Street food – a part of Vietnamese culture that you should not miss when visiting Saigon, Vietnam
Saigon, also known as Ho Chi Minh City, is one of the biggest cities in Vietnam. When visiting Saigon, you will find a blend of culture coming from many regions in Vietnam especially three main regions: North of Vietnam, the Center of Vietnam, and the South of Vietnam. Each region has its own features and all these things make a very diverse Saigon. Besides enjoying the landscapes and culture when visiting Saigon, one thing that you should not miss is tasting street food in Saigon. In this post I will tell you some kinds of street food in Saigon that all locals like to eat. Hopefully, you – future visitors – will enjoy or try to eat these kinds of street food when visiting Saigon
1. “Banh trang tron” (Mixed pancake)
This is the favorite street food of most school boys and school girls or students and even office staff in Saigon. “Banh trang tron” is a mixture of many ingredients such as “trung cut” (quail eggs), “dau phong” (peanut), “rau ram” (laksa leaf), “du du xanh” (unripe papaya or sometimes people use unripe mango instead), sausage and “banh trang” (pancake- an indispensable ingredient). Banh trang is cut into small pieces (like a fiber) then it is mixed with other mentioned ingredients. Each ingredient has its own flavors but when they are mixed together they can make a very delicious food. It is advised that you should not buy “banh trang tron” when you are hungry because your taste buds will water during the 10 to 15 minutes it takes a street food vendor to prepare it correctly. Here are some places that you can enjoy your wonderful “ banh trang tron”: Banh trang tron chu Vien (38 Nguyen Thuong Hien street, ward 5, district 3, price is from 10.000VND-20.000VND/bag), Banh Trang Thao (90 Nguyen Thuong Hien, ward 5, district 3, price is from 10.000VND-22.000VND.
2. “Hot vit lon” (eggs)
The Vietnamese like this food a lot because they think it is very good for your health. They say that if you eat a lot of “hot vit lon”, you will not suffer from headaches. Pregnant women should eat “hot vit lon” if they want to give birth to intelligent babies. “Hot vit lon” is an egg with an embryo inside. Some of you maybe do not like this food and the thought might make you sick however it is a popular street food in Vietnam. You can enjoy boiled “hot vit lon” with some special spices such as “muoi tieu” (a mixture of salt and ground pepper), “chanh” (lemon), and “rau ram” (laksa leaf). There are also many other dishes made from “hot vit lon” such as “hot vit lon xao me” (“hot vit lon” is fried with tamarind), “lau hot vit lon” (“hot vit lon’’ hotspot). This street food is very wonderful so you should try eating it when visiting Saigon. You can close your eyes when you try eating this food. Here are some places that sells good “hot vit lon”: Kim Thao quan (Thao Dien, district 2), Dien Bien Phu quan (303 Dien Bien Phu Street, district 3), Quan in Cao Thang street (51/21 Cao Thang, ward 3, district 3), etc.
3. “Pha lau”
This is special food coming from China. “ Pha lau” is made from the internal organs of animals. You will find many kinds of “pha lau” such as “pha lau heo” (made from the internal organs of pigs), “pha lau bo” (made from the internal of cows), etc. In Saigon, people prefer “pha lau bo”. After cleaning the internal organs of cows, people cut them into piece and cook with “nuoc dua” (coconut water) and other spices such as garlic, chilly, “sa” (lemongrass), etc. You can eat “pha lau” with “banh mi” (bread) or noodle. Many Vietnamese from young to old people love this food. They can enjoy this street food if they do not want to eat rice. You can try “pha lau” at these places: Pha lau bo Ba hat (533 BA Hat street, district 10), Pha Lau Li (1A Suong Nguyet Anh Street, district 1), Pha Lau bo Cay Tram (208 Cay Tram, Go Vap District).
4. “Sup cua”
This street food is very popular in Saigon in all seasons, especially in cold weather, “sup cua” is always a wonderful choice. “Sup cua” (crab soup) is made from crabs, pork, eggs, pail eggs, “bot nang” (all-purpose flour – this kind of flour will make “sup cua” viscous). You can enjoy this kind of soup at : Sup Cua Hanh (402, Nguyen Tri Phuong, ward 4, distrcit 10), Sup Cua Hanh (521 Su Van Hanh street, district 10). You just need to pay from 11.000VND to 22.000VND, you can have a wonderful and nutritious street food for your hungry stomach.
Street food in Saigon is very diverse and I cannot list all of them just in a post. If you want to enjoy street food in Saigon, just take a visit to this city. You yourself will discover many other kinds of street food. You can maybe open a store that sells Saigon street food in your country someday. Now pack yours bag and go, Saigon is waiting for you!
Source: http://go-vietnam.com/places-things-vietnam/street-food-part-vietnamese-culture-visiting-saigon-vietnam/
