Top 12 Famous Delicious Specialties in Bac Ninh

When it comes to Bac Ninh, one immediately thinks of the melodies of quan ho folk songs, the graceful verses of 'my love, please don't leave...', but here, there are also very rustic dishes that are deeply imbued with the local flavor like Bui Village Spring Rolls, Phu The Cake of Dinh Bang, Chờ Village Rice Cake... and we cannot overlook the specialty of sky birds.

Arriving in Bac Ninh city, diners will easily notice a long street with many large restaurants offering sky birds as their specialty. Almost in front of every restaurant, there are large cages containing birds and chickens of various kinds for diners to freely choose. The outstanding dishes prepared from birds include grilled birds, steamed birds, roasted birds, bird sticky rice, stewed wild ducks with lemongrass and green pepper, medicinal herb stewed tough chicken...

Visitors from other provinces, from Hanoi, from the Central to the Southern region, whenever they have the opportunity to come here, they whisper to each other to try sky birds at least once. In whatever season, from spring to summer, autumn to winter, there are different kinds of birds available, from crickets, shrikes, pipits, to ducks, geese, and quails, served in various styles: grilled, stir-fried, steamed, boiled, roasted, in jelly, marinated in wine...

When it comes to rat meat, many people may feel disgusted, but in Đình Bảng, it is considered a specialty. Although not as common as dog, chicken, or beef meat, people in Bắc Ninh still use rat meat as an everyday food. In fact, many households even include this specialty in their wedding feasts.

In the old belief of Đình Bảng people: 'A feast in Đình Bảng without rat meat is not grand.' Just this short phrase is enough to understand how the speciality of rat meat is viewed by the locals here. And it can be said that the rat meat feast in Đình Bảng has met the criteria of culinary art of the thousand-year-old Kinh Bắc region, hence the widespread good reputation.

From rat meat, various delicious dishes can be prepared such as rat cooked with beans, stewed rat, stir-fried rat with sweet and sour sauce or tomato sauce, making many mouths water when these dishes are presented. But perhaps the most delicious and popular dish is still the rat meat boiled and pressed with lime leaves. People in Bắc Ninh also believe that eating rat meat is good for health, with the function of reducing pain and strengthening bones.

Bride's Cake (also known as xu xê cake or xu xuê cake) is a traditional sweet cake of Vietnam. Đình Bảng is closely associated with the prosperity of the Lý dynasty and is the place where this type of cake was first made. Why is it called bride's cake? Legend has it that during a village festival in Đình Bảng, Emperor Lý Thánh Tông and his consort, Empress Ỷ Lan, were presented with this cake by the villagers. After tasting it, both the Emperor and the Empress praised its deliciousness. It was believed that if one could eat this cake, their family would be happy. Since then, the bride's cake has become a must-have item in marriage proposals of people in Kinh Bắc, and indeed, throughout Vietnam.

To make delicious cakes, one must choose fragrant sticky rice. The yellow color of the cake crust is created from dành dành flowers. The cake makers dry the dành dành flowers and soak them in boiling water to extract the yellow liquid, which is then mixed into the flour to create the cake's color. The cake is wrapped in two types of leaves, with banana leaves inside and coconut leaves outside. The green wrapping symbolizes loyalty, while the pink tie represents the bond of love, and the yellow cake expresses the wife's love for her husband.

Bùi Village Spring Rolls from Bùi Xá village have a tradition spanning a hundred years and are one of the specialties that people in Kinh Bắc have preserved intact. Despite the ups and downs, in recent years, Bùi Village Spring Rolls have gradually appeared on the market and become a delicious, affordable dish, as well as a meaningful gift for friends and relatives after each visit to Bắc Ninh.

