Top 23 Signature Dishes of Northern Vietnamese Cuisine

Vietnam holds the Guinness World Record for the most appealing noodles globally. When it comes to iconic noodle dishes, one cannot overlook Hanoi Pho. In fact, Pho has become synonymous with Vietnam, particularly the North.

Emerging in the early 20th century, primarily in Hanoi and Nam Dinh, Pho comprises mainly of flat rice noodles and broth (referred to as 'leao' in the Southern dialect). Traditional 'pho noodles' are made from rice flour, flattened into thin sheets, then cut into strands. The enjoyment of a delicious bowl of Pho depends heavily on the experience and secrets of the chef, with a crucial element being the broth. Pho broth is simmered from beef bones (or pork bones), with various spices such as cinnamon, star anise, roasted ginger, coriander seeds, cloves, dried onions, creating a distinctive flavor profile.

The most popular Pho varieties are beef Pho and chicken Pho (with various cuts of meat accompanying the noodles). Beef for Pho must be tender cuts, such as brisket or flank, cooked rare or well-done. Chicken is typically free-range, boiled, and shredded for a rich, sweet flavor. Pho is best enjoyed piping hot and is often accompanied by black pepper, vinegar with chili, and sliced lime. Renowned traditional Pho brands include Pho Bat Dan, Pho Gan Cau, Pho Suong, Pho Vui, Pho Nho, Pho Thin Bo Ho, Pho Thin Lo Duc. Many Pho restaurants proudly display signs like 'Nam Dinh traditional Pho', especially those with the surname Co, contributing significantly to the list of famous Pho eateries in Hanoi such as Pho Cu Chieu - Hang Dong, Pho Co Thuong - Thai Thinh, Pho Co Cu - Thuy Khue. Apart from its widespread reputation for its rich flavor, Hanoi Pho is also highly nutritious, containing 18-20 types of natural animal and plant-based ingredients. What's most unique about Pho is that these ingredients are used almost in their pristine state and harmoniously blend to create a distinct, delicious, easily digestible flavor.

If you have friends, colleagues visiting or living in Hanoi, introduce them to the capital's cuisine, especially the traditional Pho dish. You can also take them to savor various delicious dishes that will leave an unforgettable impression, according to the seasons of Hanoi, allowing them to experience the diversity and richness of the capital's cuisine.

Thanh Tri boasts delicious steamed rolled cakes,
With Ngu Nhac hill, and the Red River flowing,
Beautiful scenery and bustling people,
With bamboo flutes by green rice fields.

When mentioning the delicious rice-based dishes that have existed for generations in Hanoi, it would be a big omission not to mention Thanh Tri steamed rolled cakes. The plate of piping hot, fragrant steamed rolled cakes with various ingredients has stood the test of time without change.

Making steamed rolled cakes requires skill. The rice flour used must be of good quality, usually fragrant sticky rice, finely ground like water. Each rice paper is spread on a stretched cloth over a pot of boiling water. Each thin sheet of cake is as delicate as a sheet of smooth silk, spread with a little fried onion oil for fragrance. As guests arrive, the seller skillfully peels each sheet as if separating layers of thin, silky silk. This is the most meticulous step, requiring the mastery of many skills of the cake maker because if the batter is too thick, the cake will not be attractive and may be difficult to cook; if the batter is too thin, the cake will not hold its shape. When picking up the cake, it is also a clever feat to pick up each thin sheet without tearing it. Steamed rolled cakes are not only delicious and visually appealing, but to fully enjoy their taste, a dipping sauce is essential. The dipping sauce is skillfully mixed with delicious fish sauce, vinegar, a few slices of fresh chili, a drop of shrimp paste, and fried shallots. The cakes can be enjoyed with cinnamon pork sausage, shredded meat, or steamed shrimp in a pot of hot water. Each plate of Thanh Tri steamed rolled cakes with dozens of thin sheets is enough for a delicious breakfast.

Some famous addresses in Hanoi where diners can visit to enjoy the authentic taste include: Hang Bo steamed rolled cakes, Aunt Lan's steamed rolled cakes, Mrs. Hanh's steamed rolled cakes, Mrs. Hoanh's steamed rolled cakes, Dai Dong steamed rolled cakes, Hang Cot steamed rolled cakes, Bao Khanh steamed rolled cakes, Be Van Dan steamed rolled cakes, Dao Duy Tu steamed rolled cakes, and Phuong steamed rolled cakes.

Vong Village Green Rice Flakes are a culinary specialty of Vietnam. This is a distinctive product of Vong Village, formerly known as Hau hamlet, belonging to Dich Vong commune, Tu Liem district; now located in Dich Vong Hau ward, Cau Giay district, Hanoi.

