5 Dishes You Can Serve On A Vietnamese Food Menu

Vietnamese food comes in a wide variety of options when it comes to which dish you should cook today. Among the abundance of Vietnamese food, there are some dishes that appear very frequently on a daily Vietnamese food menu, and this article is for showing you a few of these dishes!

On your Vietnam tours, if you find yourself completely ready for this mouthwatering list, let's go!

Pho

There has to be no reason for which Pho should not be coming first in the list. Considered to be one of the most iconic Vietnamese dishes, the reputation of Pho is, of course, irrefutable when it comes to what should appear on a Vietnamese food menu. Consisting of broth, rice noodles, herbs, and meat, pho can make even the most exacting diners blurt wonderful words about how delicious pho is and about how pho makes them feel. On a Vietnamese food menu, pho is usually served as one of its two versions: the northern, typically Hanoi pho, and the southern, generally Saigon pho. It all depends on your personal taste to pick which one; just remember that the broth of Saigon pho is usually sweeter than that of the more northern pho.

Cha Ca

Hanoians seem to really consider cha ca to be so special that there is in fact a street located in the capital dedicated to these fried morsels of fish. This namesake alley is home to Cha Ca La Vong, which serves sizzling chunks of fish seasoned with garlic, ginger, turmeric and dill on a hot pan tableside.

At home, you can serve cha ca to the family table too.

Banh xeo

Derived from the fun sizzling sound when fried on the pan, banh xeo means "sizzling pancake," interesting enough? This kind of pancake contains shrimp, fatty pork, diced green onions, bean sprouts, and egg, fried and wrapped in rice paper. Bánh xèo culminates in an ambrosia when it gets dipped in a spicy sauce consisting of fish sauce and carrot pickles, this iconic Vietnamese food reaches its climax with a crunchy bite and slowly melts in your mouth. Besides the obvious fact that it is delicious, bánh xèo is so fun to eat, like I can spend the whole day making rolls of bánh xèo without ever getting bored! That being said, bánh xèo is a must-try.

Banh Khot

This lovely variation of banh xeo has all the same tasty ingredients but is much smaller in size. Each piece of banh knot can be "too small" for some demanding eaters but trust me, it is satisfyingly mouthful. The crunchy outside layer is made using coconut milk, and the filling is usually made of shrimp, mung beans, and spring onions with a dusting of dried shrimp flakes on top. This is a must on a Vietnamese food menu during fun occasions, right?

Goi Cuon

Sometimes you will see Goi cuon, or Vietnamese spring rolls, appear on a Vietnamese food menu too because it is really fun to eat. Very similar to bánh xèo, gỏi cuốn consists of pork, prawn, vegetables, rice vermicelli, and other ingredients dependent on one's gusto, all wrapped in rice paper. However, unlike bánh xèo, gỏi cuốn offers a completely different type of dipping sauce: hoisin sauce. Sometimes this typical Vietnamese food can also be served with fish sauce, but this alternative is not as popular as spring rolls with hoisin sauce. Interestingly, in southern Vietnam, Spring rolls are usually called "goi cuon," while in northern provinces, they are often called "nem cuon." Regardless of whichever name it may be, try it.

>>> Cha Ca La Vong Hanoi: A Taste of Vietnam's Culinary Heritage

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