As a dish that is not picky, you can enjoy Bùi Village Spring Rolls at any time of the day. Although it is more of a snack than a full meal, during lunchtime, especially on sunny days, a piece of Bùi Village Spring Rolls with a cool beer is the ideal choice. Spring rolls are best consumed on the same day, but if refrigerated, they can last 2 - 3 days. Diners can find Bùi Village Spring Rolls in Bắc Ninh. They are prominently displayed along the national highway running from Cầu Hồ - Thuận Thành to Hải Dương, with signs selling Bùi Village Spring Rolls everywhere.

For ages, noodles have become an indispensable dish in the lives of the people of Kinh Bac, and the whole country in general. Whenever they enjoy dishes like crab vermicelli soup, grilled meatballs... they always mention Tiền Village noodles, in Khắc Niệm commune, Bac Ninh city.

To obtain those translucent, fresh, and elastic noodles, the people of Tiền Village must go through many intricate stages from selecting rice, grinding flour, cooking, to pressing through molds to create strands, all of which require meticulousness and skill. The finished noodles are served with meat, fresh vegetables, or various hot noodle soup dishes with unique variations typical of Bac Ninh region. Despite its seemingly simplicity, this dish always attracts diners when they visit Bac Ninh.

Kế rice crackers are a simple yet flavorful delicacy encapsulating the rustic essence of Bac Ninh. These golden horse-shaped crackers, with their chewy texture and fragrant aroma of peanuts, sesame seeds, sweet potatoes, have become an indispensable gift for tourists visiting or just passing through Bac Ninh.

Kế rice crackers have become a famous rustic specialty not only domestically but also internationally, reaching places like Russia and Singapore. Visitors not only get to savor the delicious taste of rice crackers right where they are made but also have the opportunity to purchase authentic crackers from the original village as souvenirs while visiting the Dinh Ke Temple (also known as Nghè Cả Temple).

Tich Nghi Fish Porridge is a familiar dish not only to the people of the Kinh Bac region but also to visitors from all over who come to Bac Ninh. Tich Nghi porridge is cooked with carp and grass carp, known for their fragrant and firm flesh. The fish must be large and sourced from the ponds and lakes in Bac Ninh. The fish is not cooked directly with the porridge but is instead added to the pot of already cooked porridge after marinating and frying.

You can find this dish in many restaurants, served in steaming bowls with thick, creamy porridge enveloping the fish meat, adorned with a golden hue and fresh herbs at the bottom. What makes the flavor of the fish porridge rich and savory is the fish bones, crushed to extract the broth used in cooking the porridge.

Despite being fish porridge, diners do not perceive any fishy taste. With each spoonful, you'll experience the porridge melting in your mouth, with the fragrant chewiness of simmered rice, the fresh chunks of fish, its firm and sweet texture mingling with the aromatic herbs and spices like shallots, dill, cilantro, and basil. If you're lucky, you might even find some rich and creamy fish roe. The people of the Kinh Bac region have their own way of eating fish porridge, by adding vinegar, garlic, and dried chili.

Vân Village Wine, an indispensable specialty of Bac Ninh on festive occasions, Tet, or as a gift. The wine is brewed from fragrant glutinous rice, as well as from dried or fresh cassava, combined with 35 rare northern medicinal herbs and the art of fermentation and aging by the local people.

The wine is smooth, with a rich flavor, and after drinking, there is a special lingering taste in the throat and no headache. When shaking the bottle vigorously, numerous small bubbles immediately rise and then gradually disappear like fireworks. All of these create the unique characteristics of the wine bearing the Vân Village brand, which has existed for centuries and is known to people both inside and outside the country. However, if you drink wine, you are not allowed to operate any transportation.

Visitors to Diem Village not only enjoy the smooth folk songs of the locals but also savor the fragrant and rustic green Khuc Cake, which embodies the essence of the countryside. Diem Village, also known as Viem Xa hamlet in Hoa Long commune, Bac Ninh city, is an ancient village with the temple of King Ba, the origin of the Quan Ho folk songs. Over time, it has become a gathering place for visitors who want to immerse themselves in the traditional Quan Ho music. But that's not all, anyone who visits here cannot forget the simple yet flavorful Khuc Cake, imbued with the aroma of the Kinh Bac countryside. The Diem Village Khuc Cake has been a tradition for generations, typically made for festivals, gatherings, or special occasions to treat relatives and guests.

