This week we are studying one of my favorite culinary destinations in the world, Vietnam! Living in Houston for the last five years, I have had the pleasure of indulging in many Vietnamese delicacies as Houston is home to the second largest Vietnamese population in the United States. Little Saigon as it is affectionately called offers many authentic Vietnamese restaurants that is sure to please the palate.
Vietnam is unique in many ways. For starters, it differs greatly from many of its neighbors in Southeast Asia such as Cambodia, Thailand, and Laos. It has been much more influenced by China than its neighbors, which are more closely tied to the Hindu culture to the west. As one travels from India to Vietnam, you find that it is in Vietnam that the people use chopsticks, women wear pants in lieu of sarongs, and the lifestyle reflects the teachings of Confucius in addition to Buddha.
The original inhabitants of Vietnam were overcome by the Chinese about 100 B.C. They ruled Vietnam for over a thousand years. The Vietnamese adopted Confucianism, The Chinese System of Government, Taoism, and Buddhism. Over time however, the Vietnamese have preserved their own unique culture and resented the Chinese. Their cuisine has strong influence from the Chinese in their use of cooking in woks and serving long grain rice separate from the main dish as opposed to mixed in the same bowl. They also were heavily influenced by the French who colonized Vietnam for many years.
Vietnam is sometimes called the "Tiny Dragon" of Asia. The dragon has nothing to do with the physical shape of VN. The term Four Asian Tigers or East Asian Tigers refers to the economies of Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, and Taiwan. They are also known as Asia's Four Little Dragons. These countries and territories were noted for maintaining high growth rates and rapid industrialization between the early 1960s and 1990s. In the early 21st century, with the original four Tigers at or near to fully developed status, attention has increasingly shifted to other Asian economies which are experiencing rapid economic transformation at the present time. Vietnam is one of the South East Asian countries now following the path of the four original tigers / dragons.
While Vietnamese cuisine is by far one of my favorites, it was very difficult to narrow down just a few dishes. We decided to cook two. Our first is called Bánh mì, which is a baguette sandwich that beautifully represents the influence of the Colonial French in Vietnam. While it can be prepared many ways, the traditional fillings include pickled veggies such as cucumber, carrots, and peppers, cilantro, and some sort of meat. We used Liver pâté and Barbecue Pork. It was delicious! For our second dish, we veered a bit away from the common Pho, Beef Noodle Soup. We decided to cook Bún Bò Hue. It is similar to Pho, in that it is a Beef Noodle Soup. It is Hue Style Noodle soup that originates from the city Hue, in the central park of Vietnam. Hue was the imperial capital of Vietnam for nearly a century and a half, until 1945, and many of the most sophisticated and interesting dishes in the Vietnamese repertoire originated in the region, including this classic spicy beef soup. The light stock, which is made with beef and pork bones, is scented with lots of lemongrass and shrimp paste. The broth of this soup was the most labor intensive part of assembling this dish, and took the longest. After it was ready, it was time to pile on the fixings! Like many Asian soups, it is all about the wonderful fixings you can add into your soup! We used lots of fresh Basil, Bean Sprouts, Cilantro, Lime, thinly sliced red onion, and thinly sliced red cabbage. The shrimp paste was delicious! There is something so comforting about a big bowl of hot noodle soup. Call me weird, but comfort food to me is a spicy bowl of hot noodle soup. I would take that any day over sweet!
Here are the recipes we used for this week:
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