The craft of making Vong Village Green Rice Flakes originates from legend: In a fall season thousands of years ago, when the rice began to bend, it rained heavily, the wind blew, the dyke broke, and even the highest rice fields were submerged. The people of Vong Village had to cut those young rice panicles, bring them home to dry, and eat gradually to fight hunger. Unexpectedly, this involuntary product has its own unique flavor, very attractive, which the people of Vong Village often make to enjoy whenever autumn comes.

'Vong Village Green Rice Flakes, Mễ Trì fragrant rice,
Bần soy sauce, Lang coriander, nothing tastes better'

Speaking of Vong Village Green Rice Flakes, it is a flat rice flake, green in color, made from young rice panicles that have just passed the milk-ripe stage. The craft of making rice flakes is also meticulous. Mature rice grains are no longer green, hard, and broken. If the rice is too young, the rice grains stick to the husk, lose their taste. Usually, the rice harvested on the same day is roasted and pounded on the same day, roasting the rice just right, the grains ripen, not crispy but peel off the husk. Pounding the rice with a special mortar, with a steady and light pace, so that the rice flakes are smooth and elastic.

The rice flakes are wrapped in old lotus leaves imbued with pure lotus fragrance or fresh green banana leaves and tied with golden straw strands. Rice flakes are considered a gourmet gift not intended for busy people because to enjoy the delicate and fragrant taste of our rice flakes, one must pick up each small lump contained in the lotus leaf, chew the rice flakes slowly to feel the sweet fragrance of young glutinous rice and the fragrant scent of lotus. Vong Village Green Rice Flakes is a symbol of Hanoi autumn and it is as gentle as the people of Trang An.

Besides pho, grilled pork vermicelli is also a delicious dish in the list that reminds people of Hanoi whenever they travel far away, and if you set foot in the capital, you must try it.

Grilled pork vermicelli is a dish with vermicelli, grilled pork patties on charcoal and a bowl of sweet and sour spicy fish sauce. The dish originated from Northern Vietnam, it is the most enduring gift of Hanoi, so it can be considered one of the typical specialties of Hanoi cuisine. Grilled pork vermicelli has a similar feature to grilled pork vermicelli in Central and Southern Vietnam, but the mixed fish sauce has a lighter flavor. In the past, grilled pork vermicelli was often eaten at lunchtime, but nowadays you can enjoy the exquisite cuisine at all times of the day.

There are many variations of grilled pork vermicelli that diners can refer to such as banana leaf-wrapped grilled pork vermicelli, grilled pork vermicelli on skewers, breakfast grilled pork vermicelli, vinegar-dipped grilled pork vermicelli, etc.

It's not difficult to find a grilled pork vermicelli restaurant in Hanoi. Some famous names with distinctive flavors of grilled pork vermicelli are Đắc Kim grilled pork vermicelli on Hang Manh street, Bình Chung grilled pork vermicelli on Bach Mai street, Sinh Từ grilled pork vermicelli, Duy Diễm grilled pork vermicelli on Ngọc Khánh street, Hương Liên grilled pork vermicelli on Ngô Thì Nhậm street, Ngọc Xuân grilled pork vermicelli on Thụy Khuê street, etc.

Rice cake, also known as 'leaf cake' or 'chaotic gear cake,' is a traditional cake in the Northern Delta region of Vietnam. Made from coarse rice flour, wrapped in dong leaves, and steamed until cooked. The filling typically consists of pork shoulder and wood ear mushrooms (or mung bean filling for those who do not eat pork filling). When made with fragrant eight-ridged rice, the cake becomes more fragrant, soft, and chewy. Each locality has its own way of making rice cakes, but they all carry their own unique flavor found only in the North. Rice cakes are typically served with fish sauce sprinkled with ground pepper, lime, garlic, and chili, or dipped in chili sauce. In some places, diners also add chicken sausage and a little shrimp paste oil to the fish sauce to enhance the flavor of the cake. In the past, rice cakes were only made for offerings on full moon days, anniversaries, and Lunar New Year. Nowadays, there are regions where rice cakes are made and sold year-round, while some areas only make them to order.

Some famous types of rice cakes include: Chờ village rice cake (Yên Phong, Bắc Ninh); Phú Nhi village rice cake (Phú Thịnh Ward, Sơn Tây, Hà Nội); Rice cake in Phụng Công commune, Văn Giang, Hưng Yên (also known as chaotic gear cake); leaf cake in Khoái Châu, Hưng Yên; Mỹ Đức, Hà Nội also has rice cakes, but they are less well-known.

