grilled dishes. And if you go to some Southern Vietnam’s provinces, you
will see people there only use nước mắm as their only dipping sauce. It’s a
brown, from light to dark brown sauce. And the odour will vary from brand to
brand. The amount of protein printed on the bottle will define its saltiness.
It is made from fermented anchovies.
There
are many styles of dipping sauce made from nước mắm: nước mắm gừng (with
ginger, chilli and sugar), nước mắm mè (with tamarind, chilli and sugar), nước
mắm chua ngọt (with sugar, lime juice, garlic and chilli). Some common dishes
are: cháo vịt (duck congee), gỏi (salad), canh chua cá (Catfish sour soup), cơm
tấm (Vietnamese broken rice)
2. Thuốc Bắc/ Traditional
Chinese medicine
Last
but not least, traditional Chinese medicine with many, many elements available.
They are added to dishes as to make the food more delicious, heal the body and
for disease treatment. Popular elements are: ginseng, goji berry, dried longan,
jujube, snow fungus, lotus seeds, ginger, dong quai, etc. The combinations of
different elements will create a very unique smell when you come to District 5
in HCMC, which is the city’s Chinatown. And it is not easy to get used to for
newcomers. It won’t be just one eatery you will find. It will be a whole street
or whole neighbourhood with the smell of it. Still, it’s good for your health.
Each
organ will have its own healing soup.
You
can find a Traditional Chinese medicine store, tell them what you want, and
maybe let them have a check on your pulse and they will guide you with the
recipe. One famous street food with the medicine available is: Canh gà ác hầm
thuốc bắc (Silkie with Traditional Chinese medicine elements stew). Other soups
can be found in eateries and restaurants.
3. Mắm tôm/ Shrimp paste
(Fermented)
A
purple fermented shrimp paste. Very strong odour. Of course, in South East
Asia, this will not be the only mắm (fermented paste) you will see. There are
so many, with different strong odours. However, I found this one among the most
popular ones, and it causes also the best frowns.
Accompanying
a lot of dishes such as: Bún riêu (Thin-rice-noodle soup with tomato, ground
river crab, fried tofu and herbs) and canh bún (Thick rice noodle soup similar
to bún riêu, but without tomato). It is also a key element to: Bún đậu (Rice
noodles with fried tofu, boiled pork, fried rice cake and herbs), thịt luộc cà
pháo (boiled egg with white eggplant), thịt cầy (dog meat) (Sorry, I’m offended
by this too, but it’s a reality here in Vietnam). It’s salty but with a
remarkable taste.
4. Sầu riêng/ Durian
A
fruit with thorny green shell and yellow segments. After you open it, your
whole house will have the unique smell, and even if you have put it in the
refrigerator, you can still smell it when you step in your house. Even after
you have swallowed it, it still remains in your mouth and your burps. Many
people really can’t stand the smell.
Don’t
eat too much; it can give you indigestion. Available in a lot of street dishes,
mostly sweets and desserts: chè (A kind of sweet stew, sweet mix of fruit and
sugar), xôi sầu riêng bánh phồng (sticky rice with durian covered in crunchy
rice cake), kem sầu riêng (durian ice-cream), bánh sầu riêng (durian pie), chè
khúc bạch.
5. Măng/ Bamboo shoot
We
have two types of bamboo shoot here: wet and dried. Their colours are normally
yellow and white. The wet one is very smelly and has a yellow colour. Many
can’t stand this kind of smell. It can be very long-lasting and stick to your
clothes for a long time until you wash them. However, the taste is great. Once
it goes in your mouth, you can feel the softness with the crunchiness of the
shoot’s veins. It has its own sweetness. It might be a bit bitter if it hasn’t
been boiled enough, but many people like it that way. Bamboo shoot does not
appear in many dishes in Vietnam. Only some which feature it as the main
ingredients: Bún măng vịt (Duck and bamboo shoot rice noodle), thịt ba rọi
kho/xào măng (Braised/ stir-fried pork belly and bamboo shoot), canh măng chua
cá (Pickled bamboo shoot and catfish soup).
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* That would be my
top five. Remember, they are smelly, but they are delicious and can be
addicting! I really recommend you to give them a try. With the names above, you
can sure find the place to eat by Google. And if you have your own ‘smelly’
experience in Vietnam, feel free to share!
By Vietnam
Heritage Magazine