Buzz
Phu Quoc Island, a poetic destination nestled in Kiên Giang province, Vietnam. This place is always favored by nature with long stretches of dazzling white sand beaches and crystal-clear, refreshing seawater throughout the four seasons. Phu Quoc Island is also renowned for producing the oldest and most reputable traditional fish sauce in our country. Besides the blue sea and white sand captivating tourists' hearts, we cannot overlook the exquisite local specialties here. Let's explore the top list introducing you to the must-try specialties when visiting Phu Quoc!
- Trich Fish Salad
- Grilled Sea Snails
- Tuna Soup Cake
- Honeycomb Cake
- Wild Mushrooms
- Abalones
- Skillful Cake
- Sea Cucumbers
- Ken Noodles
- Palm Heart Seeds
- Ni Hat Shrimp
- Ham Ninh Crab
- Aromatia Snail
- Sea Cucumbers
- Grilled Cuttlefish Eggs
- Phu Quoc Grouper
- Grilled Snakehead Fish
- Grilled Stingray
- Crab Blood Pudding
- Grilled Thorny Snails
Trich Fish Salad
Trich Fish Salad is one of the finest specialties of the beautiful Phu Quoc coastal region, always enchanting visitors who come here and cannot be missed. Tourists can find this specialty dish at any eatery on the island. Trich Fish Salad is made from the freshest and most delicious fish found here.
This dish is always accompanied by fresh and clean raw vegetables and an indispensable bowl of dipping sauce with a very distinctive flavor. Adding a few peanuts makes it even more savory and sweet. A plate of Trich Fish Salad costs around 60,000 - 150,000 VND.
Trich Fish Salad
Trich Fish Salad
Grilled Conch
Conch is a large sea clam with a triangular shape that dwells deep in the ocean. Locals here craft many unique dishes from conch, primarily using the tender meat portion. Grilled Conch is the standout choice, offering a delightful culinary experience.
Locals extract the conch meat and grill it alongside lemongrass. Fragrant Grilled Conch is available at numerous spots on the island, priced at 40,000 - 70,000 VND, enough to satisfy two hungry diners. For tourists seeking further exploration in Phu Quoc, a diving excursion to admire the coral reefs and catch these distinctive seafood delights firsthand is highly recommended!
Grilled Conch
Grilled Conch
Tuna Fish Cake Soup
When you come to Phu Quoc Island, you will easily find and must try the special and delicious Tuna Fish Cake Soup here. The highlight of this dish is the flavorful tuna slices, combined with chewy and tasty fish cake noodles, and especially the indispensable rich and sweet broth cooked from bone marrow and minced pork. The price of Tuna Fish Cake Soup is only from 25,000 - 35,000 VND per bowl!
Tuna Fish Cake Soup
Tuna Fish Cake Soup
Pyramid-Shaped Leaf-Wrapped Cake
The Pyramid-Shaped Leaf-Wrapped Cake in Phu Quoc Island is a very different type of cake compared to other regions. This cake is wrapped in a leaf used to make hats called the mật cật leaf. The unique highlight of this mật cật leaf-wrapped cake here is that it is not wrapped in a round shape like other types of cakes but instead has a triangular shape. Glutinous rice is mixed with bitter leaf water and pandan leaves to wrap the cake. Therefore, the mật cật leaf-wrapped cake has a green color and a flavor that only Phu Quoc has. The mật cật leaf-wrapped cake is sold per piece depending on its size, ranging from 5,000 to 10,000 VND.
Pyramid-Shaped Leaf-Wrapped Cake
Mật Cật Leaf-Wrapped Cake
Truffle Mushroom
This is an extremely special dish that can be said to be unique to Phu Quoc. Because only in Phu Quoc can you find the special truffle mushroom dish, which is truly one of a kind. Under the skillful cooking of the locals, they have harmoniously combined the rare truffle mushroom with fresh seafood right on the island such as squid, shrimp, etc., to create the perfect and unique truffle mushroom soup. The truffle mushroom soup has a delicious, enticing, and sweet flavor, especially when served with Phu Quoc anchovy fish sauce.
