Vietnamese noodle bowls captivate American tourists

When it comes to Vietnamese cuisine, foreigners often only know about pho. But according to Alison Spiegel, an American journalist, it would be a mistake to ignore the following “equally delicious” noodle dishes:

It was a day when Alison and her husband had just arrived in Vietnam, the air was a bit chilly. The couple started their street food tour with excitement and started with bun cha. She still remembers sitting on the blue plastic chairs, sniffing the bowl of dipping sauce filled with delicious pieces of cha. They were processed and marinated from pork, grilled over charcoal to create a very distinctive aroma. There were two types of cha served: cha vien and cha mung, served with vermicelli and herbs. For Alison, nothing could be more inviting to the stomach. “We ate and felt really happy. This was truly one of the best dishes we had ever enjoyed,” Alison said.

Bun cha Hanoi, the most attractive dish in both winter and summer. Photo: Tourinhanoi.

After that, the couple decided to eat it again. However, this time she mistook “bun ca” for “bun cha”. “It was just missing an “h” but it helped us have a great experience”, she shared. Alison learned that bun ca originated from Nha Trang city and the South Central provinces. The delicious broth is made from pork or chicken, boiled and then poured into a bowl of noodles with fried fish pieces, onions, dill and of course, tomatoes. “Like many other Vietnamese dishes, bun ca also uses a lot of herbs to enhance the flavor, and that is the characteristic of Vietnamese cuisine”, Alison said.

Fish noodle soup with elephant ear mushroom

In Hanoi, Alison and her husband also got to enjoy Vietnam’s most iconic dish: pho. “My husband calls pho flat noodles,” Alison laughs, with two signature flavors: beef and chicken. The broth is flavored with essential spices like cinnamon, star anise, cloves, onion and ginger, poured over a bowl of pho noodles with thinly sliced ​​beef, then garnished with bean sprouts, onions and herbs. Pho is the most popular breakfast dish in Vietnam, although it’s so good you can eat it any time of the day.

According to Alison, Vietnam is very different from the West in that when talking about street food, Western tourists often think of portable dishes like hotdogs or tacos. But in Vietnam, most street food is soupy, requiring diners to sit in one place and slowly enjoy it. The dishes always have many layers of flavor and texture, and the blend of many herbs helps visitors never get bored.

During the trip, Alison and her husband were also determined to try Bun Bo Hue. She learned about this dish through the reality show of American chef Anthony Bourdain. Also made from beef, Bun Bo Hue cannot lack lemongrass and shrimp paste, bringing a strong Central Vietnamese flavor. "I find this dish spicier than most Vietnamese soups I've ever tried," Alison said. In Chef Robert Newton's Nightingale 9 program, he also commented to Food Republic that "Bun Bo Hue is the most soulful and quintessential dish, one of the best dishes in Vietnam."

Bun bo Hue is considered the most soulful and quintessential. Photo: Alison Spiegel.

Alison also said that although pho has now succeeded in becoming an American favorite, she could not find the same delicious taste as when she was in Vietnam. She shared: “Vietnamese cuisine has completely captured my soul, especially the fact that you can enjoy almost all kinds of food, even if you are just wandering around a small neighborhood.”

According to VNE