People usually think of Pho when mentioning Vietnamese foods, especially the Northern cuisine. However, the foods in these regions are much more diverse. The cuisine of Northern Vietnam is delicate and reflects the cultures of Vietnam.
I will not keep you waiting any longer. Here are the iconic Vietnamese foods in the North that you cannot miss.
1. Phở (Pho)
Pho is Vietnam’s most internationally recognized dish. And I think you probably have heard about it too. This classic staple is the quintessential Northern dish. So, what makes Pho so famous?
Pho is a type of noodle soup with the most amazing clear broth that is the heart and soul of Pho. Cooking the broth is the most elaborate stage in this quintessential Vietnamese recipe. The local people cook it by simmering beef or chicken bones, charred ginger, charred onion, and spices.
It is no doubt that Pho is the most famous dish in Vietnam.
However, the ingredients vary depending on region and vendor. All of them give the broth a subtle but flavorful taste. A classic Pho Hanoi consists of rice noodles, broth, meat (either beef or chicken), and herbs.
Since Pho is the national dish, you can find it in almost every city and province in Vietnam with interestingly different variants. Pho is a typical dish reflecting the differences between Northern and Southern cuisine in Vietnam.
The broth of Pho in the South is sweeter, and customers can have a big basket of vegetables accompanied, which is absent in the North. You can squeeze limes and add bean sprouts, basils, and other herbs to your bowl, up to your preference.
Pho is also a healthy and easy-to-digest dish. It is full of calcium from the bones, protein in meat, and vitamins in herbs. So, if you haven’t tried Pho yet, you definitely should because this is the most accessible, tasty, and healthy dish in Vietnam.
2. Bún Chả Hà Nội (Vermicelli With Grilled Pork)
Bun cha is another must-try Vietnamese dish and also a specialty in Hanoi. It consists of three main ingredients: grilled pork, vermicelli noodles, and fish dipping sauce. It also comes with lettuce, basil, and bean sprouts to give a fresh taste.
After grilling the pork over charcoal, the locals put the meat into a bowl of sweet-and-savory fish sauce with green papaya, kohlrabi, and carrot. Some vendors serve it with fried spring rolls that you will learn about shortly after.
Bun Cha is a savory and delicious dish you cannot miss in Northern Vietnam.
In 2016, during an international presidential trip to Vietnam, Barack Obama – the former U.S President, enjoyed Bun cha Hanoi in a local stall. He made Bun Cha even more famous and attracted the attention of international media.
Anthony Bourdain and Barack Obama had Bun Cha for dinner in Vietnam.
3. Nem Rán (Vietnamese Fried Spring Rolls)
Vietnamese Fried Spring Rolls is a traditional Vietnamese dish that has many names. Depending on the region, you may hear the locals call this dish by different names. But Nem ran is more familiar to international friends.
The dish is derived from China and belongs to the dim sum-type dishes. It somehow shows the similarities between Chinese and Vietnamese cuisine.
Nem ran is an irreplaceable dish in Vietnamese cuisine.
While the Vietnamese use rice paper to wrap, the Chinese prefer a wheat base wrapper. The filling includes chopped pork, shrimp, glass noodles, and wood ear mushrooms. But, the ingredients are diverse depending on the region.
The Vietnamese eat fried spring rolls in everyday meals and on special occasions. In Hue, a city in Central Vietnam, fried rolls along with other ingredients garnished in the shape of a peacock is a royal dish. And they serve it in worship and on important occasions.
4. Bún Riêu Cua (Crab Noodle Soup)
Crab and Pork Noodle Soup is a traditional dish with an origin in Hanoi. This noodle dish is especially popular in the Vietnamese countryside. You can easily find it in Vietnamese street vendors.
A bowl of sweet-sour Crab Noodle Soup is like a breeze in summer.
Rieu Cua is the essence of the dish. It is a soup cooked from crab fat, pounded crab meat, tomato, and garcinia multiflora. The dish also consists of tofu and spring onions.
People usually have it with raw vegetables and shrimp paste to increase the taste. The noodle soup flavor is sweet and slightly sour. It is a perfect dish for summer.
5. Bánh Cuốn (Vietnamese Steamed Rice Rolls)
Vietnamese steamed rice rolls is a famous dish in Northern Vietnam. Banh Cuon is a common dish for breakfast everywhere in the country.
The special thing about this dish is how the local people make the rice batter layer. They stretch a thin layer of fermented rice batter on a hot pan and steam it. The cooked layer is so thin and easy-to-broken that they have to be tactful enough to take it out.
Vietnamese Steam Rice Rolls is a delicate dish in the Vietnamese culinary world.
Banh Cuon Thanh Tri is a specialty in Thanh Tri, a ward in Hanoi. Banh Cuon Thanh Tri does not have fillings. They serve it with a few dried shallots sprinkled on top, a bowl of fish sauce, and fresh herbs accompanied.
However, in some places, they also add minced pork and wood ear mushrooms as fillings.