Truffle mushrooms also have a slightly bitter taste, but that is one of its characteristics. Not only used to cook soup, truffle mushrooms are also used to prepare other simple dishes with prices starting from just 40,000 VND per dish! The price of truffle mushrooms ranges from 100,000 to 150,000 VND per kilogram.
Truffle Mushroom
Truffle Mushroom
Sea Cucumber
Sea cucumber, also known locally as 'sea ginseng,' is one of the special and delicious seafood delicacies of the island. Grilled sea cucumber is a tantalizing dish that captivates tourists when they come here to travel and enjoy the perfect fresh seafood. Sea cucumbers are brought in from the deep sea and, through the familiar culinary skills of the locals, are transformed into a highly enticing grilled sea cucumber dish with scallion oil.
Not only limited to exquisite grilled dishes, sea cucumbers can also be boiled, stir-fried, or cooked into porridge. This is a highly nutritious dish and sea cucumbers can also be bought dried as gifts. As a delicacy known for the affluent, the price is relatively high. The average price of dried sea cucumbers is around 550,000 - 600,000 VND per kilogram, but in certain markets, it can go up to over ten million VND depending on the type.
Sea Cucumber
Sea Cucumber
Clever Cake
Clever Cake is a delicacy in Phu Quoc made by locals from wheat flour combined with delicious flavors of fillings such as coconut, green beans, taro... Clever Cake has a mild sweet taste, low fat content, and does not cause a feeling of greasiness for the user.
Phu Quoc Clever Cake comes in various shapes, sometimes molded into small, cute round buns like miniature bao buns, sometimes shaped like a hedgehog with spikes all around, and sometimes rectangular or spiral-shaped... all in unique and eye-catching forms. Visitors can purchase Phu Quoc Clever Cake for 120,000 VND per kilogram at the famous Thai Binh bakery!
Clever Cake
Clever Cake
Sea Urchin
Sea Urchin, also known as sea hedgehog, is a specialty of Phu Quoc with a golden hue. They seem to be crafted from the essence of the sea, so they carry a distinct flavor unlike any other seafood found here. Sea Urchin has a rich, creamy taste that entices travelers to indulge in one after another, leaving them craving for more.
Sea Urchin dishes are prepared in many special ways, including grilling, as well as making sausage or cooking porridge, all of which are delicious. Visitors can also sign up to go sea urchin fishing and enjoy the fresh taste right after catching them, which will be even more wonderful. Prices range from 20,000 to 25,000 VND per sea urchin.
Sea Urchin
Sea Urchin
Bun Ken
This is a special and rare rustic dish that attracts tourists when they visit the pearl island of Phu Quoc. Bun Ken here has the crispiness of papaya, the sweetness of fish, and the incredibly delicious broth. The sea fish in the bowl is finely ground, then seasoned with many ingredients such as lemongrass, chili, and a bit of coconut milk. In Phu Quoc, there are only two places that serve this special bun ken dish: one stall in the Dinh Cau night market and the other stall on the sidewalk run by Mrs. Ut Luom. The price of bun ken is only 20,000 VND per bowl.
Bun Ken
Bun Ken
Mud-Apple Seed Coconut Water
The name Mud-Apple Seed Coconut Water already piques the curiosity of tourists when they come here. It is a refreshing drink, very good for quenching thirst. Mud-apple is a type of sap extracted from a tree, known for its beneficial effects on the liver. When mixed with coconut water and a few mud-apple seeds, it brings a wonderfully sweet taste. This drink is very popular everywhere in Phu Quoc, priced around 15,000 – 30,000 VND depending on the location.
Mud-Apple Seed Coconut Water
Mud-Apple Seed Coconut Jelly
Hat E Palm Wine Jelly
Visiting the beautiful island of Phu Quoc with its stretches of blue sea, white sand, and golden sun, you cannot miss out on the seafood dishes. One particularly unique and delicious dish you shouldn't overlook is the Hat E Palm Wine Jelly. This dish, also known as Hat E Palm Wine Jelly, is made from the sap of the palm tree, known for its sweet and refreshing taste. It's a popular drink enjoyed by locals and tourists alike.
Palm wine jelly is soft, sweet, fragrant, and especially nutritious, making it one of the most enticing seafood dishes for tourists due to its delicious taste. Palm wine jelly can be prepared in various ways such as steaming, boiling, grilling, etc. Each method brings out different flavors, but the sweet and chewy taste of the jelly remains intact. However, locals in Phu Quoc particularly love grilled palm wine jelly with lemongrass and chili. Before grilling, the palm wine jelly is cleaned, split in half, marinated for about 10-20 minutes with a mixture of finely chopped lemongrass, salt, pepper, and chili, then placed in a charcoal stove for about 5 minutes until the shell turns golden brown and emits a fragrant aroma.
Vietnamese Helmet Crab
Vietnamese Helmet Crab
Ham Ninh Stingray
When it comes to crabs in the western region, there's nowhere with better crabs than Cà Mau crabs, and when it comes to stingrays, there's nowhere more excellent than Ham Ninh stingrays in Phu Quoc. Ham Ninh is a fishing village along the coast of Phu Quoc island, belonging to Dong Dao commune, about 20km from the center of Phu Quoc. Stingray is a specialty of this area, almost always available.
Ham Ninh Red Stingray boasts fresh red color, firm and fragrant flesh, and there are many ways to prepare it, but the best is still to boil it and dip it in a salt, pepper, and lime sauce to preserve its original flavor. You can enjoy this type of stingray at restaurants, hotels, and more on the pearl island. However, if you want to choose the best-tasting stingray, you should visit Ham Ninh fishing village. Additionally, you can also purchase this specialty to take home as a gift.
Ham Ninh Red Stingray
Ham Ninh Red Stingray
Sea Snails
True to its name, the sea snail boasts a very distinctive aroma, especially after being cooked. The fragrance of the sea snail will make diners hard to resist. Sea snails can be prepared in various ways such as boiled, steamed, in salads, or with spicy and sour sauce, but perhaps the most enticing is still grilled sea snails with its delightful aroma.
Many fishermen on Phu Quoc Island consider sea snails as a rare delicacy that is being harvested and cultivated to serve tourists and for export. Sea snails in the waters of Phu Quoc are easy to cultivate, grow fast, and require little feed.
Sea Snails
Sea Snails
Sea cucumber
Sea cucumber, commonly known as 'Doan Dot' or 'Dot ngau' by the locals of Phu Quoc, is a culinary delight highly favored for its nutritional richness, being a high-end delicacy. Particularly, the premium sea cucumber specialty is a must-try for many visitors to Phu Quoc.
Sea cucumber is one of the famous 'four famous delicacies' known for its rich nutritional content, salty taste, and warm nature, which is beneficial for health. Being a relatively rare delicacy, sea cucumber commands a high price and is usually caught at night. Sea cucumbers from Phu Quoc can be prepared into various delicious dishes such as simmered sea cucumber with quail, stir-fried sea cucumber with vegetables, stir-fried sea cucumber with chayote, sea cucumber soup with papaya, etc. But the most special is still sea cucumber porridge. Although it may not be budget-friendly, if you're traveling to Phu Quoc, you should definitely give it a try!
Sea cucumber
Sea cucumber
Grilled squid eggs
Grilled squid eggs are among the delicious dishes of Phu Quoc that you must try when visiting this 'pearl island paradise.' Squid eggs are larger than an adult's thumb, almost as long as a finger, and are abundant in the seas around Phu Quoc.
The period from February to May in the lunar calendar is when squid eggs are most abundant. Cooking this dish is not difficult; you just need to choose fresh squid eggs, which have a sweet taste and a rich, fatty flavor. Clean the squid eggs, marinate them with salt, chili, and cooking oil for about 15 minutes to allow the seasoning to penetrate evenly. Then, place the marinated squid eggs on a grill over charcoal. Grill them evenly on both sides until the squid bodies become firm, tense, turn golden, and emit a fragrant aroma, indicating that they are cooked. Enjoy them hot with fish sauce or chili salt lime, accompanied by a few slices of cucumber and cilantro.
