Vietnamese vegetarian food (Photo: lovinghutaulac.com)
There
are many reasons that more and more people are turning vegan, even in Vietnam,
where daily meals, breakfast, lunch and dinner, invariably contain meat. In
fact, all iconic dishes in the national cuisine, whether it is Pho or Bun or
Banh my, are meat-based.
For
many Vietnamese, a vegan diet is traditionally confined to two sacred Buddhist
days a month, an observance of compassion for all sentient beings.
But
increasing numbers of people are also turning to a plant-based diet for health
reasons, and are strengthened in their resolve by environmental considerations.
With
its abundance of delicious vegetables, fruits and roots, Vietnam has all the
conditions to cater to vegans.
Vegans
can find in Vietnam a variety of vegetarian dishes. However, the most common
vegan dishes are made of soybeans. Apart from tofu, steamed and fried, soybeans
lend themselves to soya paste, fermented tofu, veggie Vietnamese ham and a wide
variety of other dips and dishes.
Since
soybeans are nutritious, rich in protein and calcium, and non-fattening, they
are a good replacement for animal meat. They are also said to be useful in
treating several illnesses, including heart disease and cancer.
Vegans
can also find in Vietnam many dishes that look like they’re made with real
meat. For example, chicken legs are made of citronella stems with a special
tofu wrapping that even has the texture of meat. Barbecued pork chops, beef
wrapped in la lot leaves, stewed chicken, steamed fish – the list goes on and
on.
The
faux meat dishes are consumed more in the South than in the North, says Pham
Tuan Hai, a judge in the Masterchef Vietnam reality television show.
Veggie histories
Although
vegetarian and vegan food has become more popular nationwide, the importance of
vegetarian food differs from region to region.
Several
decades ago, any mention of vegetarian food evoked Hue City in central Vietnam.
“The
art of vegetarian food first appeared in the central provinces of Vietnam, and
Hue was one of the first cities in the country where vegetarian meals appeared.
Vegetarian meals are very important to the people of Hue,” says Hai.
Historically,
vegetarian food first became popular during the reign of the Ly Dynasty in 11th
century. However, it reached its zenith as a important part of royal cuisine
during the long rule of the Nguyen Dynasty since early 19th century, when Hue
emerged as a Buddhist centre.
“There
were strict rules on picking the right ingredients, cooking and offering
vegetarian food to royalty during the reign of the Nguyen Dynasty,” says
vegetarian food expert Ho Dac Thieu Anh of Hue.
She
explains that the team of chefs serving royalty had to offer the King the
finest food as part of a royal ritual, a prayer for peace and prosperity in the
kingdom. During this special ritual, the King kept himself clean and his mind
tranquil. The cooks also had to be clean and extremely selective of the food
they chose to make the offerings. Above all, the vegetarian feast had to be
presented beautifully, with ornate decorations.
Since
then, eating vegetarian food has become a tradition in Hue.
In
all pagodas in Hue, every month, on the first and full moon days of the month,
monks and nuns make vegetarian meals to feed the devotees.
Restaurants
that normally sell non-vegetarian food used to close on these two days or
change their menu to serve vegetarian food.
Most
Hue residents turn vegetarian during the first and full moon days of the month
and on other festive days. The first day of the New Lunar Year, for instance,
is a day of vegetarian meals for many families in the city.
“I
started to eat vegetarian food when I was very small, with other members of my
family, so this has become a habit. Twice a month, mother always cooked
vegetarian dishes from vegetables, or tofu and told us not to eat onion and
garlic.
Now,
I want to stay healthy. And I also want to cleanse my body,” says Nguyen Ngoc
Lan, explaining her vegetarianism.
Not as important
According
to Hai, vegetarian food does not carry the same importance as in Hue in terms
of the royal history and Buddhist leanings, but its popularity has been
increasing nevertheless.
Some
restaurants in HCM City have begun to close on first and full moon days, but
these are very few in number. The number of street restaurants serving
vegetarian food, however, has exploded. In fact, it is in HCM City that the
whole range of vegetarian eateries can be found with ease, from the humblest
street side stall to the most luxurious, up market places.
Also
particular to HCM City are whole stretches of a street or alley that
exclusively serve vegetarian food. The Chay Xom Gia, for instance, is located
on a 100m long alley on Hong Bang Street in District 11. Sixteen stalls sell
vegetarian food at cheap prices, and these are frequented by low-income
workers.
The late entrant
In
comparison to Hue and HCM City, vegetarian food has been late in coming to
Hanoi, but even here, the difference from a few years ago is apparent. Like
other provinces in the north, vegetarian food was mostly served in pagodas, but
there are now several dozen places in the capital city that serve just vegan
food. These places, like in other cities, often carry photographs and/or quotes
from world-famous people, including scientists like Albert Einstein and
Hollywood celebrities like Justin Timberlake and Kate Winslet, to promote a
vegetarian or vegan diet.
As
Hai observes, contrary to HCM City and Hue, people in Hanoi cannot find
vegetarian food in street-side stalls. A street-side stall that sells only
vegetarian or vegan food is a rarity here, but that looks set to change soon.
By VNA/VNS