Discover the unforgettable 8 specialties of the mountainous town, Gia Lai.

Those who venture far from Gia Lai always remember the rich and flavorful dry pho, fragrant sticky rice paired with grilled chicken, or the bowl of golden ant salt.

Gia Lai's 8 specialties that linger in every traveler's memory.

Dry Pho

Undoubtedly, dry pho stands out as the most renowned Gia Lai specialty. The dish that echoes in the ears of visitors upon setting foot in the mountainous town is dry pho. Its fame extends to neighboring provinces like Dak Lak, Kon Tum, and beyond. This dish, resembling mixed pho from other provinces, boasts a richer flavor, leaving a lasting impression not only on those far from their hometown but also on those from distant places, even if only experienced once. The dish is served in two bowls—one containing the mixed dry pho and the other holding the broth separately.

The rice cakes are chewy, with fine threads, made from spicy rice flour. Before consumption, they are briefly dipped in boiling water but retain their chewiness and delightful aroma. The pho is mixed with chicken, minced pork sautéed with shallots, fried shallots, aromatic herbs, and more. The key to its fame lies in the separate bowl of broth, simmered from bones and featuring essential ingredients like beef, beef tendons, and chicken. You can savor this specialty in many restaurants in Gia Lai without the hassle of searching.

Golden Ant Salt

The dish named Gia Lai specialty both sparks the curiosity of travelers and intimidates the faint-hearted. However, Golden Ant Salt is a must-try or a perfect souvenir if you happen to visit Gia Lai. This unique salt is made from golden ants found in the Ayun Pa and Krông Pa regions of Gia Lai. The golden ants are roasted over fire until well-cooked, then crushed along with coarse salt, spicy chili, a bit of dried shallot, and various wild leaves. Dipping it with grilled meat enhances the flavor to perfection. The distinct saltiness of ants, combined with their slightly sour acidity, blends with the spicy kick of chili, the crunchiness of ants, and the unique aroma of the leaves, creating an unforgettable taste.

Sticky Rice with Grilled Chicken

Almost every mountainous region has its specialty sticky rice, each with different preparation methods, flavor choices, and ways of consumption. In Gia Lai, people enjoy sticky rice with grilled chicken, a departure from the sesame salt commonly used in the Northwestern provinces. The rice used for cooking is sticky rice with large, fragrant grains. It is packed into bamboo tubes and young bamboo sheaths, allowing the natural scent of bamboo to infuse into the rice grains. Simply splitting the bamboo tube reveals a subtle fragrance and a lightly sweet taste of the rice. Paired with grilled chicken cooked over red-hot charcoal, there's nothing quite like it.

Forest Leaf Salad

Not unique to Gia Lai, forest leaf salad is a specialty of the Central Highlands in general. Forest leaves, an abundant resource in the mountainous forests, create an impressive dish with a variety of leafy flavors for travelers. Forest leaf hotpot or forest leaf salad represents the wisdom passed down through generations of indigenous people. Each type of leaf is carefully selected, with the utmost importance placed on their non-toxic nature and lack of adverse reactions. When eating, roll the leaves with minced meat, fermented fish sauce, and crunchy rice crackers. The unique flavors of the leaves combined with the meat will delight any diner.

Fermented Crab Vermicelli

This is another dish that might be hard to accept just by its name, but once you fall for it, it's hard to quit in Gia Lai. For those unfamiliar, just passing by a restaurant, you can catch the whiff of field crab, fermented overnight. It's the peculiar aroma that makes this dish much more selective than other crab vermicelli in Vietnam. The dish is a blend of fermented crab, pork belly, bamboo shoots, sausage, sour fermented pork roll, crispy fried pork skin, shrimp crackers, raw vegetables, and more. Forget about the initial discomfort, diners will experience the salty, spicy, and unique flavors of the vermicelli and the mouthwatering broth.

Wild Honey

In Gia Lai, with vast coffee plantations and abundant wild sunflowers, beekeeping for honey is actively promoted among the ethnic communities. Gia Lai's honey is considered a precious medicinal ingredient in traditional medicine, with various nourishing and warming effects. The honey has a shiny golden color, thick consistency, transparency, and stickiness. However, it's essential to buy from reputable sources to avoid purchasing diluted products.

Sour Bamboo Shoots

Abundant forests make wild bamboo shoots a famous specialty of the mountainous Gia Lai. During the rainy season, they grow wildly, fresh and tender. Harvested, sliced, soaked with chili and garlic, and seasoned with salt and sugar for a rich flavor. Sour bamboo shoots can be enjoyed with rice meals or paired with various types of vermicelli, pho, or mien. The natural sourness of bamboo shoots, the spiciness of chili, and the rich aroma of garlic stimulate both the taste buds and olfactory senses.

Sun-Dried Beef

The buffalo and cattle meat in the mountainous forest areas always have a richer flavor than elsewhere. In Gia Lai, freely grazed cattle produce exceptionally tender and fragrant meat. Sun-dried beef, like other specialties of the highlands, is often concentrated around Krông Pa town, a gateway district to the mountainous region of Gia Lai, bordering the Sơn Hoà plateau of Phú Yên province. Instead of completely sun-drying, the beef is exposed to just enough sunlight to semi-dry it. When consumed, it needs to be grilled over red-hot charcoal, or if taken home, you can reheat it in the microwave. Sun-dried beef has a more intense flavor without being overly dry, perfect when paired with fresh herbs, dipped in soy sauce, and enjoyed with a sip of mountainous rice wine on a cold rainy day—it's truly delightful.

By Hà Nguyên/Ngôi sao

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Reference: Travel Guide Mytour