6. Chả Cá Lã Vọng (Turmeric Fish With Dill And Noodles)
Cha Ca La Vong is a traditional food first made by a Doan family living in number 14 Hang Son street in Hanoi. In the 19th century, the host usually treated their neighbors with this dish. It was so good that they decided to help the family open up a restaurant in 1871.
You can only have Cha Ca La Vong in restaurants, not street food vendors, since it is considered a delicacy.
The dish becomes their trademark, and they only pass down the authentic recipe to the oldest children. They have also expanded their branch to Ho Chi Minh City. In addition to Cha Ca, they also serve popular Vietnamese drinks at their restaurant.
They marinate and grill the catfish on charcoal in advance. When serving, they stir-fry the fish on a pan with fat in front of the customers. The dish is served with dill, vermicelli, and peanuts.
7. Bún Đậu Mắm Tôm (Fermented Shrimp Paste With Fried Tofu And Rice Vermicelli)
Bun Dau Mam Tom is an authentic food in Northern Vietnam, especially in Hanoi. However, you can also find this dish easily in other regions. Though it is the favorite dish of many people in Vietnam, foreigners may struggle to eat it because of the smelly shrimp paste.
Bun dau mam tom is a colorful picture on the flat winnowing basket.
Bun Dau Mam Tom consists of vermicelli, fried tofu, boiled pork or pork offal, and fresh vegetables. They usually put everything in a flat winnowing basket.
The fermented shrimp paste is the star of the show. Although it is quite smelly, it tastes so good when you put a bit of garlic and chili and squeeze kumquat into it. It turns from hard-to-eat to addictive. Bun dau mam tom is an iconic Northern dish that you should not miss.
8. Rau Muống Xào Tỏi (Stir-Fried Water Spinach With Garlic)
Water spinach is common vegetation in Asia countries. It is a good source of fiber and mineral iron. The local people cook many tasty dishes from this vegetable, and the most popular is Rau muong xao toi.
Stir-fried water spinach with garlic is a simple and healthy Vietnamese dish you should try.
Since it is a super easy-to-cook and cheap food, people eat it regularly in everyday meals. It is a perfect side dish to eat with rice. Moreover, they believe that it completes the family-style meal by balancing savory braised meat or fish and adding a crunchy texture.
It is not hard to find it in local Vietnamese restaurants. I suggest you give it a try since it is authentic food from Vietnam.
9. Ốc Luộc Chấm Nước Mắm Gừng (Vietnamese Snails With Ginger Sauce)
The next delicacy on this list is an addictive treat to many young people in Vietnam. Although I categorize it into Northern cuisine, this dish is also popular in other regions of Vietnam, especially Ho Chi Minh City.
Boil snails with sauce brings you a unique flavor.
Since snails can be found easily in rivers and lakes in Vietnam, the locals find ways to turn them into delicious dishes. They must be careful in the washing stage because snails can carry mud and slime.
After thoroughly washing, they boil the snails with lemongrass, lemon leaves, ginger, and chili. They also make the dipping sauce with similar ingredients. Boil snails with dipping sauce are chewy and delicious. I suggest you try it when coming to Vietnam.
10. Xôi Xéo (Sticky Rice With Mung Beans And Fried Shallots)
Together with Pho, Xoi Xeo is a national breakfast for Hanoians. In the morning, you may catch the sight of the line of people waiting to buy Xoi Xeo. With only less than half of a dollar, you are full for the whole morning.
Xoi xeo wrapped in banana leaves is an iconic breakfast of people in Hanoi.
Xoi Xeo consists of sticky rice, mung beans, and fried shallots. Some vendors also serve it with grilled chopped meat if you request. The local people usually wrap them in banana leaves. The dish is available all year round in Hanoi, so why don’t you give it a try?
11. Cá Kho Làng Vũ Đại (Braised Fish In Clay Pot)
First, let me explain the Vietnamese name of this dish to you. Ca Kho means braised fish, and làng Vũ Đại means a village named Vu Dai – the origin of this dish.
Braised fish in the clay pot is a traditional dish in Northern Vietnam.
Nowadays, when you visit this village in Ha Nam province, you will see almost every household cooking and selling this dish. Back then, to keep the fish edible for days, people came up with this cooking method.
A complete clay pot of braised fish in Vu Dai usually has four layers: a ginger layer at the bottom, followed by amur fish, pork side meat, and lime juice with crushed galangal. All of them give the dish a unique flavorful taste.
12. Trâu Gác Bếp Tây Bắc (Buffalo Meat Hung Up In Kitchen)
While the cuisines of Vietnam and Thailand have many differences, these two nations also share some dishes. Up to the mountainous areas in Vietnam, I am going to introduce to you a specialty of the Northwest region. It is called Trau Gac Bep Tay Bac, and its origin is actually Thailand.
People came up with this dish when they need food to eat for a long time during the monsoon season or spend days in the forest. The English name already gives you a hint of how the locals make this dish.
Smoky buffalo meat in Northwest Vietnam will amaze you.
People season the buffalo meat with chili, ginger, and Indian prickly ash. After that, they hang up the meat above the charcoal and wood stove. The smoke and heat will slowly cook the meat until all of the season is absorbed into it.
