Special foods in the South
Xoi chien phong (Bloating fried sticky rice)
A round plate of Xoi chien phong, placed next to a
plate of buttery roasted chicken, is always attractive to anyone. A lump of
sticky rice will become a plate of Xoi chien phong as big as a grape-fruit by
talent chefs. In the past, Xoi chien phong was offered only in the Binh Duong
Restaurant, Dong Nai Province. At present, you can taste the dish in star
classified hotels in Ho Chi Minh City.
Lau mam (mixed vegetable and meat hot pot)
At present, Lau mam folk dish in the past hundred
years - become a luxurious specialty in the South. Chau Doc fish sauce made
from fresh-water fish, a kind of sweet- smelling and greasy fish, which must be
as required to have a delicious Lau mam dish.
Substances to prepare for Lau mam, including fresh
food-stuffs such as snake-head fish, "keo" fish, pork, peeled
shrimps, eel, beef, and so on, accompanied with at least 10 kinds of vegetable,
sometime amounting to 24 kinds of vegetable. They include water-lily,
egg-plant, balsam-apple, straw mushroom, bean sprouts, chilly, etc.
When boiled, the flavors of the sauce, which is
mixed with citronella, chilly, vegetables, fish, shrimp and meat, are very
sweet-smelling. Lau mam roam is scoop out into bowls and served with soft
noodle soup, simply but deliciously.
Goi Buoi(Salad of shaddock)
Goi buoi is available at the majority of famous
restaurants in Ho Chi Minh City. The major substances to prepare for the dish
include shaddocks mixed with fresh shrimps, pork, and dry cuttle-fish. The dish
is originated in Miet Buoi, Bien Hoa City.
Goi buoi dish is especially flavored with slightly
sour, sweet, peppery-hot and buttery tastes. It is also added with spice
vegetable, white sesames, coconut and dry cuttlefish. Therefore, the dish will
be appeared on dining table as a fresh colorful picture and attractive to
customers.
Ca tai tuong chien xu (“tai tuong”bloating fried fish)
"Tai tuong" fish is classified as a kind
of luxurious food-stuffs.
The fish is as white as chicken, delicious and sweet
smelling but not crushed. There are two ways to prepare for the dish: Boiled
down or bloating fried.
In bloating fried way, pour plenty of oil into pan,
wait for the oil to boil before placing the fish in. In boiled oil, fish scabs
would be raised up as porcupine's feathers. As serving, place the fish on to
the plate, arrange boiled quail eggs around with, fried potato, fresh onion and
tomato slices at the edge, season with chilly.
Finally, pour soup and sprinkle fried peanuts and
crashed onion on to the fish. The dish is served with sour and sweet sauce of
fish. Ca tai tuong chien xu is an unique and luxurious specialty in the South.
Ca nuong trui (Bare fried fish)
The Southern villagers in countryside areas usually
have fried fish in the field. They use a bamboo piece to cross through the
fish. Pitch the head side to ground, pile up rice straws at the wind-swept place
to smoke fish.
As serving, use hand to remove the burned fish
scabs. Fish will become as white as chicken. Place the hot fish on a lotus
leaf, take up each piece of fish and dip it in peppery salt, squeeze with some
lemon drops, roll in fig leaf or sesame young shoot to experience the dish.
Bowl and chopsticks are not necessary. At home, the dish can be served with dry
pancake, soft noodle soup and vegetables. Ca nuong trui is a dish that
accompanies drinking. It is popular and exciting.
Ca kho to (Dry – boiled catfish)
Fish, which used to prepare for the dish, can be
catfish, anabas or snake-head fish. Necessary spices include dry garlic, fresh
lemon, onion, chilly, sugar, glutamate, fish sauce, grease, and a spoon of
pepper and wine.
Although Ca kho to is a popular dish in the South,
it is also a cheap specialty. As serving, pick up fish to other bowl, boil the
bowl of fish on a low fire and sprinkle some peppers to have sweet-smelling:
Keep fire when serving, Ca kho to can be served with such boiled vegetables as
shallot, white cabbage, and spinach to dip in Ca kho to sauce. It is more
convenient to serve it with pickles such as vinegary beet or green pineapple.
Cua rang muoi (Fried salted crabs)
The Westerners, especially those in land-locked
countries, usually appreciate the dish as soon as they firstly experience it.
At parties, a plate of bright red Cua rang muoi is
usually acted as aperitif. Customers suddenly feel sweet-smelling of spices and
delicious buttery flavor of crab at the same time. Highly qualified chefs in
Vung Tau coastal area usually select brackish water crabs with much meat and
liver-pancreas. A delicious crab dish also depends on the soup, added to frying
crabs in pans, including star aniseed, cinnamon, and cardamom.
The connoisseurs immediately experience the dish as
it is still very hot, mixed with some lemon drops.