The Khuc Cake from Diem Village comes in two varieties: pork and mung bean fillings. The mung bean filling has a nutty flavor from the beans, a fatty taste from the pork fat, and a hint of pepper. The onion filling is slightly different. Dried onions are used as the main ingredient, along with shallots, pepper, coriander, and finely chopped pork belly. The Diem Village Khuc Cake is a harmonious blend of natural ingredients, from the fragrant glutinous rice to the savory mung bean filling and the rich flavor of pork belly. All these are complemented by the refreshing taste and warmth of a unique herb - khuc leaves.

Anyone who has tasted scattered cake (also known as plain cake), a famous rural gift from Cho town, Yen Phong district, Bac Ninh province, will never forget the sweetness of the meat, the fragrant aroma of onions, the crispness of wood ears, and the fragrant softness of the cake dough.

Plain cake, also known as leaf cake or scattered cake, is named for its shape resembling scattered teeth. It is a traditional cake in the Red River Delta region. The cake is made from plain rice flour, wrapped in dong leaves, and boiled until cooked. The plain cake is best enjoyed while still hot, offering a perfect combination of crispiness, richness from the filling, and the intense aroma of the leaves, unmatched by any other type of cake. It is typically served with chili sauce or chili fish sauce, according to individual preferences.

Legend has it that the craft of making soy sauce in Đình Tổ has a long history intertwined with the legend of the first Trạng Nguyên of Đại Việt, Lê Văn Thịnh. The delightful aroma and simple taste have won the hearts of many, and that's none other than the soy sauce of Đình Tổ village. Đình Tổ Soy Sauce is made from main ingredients including corn, along with soybeans and glutinous rice.

All of these are naturally fermented without using any chemicals or additives. The rich flavor of Đình Tổ Soy Sauce is a blend of various rural ingredients, which is why the taste of this dish is so rustic. This soy sauce can be used as a dipping sauce for various vegetables, boiled or steamed meats, noodle dipping, or fish stew... Đình Tổ Soy Sauce is particularly delicious when enjoyed with the famous floating rice cakes of Bắc Ninh. Be sure to savor this dish when you visit Bắc Ninh!

Phoenix Wing Betel Nut evokes beautiful imagery reminiscent of the fairy tale Tấm Cám and the betel chewing custom that has become a practice, a tradition of the Vietnamese people. Since ancient times, the betel leaf has been woven into poetry, legends, folk tales... reflecting many aspects of cultural beauty, emotional elevation, love, and forming distinct regional cultures.

Talking about Phoenix Wing Betel Nut is talking about the betel chew of the Kinh Bac region. It's the same raw material, but the beautiful decoration, the style, has shown the skillfulness of the Kinh Bac girls. Therefore, the betel chew has a special appeal and leaves a deep impression on anyone, even if invited just once. In social interactions, 'the betel chew is the beginning of the conversation'. The betel chew is often accompanied by greetings and an attitude of the host. Polite people don't 'chew betel with a frown', meaning that if they welcome, they welcome wholeheartedly - 'Here, have a betel chew. May I ask where you're from?'.

Inviting betel also demonstrates subtle, delicate emotional nuances. Inviting betel is a courtesy even when disliking each other, following the rules of etiquette, still inviting betel. There's a folk saying: 'love each other, betel is split six ways; hate each other, betel is split to make ten'. And even without betel, welcoming guests still involves offering betel, like Nguyễn Khuyến, which is an unusual case - 'Entertaining guests without betel. When you come to visit, it's just you and me'. Especially notable is the betel chew offered by Hồ Xuân Hương. There's something truly extraordinary about the betel chew, brimming with challenge and the courage of the host.