Hanoi food guide: Pho, Bun, Banh Da, Mien

Regional cuisines in Vietnam are so different from each other. Each region has its own features. It is the pride of the local people. Hanoi cuisines are also like that. Each of its dishes has its own characteristic which can not be found in other parts of Vietnam. Hanoi cuisine has touched so many of its guests. It has also taken many papers, pens and time from both Vietnamese and foriegn writers like Vu Bang writer with " The Delicious of Hanoi" - Beef noolde soup, chicken noolde soup, Thanh Tri rice pan-cake, grilled fish, dog meat... or Thach Lam with snail noolde soup, crap noolde soup, green bean sticky rice, corn sticky rice... All of them are very rustic. These dishes are also available in many parts of Vietnam, but they do not have the same tastes like Hanoi.

Hanoi food has its own ways of preparing, cooking and enjoying. An example is Pho - noolde soup which you can taste everywhere in Vietnam, but Pho Hanoi has its own loveliness like the girl who we love. There are millions of girls around, but we can only find the magic from her.

Just only Pho would take foreign tourists a lot of time to distinguish. Most of tourists on Hanoi holiday say Pho when they see nooldes in the bowl. It is not correct. In Vietnamese, we say Pho - flat rice nooldes, Bun - round rice nooldes, Banh Da - dry flat rice nooldes(cooked in water), Mien - vermicelli made ​​from arrowroot. each kind of these nooldes has its own way to prepare and cook

Pho - Flat rice nooldes: Beef noolde soup is divided in Tai(tai lam, tai lan), Chin, nam. Pho Ga - Chicken noolde soup(must be eaten with lemon leaves). Pho Xao - stir-fried noolde with beef or chicken(without water). Pho Hanoi on streets or small restaraunts selling noolde soups will be much better than the noolde soups in hotels. You may see local people eat noolde soup when they sit on a small and low plastic chair on the payment. Seeing many people having Pho in that way, it must be a very excellent noolde shop. You should taste here.

Bun - round rice nooldes: Bun or round rice noolde in white color like Pho nooldes. Bun is divided in many kinds as Bun Bo - beef noolde, Bun Ga - Chicken noolde, Bun Ca - fish noolde, Bun vit - duck noolde, Bun Ngan - different kind of ducks with noolde, Bun Dau mam tom - noodle with tofu and shrimp paste, Bun Oc - snail noolde, Bun Thit Cho - noolde with dog meat, Bun Suon - part of the pork with noolde, Bun Long Lon - Pig's gizzard heart with noolde, Bun Rieu Cua - fresh water crab with noolde... Each dish will satisfy you in different ways. If you have chances to taste them, you will have no regret doing this.

Banh Da - Dry flat rice nooldes:

Mien - vermicelli made ​​from arrowroot:

Chicken - way of enjoying: