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Indulge in a steaming hot, sweet and savory bowl of fish noodle soup and crispy fish crackers that will leave an unforgettable taste in your mouth while traveling to different regions of our homeland.
Exploring 6 delectable variations of fish noodle soup and crispy fish crackers from North to South Vietnam
1. Spicy Fish Noodle Soup from Hai Phong
Spicy fish noodle soup is a familiar breakfast dish in Hai Phong. The bowl of noodles consists of crispy and fragrant fried tuna pieces, along with tender and chewy fish intestines that are delightful to eat. The broth here has a rather spicy and flavorful taste that is just right.
The bowl of Hai Phong fish noodles has a shiny yellow color from the golden fried fish cake, green stripes from the scallions, and red color from the chili sauce on the white backdrop of the noodles submerged in extremely enticing broth. When eating fish noodles, there is a rich sweetness from the bones, from the fish cake, a strong spicy taste of chili, and a refreshing coolness of raw vegetables.
2. Hung Yen Sweetfish Soup
Hung Yen sweetfish soup is a delightful dish enjoyed with blanched vegetables. The fish is prepared from small sweetfish. Despite their small size, the chefs meticulously remove the bones from each fish after cooking, then thoroughly clean and carefully season them before frying to a golden hue. Wild sweetfish are already renowned for their aroma, and this elaborate preparation method only enhances their sweetness and richness.
Hung Yen sweetfish soup is served with authentic Hung Yen flat rice noodles. The noodles are soaked in a broth made from sweetfish, slightly dark in color, adorned with golden fish roe – a color unique to northern sweetfish soup. Sweetfish soup can also be enjoyed with fried tofu. The hot, crispy golden tofu, paired with a steaming bowl of soup and the rich aroma of fish and the pungent sweetness of fresh vegetables, is truly irresistible.
3. Quynh Coi Fish Soup
Although called fish soup, Quynh Coi fish soup is not your ordinary fish soup but a Thai Binh-style flat rice noodle dish. This dish is made from wild sweetfish or carp, fresh vegetables, and Thai Binh flat rice noodles, known for their thin, chewy texture made from pre-seasoned rice. The fish meat is usually marinated in fish sauce instead of being fried to a golden crisp.
The broth of Thai Binh fish soup, despite the absence of tomatoes or vinegar, has a refreshing, non-greasy taste. A bowl of Quynh Coi fish soup has a rich fish flavor, with a sweet aftertaste from the bones blending with the spicy heat of fresh ginger, various fragrant herbs, or the pungent aroma of vegetables, making it truly unforgettable.
4. Nha Trang Fish Cake Noodle, Jellyfish Vermicelli
Nha Trang fish cake noodle is a famous dish from the coastal city of Nha Trang, a simple dish with clear broth, fish cake, and small vermicelli noodles. The delicious and renowned fish cake is made from fresh fish, ensuring its chewiness. Ingredients like tuna, mackerel, and barracuda are often prepared as two types of fish cakes: steamed and fried.
Additionally, jellyfish vermicelli is made with jellyfish, caught right off the coast of Nha Trang. Jellyfish vermicelli is served with fish cake and minced fish in a clear, sweet broth. When enjoying this dish, a plate of finely chopped raw vegetables, spicy chili, and lime are indispensable.
5. Quy Nhon Fish Cake Noodle
When visiting Quy Nhon, besides enjoying many local specialties such as fermented pork roll, sizzling pancake with shrimp, and seafood, one cannot miss Quy Nhon fish cake noodle. The fish cake here is made from fresh fish like tuna, barramundi, mackerel, catfish, and ponyfish, with minced fish mixed with spices (shallots, pepper, garlic, chili, salt, sugar) and then ground.
The fish cake is marinated with spices, shaped into balls or pressed into pieces, then fried or steamed according to preference. Secondly, the broth for the noodles is not made from pork bones but simmered from fresh fish bones with added purple onions, fragrant fruits, clear water, sweet without being fishy.
6. Chau Doc Fish Noodle
When it comes to fish noodles, people often think of the renowned Chau Doc fish noodles. Chau Doc fish noodles require elaborate cooking and meticulousness from the cook. Delicious fish noodles require a clear broth with sweetness from fish bones, the rich taste of shrimp paste, and most importantly, no fishy smell. Therefore, it is essential to choose fresh, live snakehead fish so that when cooked, the fish meat is delicious and sweet.
After boiling, the fish is taken out, the flesh is removed from the bones, and the fish bones are discarded. This fish flesh is marinated with spices and turmeric powder and lightly stir-fried to absorb the flavors. As for the broth, it is cooked with boiled fish water, then pork bones are added to enhance the sweetness. Next, the vendor adds lemongrass, mashed turmeric, fresh turmeric juice, and shrimp paste to contribute to the special flavor of fish noodles.
When eating, the noodles are blanched in boiling water, then slices of fish and roasted pork are added (some places serve it with fish cake, depending on the taste preferences of each region, there will be different variations), finally pouring the broth to just cover the surface of the noodles. The accompanying vegetables for fish noodles are also very diverse, such as finely chopped water spinach, young banana flower, bean sprouts, water morning glory, and wildflowers.
According to Afamily
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Reference: Travel Guide from Mytour
MytourMarch 13, 2017
