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Exploring the distinctive specialties of Tien Giang as renowned gifts deeply imbued with the local essence and culture. Tien Giang, a province in the Mekong Delta, always holds intriguing secrets waiting to be uncovered. Let's discover them with VNTRIP.VN.
Specialties of Tien Giang Not to Miss!
My Tho Noodle Soup
Alongside Nam Vang noodle soup and Sa Dec noodle soup, My Tho noodle soup is equally renowned among the people of the Southern region.
The famous noodle soup of Tien Giang (Photo by ST)
My Tho noodle soup features small, white, dry, and crispy rice noodles. It also includes shrimp, squid, pork, chicken, liver, heart, etc., depending on the preferences of visitors, and can be served with parsley, lettuce, bean sprouts, celery, etc.
Delicious My Tho noodle soup (Photo by ST)
What sets apart the hủ tiếu dish in different regions is the broth. The broth of this My Tho hủ tiếu is cooked from bone broth, infused with the salty flavor of dried shrimp, grilled squid, and turnips. Cooks simmer all these ingredients for a long time to create a rich broth.
Snakehead fish bitter vegetable porridge - a rustic Western dish
Snakehead fish is a specialty of the Western region, and with this fish, people create thousands of different dishes. When visiting Tien Giang, you will have the opportunity to enjoy snakehead fish bitter vegetable porridge.
Rustic snakehead fish bitter vegetable porridge in Tien Giang (Photo by ST)
Bitter vegetables and snakehead fish are both readily available ingredients in the Mekong Delta. A bowl of piping hot rice porridge, golden and fragrant, filled with abundant wild snakehead fish and fresh bitter vegetables, will leave a lasting impression. The bitterness of the vegetables initially might be off-putting, but soon, a sweet taste will linger in the throat, perfectly complementing the hot porridge. This dish appears on the tables of ordinary people in Tien Giang as well as in luxurious restaurants.
Shrimp paste
In ancient times, this was a dish often presented to kings and emperors. This shrimp paste is a specialty of Go Cong (Tien Giang).
Famous shrimp paste in Tien Giang (Photo by ST)
Locals here often enjoy shrimp paste with vermicelli, rice paper, and boiled meat. Vermicelli, thin white strands wrapped in rice paper, accompanied by pork, typically pork shoulder, with a layer of tender meat and thin fat, boiled just right and thinly sliced. It's served with bananas, star fruits, cucumbers, and various raw vegetables, dipped in Go Cong shrimp paste, making it absolutely delightful.
Coconut banana cakes
Talking about Tien Giang without mentioning the delicious and rustic coconut banana cakes would be a huge oversight.
A rustic dish of Tien Giang (Photo by ST)
The main ingredients of this dish are green ladyfinger bananas and grated coconut. Bananas are boiled until tender, then mixed with grated coconut, thinly sliced coconut, mashed in a mortar, with a pinch of salt and sugar to balance the flavor. Finally, some golden roasted peanuts are sprinkled on top.
A specialty dish of Tien Giang (Photo by ST)
When eating coconut banana cakes, you can enjoy them with various types of leaves like betel leaves, lolot leaves, water mimosa, fish mint, aromatic herbs,... and dip them in a sweet and tangy sauce made from fish sauce, lime, garlic, chili,...
Old-style My Tho mixed salad vermicelli
Famous old-style mixed salad vermicelli in My Tho (Photo by ST)
This is also a rustic dish of Tien Giang and it tastes quite similar to fermented fish vermicelli. Old-style mixed salad vermicelli is cooked together with tamarind to create a sour and refreshing broth, served with freshwater shrimp, peeled shrimp, or river prawn. Additionally, the bowl of vermicelli is complete with small pieces of ribs, pork belly.
Old-style mixed salad vermicelli is eaten with water spinach, banana blossom, and sesame leaves, types of vegetables easily found in Tien Giang.
Grilled snakehead fish
When visiting the Mekong Delta or Tiền Giang, be sure not to miss out on this rustic yet incredibly delicious dish.