Grilled squid eggs
Grilled squid eggs
Phu Quoc groupers
Groupers, already a nutritious type of fish with firm flesh, a fatty taste, and notably soft cartilage in the head, are particularly delicious in the clean, unpolluted waters around Phu Quoc island. Phu Quoc groupers are considered one of the premium and unique seafood delicacies of this paradise island, contributing to the exquisite cuisine of Phu Quoc.
Fish can be prepared into many enticing and delicious dishes. There are numerous ways to cook grouper such as grilling with chili salt, frying with garlic chili fish sauce, or cooking in hotpot. Regardless of the cooking method, grouper always offers a delightful aroma, firm and sweet flesh, and notably, no fishy taste.
Phu Quoc groupers
Phu Quoc groupers
Grilled barramundi
Grilled snakehead fish, dubbed the 'number one' dish in the open sea of Phu Quoc. Snakehead fish is most delicious when it grows to the size of an adult's wrist and must be either live or fresh. There are various dishes made from snakehead fish, such as grilled snakehead fish, sweet and sour snakehead fish, pickled mustard greens with snakehead fish, braised snakehead fish with caramel sauce, but the best seems to be only grilled snakehead fish dipped in salt and lime pepper.
It's not difficult to explain why grilled fish dishes are popular, as the simpler the cooking method, the more the sweet flavor of the fish remains intact. Grilled snakehead fish served with raw vegetables, salted lime pepper sauce, chili, and sim wine is absolutely amazing. In the cool, romantic atmosphere, gathering with friends to grill fish, waiting for it to be cooked and enjoying it while still hot will bring unforgettable experiences.
Grilled snakehead fish
Grilled snakehead fish
Grilled cowfish, despite its ugly appearance, is a delicious dish in Phu Quoc that many tourists choose to enjoy. The fish meat is incredibly flavorful, with a texture similar to chicken meat. Grilled cowfish is prepared quite simply; after cleaning the fish and marinating it, it can be wrapped in foil and grilled directly. Cowfish can be served with spicy salt and lime or salt and pepper lime, ensuring that you will linger on the taste of this dish.
Mặc dù mang hình thù xấu xí nhưng cá da bò lại là món ăn ngon Phú Quốc được nhiều du khách lựa chọn thưởng thức. Thịt cá vô cùng thơm ngon, có vị dai như thịt gà. Món cá da bò nướng được chế biến khá đơn giản, sau khi làm sạch cá, ướp gia vị xong là có thể gói giấy bạc rồi trực tiếp đem đi nướng. Cá da bò có thể chấm kèm muối ớt chanh thật cay hoặc muối tiêu chanh, đảm bảo sẽ làm bạn vương vấn mãi hương vị này.
Grilled cowfish
Grilled cowfish
Crab blood pudding
Just the name sounds strange, doesn't it, folks? You've probably had blood pudding before, but have you ever heard of crab blood pudding? When we talk about the unique specialties of Phu Quoc, we can't forget about crab blood pudding. For crab blood pudding, it's essential to use sea crabs, so choose ones with a lot of roe to make your crab blood pudding sweet, flavorful, and nutritious.
The claws of the crab are cut to let the white blood ooze out, and you have to patiently wait until it all flows out. Typically, a small dish of crab blood pudding requires a few large crabs. One crab is boiled, and then the meat is taken out, marinated with spices, and set aside on a plate. The remaining crabs are used for their blood, poured over the plate of crab meat, and left to solidify into crab blood pudding.
Enjoying crab blood pudding – a delicious dish of Phu Quoc – may taste a bit strange but is incredibly special. The tender crab meat mixed with crab blood, along with the sweet, fatty taste of the crab roe, creates a unique and indescribably delicious combination.
Crab blood jelly
Crab blood jelly
Grilled spiny snail
The spiny snail is a gift bestowed by Mother Nature upon this beautiful land. This is a relatively rare seafood, so spiny snails are rarely found in seafood stores like many other snail species. To make delicious and unique grilled spiny snails, there are various cooking methods such as boiling, stir-frying with garlic, steaming with ginger, mixing in salads, but the most popular method is still grilling or boiling.
Grilled spiny snail
Grilled spiny snail
Posted by: Tố Hương Đặng Thị
Keywords: 20 specialties not to be missed when visiting Phu Quoc Island - Kien Giang