Say goodbye to the exquisite culinary dishes of the capital city to explore a highly enticing delicacy from Hai Duong province. Green bean cake is a specialty of Hai Duong that has captured the hearts of many, including foreigners, upon first taste. It is simple yet flavorful, exuding the rich essence of the Northern countryside.

To make this cake, pure green bean flour is essential, free from artificial flavorings. The cake is made from wet flour, mixed with just the right amount of fat and sugar to achieve a sweet and creamy texture, imbued with the aroma of green beans. The ingredients include green beans, refined sugar, vegetable oil, and vanilla. Each ingredient must be carefully selected and processed. Mixing these four ingredients in specific proportions is crucial; deviating from the ratio will result in inferior quality cakes. Enjoying green bean cake with tea creates a truly Vietnamese flavor.

Renowned brands of green bean cakes from Hai Duong include Nguyen Huong and Hoa An. Hai Duong's green bean cakes are famous nationwide for their sweet taste that melts in the mouth, allowing the eater to savor the sweetness, slight creaminess, and subtle aroma of pomelo flowers and green beans. Those who have ventured far from home will always remember, finding it hard to forget the distinctive flavor of green bean cakes. Therefore, anyone visiting Hai Duong must taste this flavor or purchase it as a gift.

Vermicelli soup represents the culinary art of Hanoi. They say Hanoi's cuisine is sophisticated, and that's true for vermicelli soup. Once you've tasted it, you'll remember the rich flavors of your homeland.

Making vermicelli soup is a meticulous process, from preparation to cooking. It requires about 20 ingredients. Coriander, basil, thin-fried eggs, shredded chicken breast, and sliced sausage are evenly spread over white vermicelli noodles. The noodles must be fine strands. Shrimp flakes and a few slices of Chinese sausage are sprinkled on top. The broth should be clear, hot enough to fill the bowl, and seasoned with vinegar, chili, garlic, pepper, or a little shrimp paste. A variant of vermicelli soup is dry vermicelli: the broth is not poured over the noodles but served separately to be dipped. It still contains the same flavors as the soup but is not slurped like the soup.

Some famous vermicelli soup addresses in the capital city include Vermicelli Soup at 48 Cau Go, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi, Vermicelli Soup at Hang Hom, Vermicelli Soup at Giang Vo – D2 Giang Vo, Ba Dinh District, Vermicelli Soup at Ha Hoi, Vermicelli Soup at Hang Hanh – No. 29 Hang Hanh, Hoan Kiem.

Ninh Binh not only attracts a large number of tourists with its beautiful natural landscapes but also captivates the hearts of food enthusiasts with a diverse menu of signature mountain goat dishes. Ninh Binh goat meat is superior to other regions because the goats here are raised in rocky mountains and feed on a variety of leaves, resulting in firmer meat compared to pasture-fed goats. Ninh Binh has its own secret, turning goat meat into a famous specialty. The dishes made from Ninh Binh mountain goats are very diverse, such as rare goat meat, goat hotpot, stir-fried goat, grilled goat, goat braised, goat steamed, etc. Especially, the rare goat meat dish is delicately prepared, with sweet and crispy meat, eaten with fragrant herbs like basil leaves, starfruit leaves, and mulberry leaves, the savory flavor permeates the palate of the connoisseur.

Goat meat is highly nutritious and is used as a type of medicinal food to treat back pain. Goat bile mixed with alcohol helps nourish the blood and treat headaches, dizziness. In folk medicine, dishes made from goat meat have the effect of treating back pain, weak knees, tonifying the kidneys and strengthening virility, low sperm count, ringing in the ears, weak lower back, weak physical condition, etc.

Đình Bảng Bride Cake is a traditional Vietnamese sweet cake. It symbolizes the loyalty of married couples and is often present at weddings as a message to young couples. Đình Bảng is associated with the prosperity of the Ly dynasty and is the place where this type of cake was first made. Wrapped in simple dong leaves, then boiled, Đình Bảng Bride Cake does not boast a fragrant aroma like fried cakes or khuc cakes. It's not until the cake is unwrapped and placed on a porcelain plate that one truly marvels. Beneath the transparent golden crust, the cake filling is revealed. Besides green beans, which have been peeled and steamed until soft, people also add white sugar, coconut, lotus seeds, and various aromatic spices.

To make the cake, people must choose fragrant and delicious sticky rice. The rice is soaked, drained, and ground using a mortar, not a machine. Then, the rice starch is filtered. One kilogram of fragrant sticky rice usually yields only 4 liang of rice starch. The filtered powder is finely ground and then dried or sun-dried for 15 days before making the cake; if made immediately, the cake will crumble. The cake filling is made from thoroughly cleaned and steamed green beans. They are finely ground, mixed with sugar, and blended with shredded coconut. When served, the cake is usually cut into four pieces, with four lotus seeds placed at the four corners of the filling.

Hải Phòng Fish Cake Noodles is a very popular dish because there are many delicious fresh fish available here to make fish cakes. Hải Phòng Fish Cake Noodles is a harmonious combination of seafood and agricultural products. The fish in the bowl of noodles include: fish cakes and fried fish chunks. Fish cakes create the most special flavor for this dish, and they are also an important component that determines the deliciousness of the bowl of noodles. Fish cakes must be made from tuna, with the fish meat ground and mixed with dill, pepper, and a little turmeric powder for visual appeal... The broth must be simmered with pig's trotter bones and fresh boiled seawater bones for sweetness and a distinctive aroma.

Eating fish noodle soup cannot be without finely chopped water spinach, along with lettuce, coriander, mint,... Fish noodle soup does not make people feel overwhelmed, so during the Tet holiday, fish noodle soup is sold everywhere in Hải Phòng. Some famous fish cake noodle addresses that diners can visit in Hải Phòng are Mrs. Hường's fish cake noodles, Long Thủy fish cake noodles, ...

Bánh gio, also known as 'rice cake wrapped in dong leaves,' is a traditional Vietnamese delicacy. It is made primarily from soaked glutinous rice wrapped in dong leaves and boiled until cooked. This type of cake used to be commonly seen in ancestral worship rituals of Vietnamese people on the occasion of Tet Doan Ngo, alongside various fruits, meats, sticky rice, and desserts. Nowadays, rice cakes are made and sold year-round across all regions of the country.

The cake has a mild, refreshing taste with a hint of lime residue, which may seem unfamiliar at first. According to traditional medicine, rice cakes have a cooling nature, making them easy to digest and most suitable for the elderly, children, and individuals with chronic latent heat syndromes (Yin deficiency), or those who are prone to Yin excess during the peak Yang season, such as the beginning of the fifth lunar month (Doan Ngo - the middle of summer). During Tet Doan Ngo, rice cakes play a crucial role as they help neutralize harmful elements in the diet to protect health on this day and even afterwards, promoting urination and detoxification to prevent and contribute to the treatment of certain conditions requiring diuresis, such as hypertension, gout, kidney stones, etc.

In Vietnam, the Northern region is famous for villages producing rice cakes, such as Dac So village in Hoai Duc district, Hanoi; Tay Dinh rice cakes in Binh Xuyen, Vinh Phuc; Nang cakes in Cho Trang, Lap Thach, Vinh Phuc; Nang cakes in Lang Dong, Xuan Lung, Phu Tho, and the cakes of the Muong ethnic community in Thanh Son, Phu Tho. In the Central region, there are Yen Lang rice cakes in Tho Xuan, Thanh Hoa; rice cakes in Quang Nam, rice cakes in Phu Yen, Binh Dinh.

Visiting Ha Giang at any time of the year, you can't overlook a bowl of bitter melon congee with its distinctive bitter taste. Ha Giang's bitter melon congee has a rich, fragrant, spicy, and characteristic taste of bitter melon. When you first taste it, you'll notice a bitter, astringent flavor that's hard to swallow, but just a few spoons will make it sweet and addictive. A bowl of bitter melon congee is like a traditional remedy for ethnic people. Bitter melon congee is usually eaten in the evening, when its effects are best felt during a night's sleep. A bowl of bitter melon congee acts like a miracle remedy, soothing the fatigue of the day for a deeper and more refreshing sleep.

Cooking a bowl of Bitter Melon Congee is also intricate and involves many steps. Bitter melon is soaked thoroughly in dense rice water overnight, then washed clean and simmered for over 4 hours until soft and tender. Fragrant plain rice is mixed with a little glutinous rice for a thick, sticky congee. The bitter melon pulp is cooked with rice and broth simmered from pork leg bones. Finally, when served, beaten eggs are added, along with chili, pepper, onions, cilantro to elevate its sweet and fragrant aroma. Adding a little basil enhances the cold-relieving effects of the congee. The deliciousness of the congee also depends on the secret recipes of each restaurant.

Some must-visit places for delicious bitter melon congee in Ha Giang are Huong Congee Restaurant, Ngan Ha Congee Restaurant, etc. If you have the chance to visit Ha Giang, alongside the breathtaking landscapes, corn wine, buckwheat, etc., remember to visit the market and taste a bowl of bitter melon congee, the 'specialty' congee of the misty land, amazingly delicious.