Despite being cooked without preservatives, the meat can last up to a month. The flavor of the buffalo meat is tasty and smoky. It is such a special dish that you cannot miss.
13. Cơm Lam (Sticky Rice Cooked In Bamboo Tube)
Northwest Vietnam is also home to Com Lam. It is a popular dish of several Vietnamese ethnic minorities such as Tay, Thai, Nung, and Muong. You can also find it in the Northeast, Highlands, and some ethnic groups in Laos, Thailand, Cambodia, Myanmar, and China.
If you have a chance to visit the Northwest of Vietnam, do not forget to try Com Lam.
The ingredients for this dish include bamboo tubes, sticky rice, and salt. People choose the favorable bamboo tubes, then put the glutinous rice along with some salt. They cover the tubes’ mouths with banana leaves and grill them.
The sticky rice cooked in bamboo tubes has an amazingly good smell. People serve it with sesame and salt. The combination of Com Lam and chicken is also available in Central Highlands food stalls. The local people, as well as tourists, love this special rice.
14. Đậu Phụ Sốt Cà Chua (Fried Tofu In Tomato Sauce)
Fried Tofu in tomato sauce is a simple and authentic Vietnamese dish.
Even though Fried tofu in tomato sauce is not a famous Vietnamese dish, it is a common dish in everyday meals of Vietnamese people. You can find the dish in food stalls including regular and vegetarian ones.
The recipe is so simple that you can cook it at home at ease. You just need to make sure that you fry the tofu well and make the tomato sauce right. With the sweet, salty, and slightly sour, it is so good to eat it with rice.
15. Nộm Hoa Chuối (Banana Blossom Salad)
Banana Blossom Salad is an incredibly healthy dish you must try in Vietnam.
Nom hoa chuoi is one of the rustic dishes available in almost three regions in Vietnam. Nowadays, the salad appears on the menus of most restaurants in Vietnam. What’s more? It is a popular appetizer at Vietnamese wedding receptions.
The main ingredients include banana blossoms, meat (chicken or beef), shrimp, coriander, mint, bean sprouts, green papaya, carrots, roasted peanuts, sesame seeds, sugar, salt, white vinegar, lime juice, and fish sauce. The salad tastes crunchy, salty, and sweet.
You may find banana blossoms extremely healthy, especially for women. Some outstanding benefits are improving the uterus condition, regulating the menstrual cycle, and aiding anemia treatment.
16. Canh (Vietnamese Clear Soup/Canh)
Canh or Vietnamese clear soup is a national dish in the daily meals of Vietnamese people. Even though you may not hear it as a famous dish, canh is authentic and popular in Vietnam.
You can find canh in an everyday meal in Vietnam.
Canh is a general word for any Vietnamese clear soup. Two common types of canh are vegetables and fish. The recipe can be diverse depending on which kinds of vegetables or fish you use.
This soup goes so well with rice. If you have a chance to experience a regular meal in Vietnam, either lunch or dinner, you may find that they love canh.
17. Bánh Chưng (Vietnamese Square Sticky Rice Cake)
Banh Chung is one of the traditional Vietnamese foods, which represents the culture of Vietnam. The origin of this food attaches to the legend of Lang Lieu, a prince of the sixth Hung King in ancient Vietnam.
Banh Chung is a meaningful and traditional dish in Vietnam.
The dish is made with glutinous rice, mung bean, and fatty pork, and wrapped in dong leaves. Vietnamese people usually eat boiled Banh Chung or fried ones.
Banh Chung is an irreplaceable food in Vietnamese daily life, especially during the Tet holiday. They worship Banh Chung on the altar and serve them later. One of the happy moments for Vietnamese people is when they gather to cook Banh Chung several days before Tet.
18. Cơm Cháy Chà Bông (Scorched Rice Topped With Pork Floss)
Com Chay Cha Bong is another yummy snack in Vietnam. Com Chay or scorched rice is a layer of crunchy brown rice at the bottom of the cooker. It forms when cooking rice over direct heat of a flame.
Once trying Com Chay Cha Bong, you can’t help eating it.
Com Chay is a specialty of Ninh Binh province. In 2012, it was recognized as a delicious Asia dish by Asian Record Organization. Nowadays, it is combined with Cha bong (pork floss) to form an addictive snack.
In Ho Chi Minh City, it is a famous street food. The locals usually make it with scorched rice, pork floss, spring onion greens, and special sauce. Com chay cha bong is so popular that you can find the packaged version in supermarkets.
19. Bánh Đậu Xanh Hải Dương (Mung Bean Cake)
Mung Bean Cake is a specialty in Hai Duong province. It is a super common present for friends and family whenever someone comes back from Hai Duong.
Mung Bean Cake is a famous specialty that you can buy as a present for friends and family.
The ingredients to make the cake are mung bean, sugar, vegetarian oil, and vanilla. Unwrapping the cover, you will see the cute little cubes of mung bean cake. They taste super sweet and almost melt in your mouth.
People place the cakes on a plate and serve them with tea and some tasty Vietnamese fruits. They create a comfortable feeling and a perfect dessert after a meal.