Traditional grilled snakehead fish, a delicacy of the Mekong Delta (Photo by ST)
The snakehead fish, freshly caught, still retains its freshness, skewered on branches of water apple tree and grilled to perfection. The burnt straw leaves behind a tantalizing aroma of the fish. The fish is placed on a banana leaf raft, removed from the skewer, and accompanied by shredded banana blossom, water spinach, water celery, lettuce, and other easily found vegetables here. The snakehead fish is dipped in chili salt, a humble yet incredibly tasty dish worth trying when visiting here.
Tiền Giang's specialties make perfect gifts
Durian
Tiền Giang boasts abundant durian plantations, especially in Ngũ Hiệp commune, which is renowned for its durian. Visiting the Mekong Delta without indulging in the durian here would be a missed opportunity.
Ripe durians with golden hues here (Photo by ST)
Dubbed the king of fruits, the durian here, when ripe with deep yellow color, emits a fragrant aroma, with plump segments, highly favored by many. Especially, if one can hand-pick ripe durians in Tiền Giang, what could be more delightful?
Coconut jam
Coconut jam from Tiền Giang is made using traditional family methods. There are various types of coconut jam, including young coconut jam, coconut jam wrapped in coconut leaves, or soft coconut jam. Regardless of the type, coconut jam here is sweet, naturally colored, and has a delightful coconut aroma.
Handmade coconut jam from Tiền Giang (Photo by ST)
To make the jam, they select young, not overly dry coconuts to produce the best coconut jam. Coconut jam is displayed
Lo Ren Milk Breast
Perhaps there's no need to mention this fruit as the Lo Ren Milk Breast brand is a well-known specialty fruit from Tiền Giang. This variety grows in Vĩnh Kim, Châu Thành district, Tiền Giang province.
Sweet Lo Ren Milk Breast (Photo by ST)
Lo Ren Milk Breast has round, white fruits with thin skin and thick flesh. When ripe, they turn pink, emitting a delicate fragrance, and the milky juice inside tastes refreshing and sweet. Alongside durian, this is the most famous fruit in Tiền Giang.
On scorching summer days, nothing beats sitting under the cool shade of a tree and enjoying the refreshing milk from Lo Ren Milk Breast fruit.
Chau Doc Fermented Fish
Chau Doc is renowned for its various types of fermented fish, including snakehead fish, catfish, mrigal carp, snakehead gudgeon, and more. Visitors can purchase this specialty fermented fish at the Chau Doc market or at the foot of Sam Mountain.
Highly renowned Chau Doc Fermented Fish (Photo by ST)
The fermented fish here is made from abundant fish caught in the rivers, combined with the skilled hands of the locals to create incredibly delicious varieties. It can be enjoyed with steamed rice, used as a dipping sauce for other dishes, or even used to make delicious fermented fish vermicelli.
Trung Luong Plum
When mentioning plums, people often think of those from the North, but in Tien Giang, there's Trung Luong Plum, which has been cultivated here for a long time.
Trung Luong Plum with large pink fruits (Photo by ST)
Trung Luong Plum here comes in shades of peach stripes or peach stone. This type of plum is crispy, sweet, and has few sour fruits. Especially when eaten with sweet fish sauce and a few slices of chili, it's incredibly delicious.
During the plum season, this place is filled with the pink-red color of plums. Experiencing picking and enjoying plums here will be a memorable experience for tourists visiting Tien Giang.
Gò Công Fermented Shrimp Paste
Not only various types of fermented fish paste, but this place also has fermented shrimp paste. Shrimp paste is a type of shrimp that usually lives in the rice fields flooded all year round, in grass clumps, coconut leaves, or along the canal banks in this area.
Unique Gò Công Fermented Shrimp Paste in Tien Giang (ST photo)
Fermented shrimp paste comes in two processing styles: either left whole like the sour shrimp paste in Huế or processed and thickened like shrimp paste. When eating, just add lime, chili, sugar, and seasoning to have an incredibly fragrant and delicious dipping sauce.
Here are 14 specialties of Tien Giang. So, if you ever travel to this place, don't forget to enjoy these fascinating specialties.
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