Hoi An is not only famous for its old street corners as if just stepped out of a movie but is also known as the culinary paradise of Vietnam. It is difficult to choose Hoi An’s favorite specialties because each dish has its flavor. In this article, Karst Plateau will share Seven signature dishes of Hoi An you can not miss when coming to the old town.
Chicken rice is one of the simple dishes you can see everywhere, but the most prominent is still Hoi An chicken rice. Chicken is used as a firm garden stock, marinated with ginger and peanut oil pressed manually to have a golden color. Rice cooked with chicken broth is both rich and attractive. Depending on your preference, you can choose to eat rice with chopped chicken, shredded chicken, or chicken salad, dipped with sweet and sour fish sauce to round the taste.
2. Mi Quang (Quang-style noodle)
The most delicious Hoi An street food you cannot miss
Noodle Quang has long become a favorite breakfast dish of people in Central Vietnam. Round-fat noodles are served with a variety of toppings including shrimp, meat, quail eggs, raw vegetables, and roasted peanuts. Quang noodle broth is only a little chan but rich enough to hold diners’ hearts. Besides the traditional version of shrimp meat filling, Quang noodles also have many other versions such as Quang chicken noodles and Quang frog noodles for those who like novelty.
3. Cao lau (Vietnamese thick noodles)
A Hoi An food tour would not be complete without trying Cao Lau
Referring to delicious dishes in Hoi An, it is indispensable for Cao Lau. Compared to Quang noodles, Cao Lau is more elaborately processed. Cao Lau noodles are mixed with melaleuca ash, so they have a bright yellow color and characteristic flavor. The “soul” of the high-rise dish is the thick, flavorful broth.Â
A mouth-watering bowl of Cao Lau is full of poached noodles, and bean sprouts, and it cannot be completed without herbs from the nearby famous Tra Que village. Above the top of the bowl are thin slices of barbecue pork or char siu and crispy fried pig skin. You can find Cao Lau almost everywhere in Hoi An, especially Thanh Cao Lau on Thai Phien Street, and Madam Be Cao Lau on Tran Phu Street.
4. Banh Xeo (Pancake)
Delicious, crispy, not greasy, worthy of Top 1 delicious dishes in the old town
Unlike Southern pancakes, Hoi An pancakes – or Quang pancakes – are about the size of a hand. The filling is made from sprouts, shrimp, meat, etc. The smell of seafood, surrounded by a crispy golden pastry crust. The cook will pour the pancakes while diners are eating, to ensure the heat and deliciousness of the pancakes. To make Hoi An pancakes more delicious, visitors should eat them with raw vegetables and dip them in sweet and sour dipping sauce.
5. Banh Dap (Girdle cake)
A memorable dish every time I come to Hoi An
A serving of girdle cake includes steamed thin rice pancakes sandwiched between two grilled ones. To enjoy the dish, you should use your hands to slightly flap them down so that they are crumbled. Later, you roll the dish and dip it into fish sauce paste, which is a mixture of fish sauce, sugar, caramelized onions, chopped pineapple, garlic, and greenhorn pepper. This is a famous snack that you must try when traveling to Hoi An.
6. Banh Mi (Baguette)
The classic Vietnamese street food that has become a global sensation
Baguette is a familiar dish in all parts of the country, but Hoi An people still have their own way of deserving the title of “the best bread in the world”. Hoi An Bread loaf has a sharp tip, a long shuttle-shaped shape, sandwiched with all kinds of fillings such as eggs, cold cuts, shredded chicken, grilled meat, silk rolls, pickles, cucumbers, onions, etc. Before being delivered to diners, the bread will be baked to be hot and crispy and drizzled with heirloom sauce. That’s enough for customers to queue up every day to wait to enjoy.
7. Banh Uot Thit Nuong (Wet cake served with grilled meat)
A full appetizing tray of banh uot thit nuong is served at street restaurants in Hoi An
Wet cake served with grilled meat is another way to enjoy this popular street food in Hoi An. First, the meat is marinated with spicy flour, pepper, lemongrass, chives, rice wine, and honey and sandwiched into bamboo sticks before grilling over embers. If well prepared, the wet rice paper will be wrapped around the grilled meat along with herbs, pickles, and slices of caramels. The decisive seasoning of the dish is a thick and spicy dipping sauce mixed with soybean paste, peanuts, and peppers. Indeed, all these ingredients make a great flavor combination that will captivate you from the first bite.
8. Famous Hoi An specialties you should buy as gifts
8.1 Hoi An Green Bean Cake
Hoi An specialties are very suitable to bring home as gifts
To make the right green bean cake, the cook needs to meticulously choose premium yellow field green beans. Green beans, once cooked, pureed, and stuffed into flour, will be mixed with deep-fried fat; Finally, put in a mold to create a beautiful shape and then cook. The green bean cake is crispy, and sweet, and enjoyed with fragrant tea is above and beyond. On the occasion of coming to the old town, please buy green bean cakes filled with meat as a gift. Each box only costs about 25,000 VND.
8.2 Hong Dao Alcohol
This is a meaningful Hoi An specialty gift, imbued with the flavor of the old town
Hong Dao Alcohol is famous for its typical pungent flavor of Hoi An, along with its characteristic aroma. Alcohol is cooked from cooled cooked rice, then mixed with leaf yeast, aged in jars for about 1 week. After that, it will add thinly cut ripe peaches brew together for about 100 more days, which will produce an extremely attractive Hong Dao Alcohol product.
8.3 Baked coconut cake
This type of cake has conquered the hearts of many tourists
The baked coconut cake is fragrant, just one bite is enough to make you fall in love. The cake is made from fresh coconut, sugar, and glutinous rice flour. The finished product of the cake is crispy and golden brown. When eaten, it will be very fragrant and rich in delicious coconut flavor, so it will be a suitable gift for you to buy as a gift.
8.4 Thuan Cake
A simple but rich cake with a unique flavor
Thuan cake Hoi An is simple but bold with unique flavors like never before. Each piece of cake is fragrant and soft, with a little crunch, leaving the traditional flavor of the old town. Smooth flour, fresh chicken eggs, and exotic spices combine to create a unique flavor only in Hoi An.
Even though it is only a small city, Hoi An still has its own charm enough to attract tourists, in which cuisine plays a no small role. With 7 signature dishes in Hoi An suggested by the Karst Plateau, your trip will be colorful, fragrant, and extremely unforgettable. What are you waiting for? Let’s plan your trip to Hoi An now.
