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Private tailor-made journeys of a life time
Sep 22, 2023
By Ms. Minh Thu
World tourists have known Vietnam as a "culinary paradise" with hundreds of thousands of dishes from the North - Central - South regions. Each dish has a rich flavor, a harmonious combination of spices and ingredients. One of the best Vietnamese dishes worth mentioning is Vietnamese spring rolls, which have their reputation labeled in many parts of the world. In this blog, the best Vietnam tour operator will introduce to you this delectable in a detailed way.
Spring rolls are traditional dishes of Vietnam, most notably Fresh Vietnamese spring rolls and fried Vietnamese spring rolls. Spring rolls are so popular in Vietnam because Vietnamese spring rolls contain many green vegetables, little hot spices and are not processed through frying or stir-frying, which means they are less fatty, consequently refreshing and healthy to eat.
Besides, Vietnamese spring rolls ensure the yin-yang balance in Vietnamese cuisine. This is the principle, which is believed to be good if it is applied, not just in cuisine but other aspects of life. In making food, yin-yang balance is utilized to make the food medium in taste, eye-catching in out-looking and healthy for eaters. In Vietnamese spring rolls, shrimps (yin) are often combined with Vietnamese steamed pork sausage (yang), then is rolled with green vegetables (yin) and is dipped into the fish sauce bowl (yang). Hence, Vietnamese spring rolls are not only good, healthy but also colorful, enchanting us at the first sight.
It is possible to say that, the reputation of Vietnamese Spring rolls are world-wide now, not just in Vietnam or Asia. Besides Pho, spring rolls are also included in the ranking of 50 best dishes in the world voted by CNN readers. Goi Cuon ranked 30th, just behind 2nd pho (pho is at 28th). In an article about the wonderful Vietnamese culinary gifts brought to Australia by Vietnamese, SBS said: "I wish we could call these beloved books our country's food", They also stated that Vietnamese people have rights to take pride with this dish. Goi Cuon is present in every Vietnamese restaurant in Australia, in commercial centers, in stalls, in lunch boxes… Super chef Gordon Ramsay has repeatedly expressed his passion for Vietnamese dishes, and even brought noodles as a Master Chef exam. He also once expressed his love for Vietnamese spring rolls with a salad making video on his personal Youtube page. Now we can see how Fresh Vietnamese spring rolls are loved all over the world.
There are two most popular types of spring rolls in Vietnam: fresh Vietnamese spring rolls and Fried Vietnamese spring rolls. Basically, these two dishes are quite similar in terms of ingredients and preparation. Only difference in the last step, fried Vietnamese spring rolls need an extra step of frying in hot oil so that the outer layer of rice paper becomes golden brown and crispy.
Fresh Vietnamese spring rolls (Goi cuon)
Fresh Vietnamese spring rolls often impress diners with a transparent layer of rice paper wrapped with boiled shrimp, bacon and raw vegetables, lettuce, green chives and a little fresh vermicelli. To make this dish, you need to prepare the following ingredients: Shrimp, pork belly, rice paper, lettuce, herbs, pickles and roasted peanuts. First, you wash the raw vegetables and dry them. Then you clean the shrimp and marinate it with salt, wine, and sugar so that the shrimp is not fishy and has a rich flavor. Boil pork belly, along with a crushed onion to make the meat fragrant, then cut into small pieces. Finally, lay out all the ingredients on the table to roll. After wetting the rice paper, put vegetables on top and arrange vermicelli, meat, shrimp, along with chives and herbs for decoration, then roll it firmly. Continue repeating the process until you run out of ingredients. Serve with shrimp and meat spring rolls with soy sauce, then sprinkle with peanuts and pickles if you like and invite everyone to enjoy. As you can see, this dish is very simple to make, but the taste is extremely delicious.
Fried Vietnamese spring rolls (Nem ran)
Fried Vietnamese spring rolls are a little more difficult to make than fresh Vietnamese spring rolls. In return, you will enjoy the golden, crispy rice paper layer and the hot, soft fillings inside as soon as you cut the spring roll. To make this dish, first you need to soak the glass vermicelli in a bowl of warm water, then after 15 minutes take it out into a basket. To drain the vermicelli, cut into pieces about 2-3 cm. Do the same with tree ears. Take the kohlrabi and carrots, peel them, wash them and cut them into small cubes. Peel the onion, chili and garlic, crush and chop. Pour all ingredients into a large bowl with minced meat and 2 eggs. Mix well, then add spices including pepper, fish sauce, and seasoning powder. To make authentic fried Vietnamese spring rolls, you need to mix the filling and spices thoroughly then let it marinate for about 15 minutes. To wrap spring rolls, take a large cutting board or plate, spread spring rolls on top. Then put a little spring roll filling in the middle, press the two edges, and roll it up. Do not roll too tightly. Put the induction pan on the stove, heat the cooking oil. When the oil boils, lower the heat to low and slowly add each spring roll one at a time. Fried spring rolls turn golden, crispy and fragrant, then take them out onto a plate.
1. So Cuon Vietnamese spring rolls
Address: 76 Lo Duc, Hai Ba Trung District, Hanoi
Phone: 0911 231 945
Email: socuonfood@gmail.com
Opening hours: 09:00 – 20:00
2. Cuon N Roll Vietnamese spring rolls
Address:
3rd floor, Building D2, Giang Vo, Ba Dinh District, Hanoi
17th June Hoang Dao Thuy, Thanh Xuan District, Hanoi
Sunrise Building, 90 Tran Thai Tong, Cau Giay District, Hanoi
Phone: 1900 9406
Email: info@cuonnroll.vn
Opening hours: 10:30 – 14:00 | 17:30 – 22:00
3. Gach Quan Vietnamese spring rolls
Address: 6C Lane 21 Pham Ngoc Thach, Dong Da District, Hanoi
Phone: 0986 113 798
Opening hours: 10:00 - 21:00
1. Tom Nhay LLQ Vietnamese spring rolls
Address: 424 Lac Long Quan, District 11, City. Ho Chi Minh City
Phone: 0903 108 874
Opening hours: 10:00 - 19:00
2. Minh Vietnamese spring rolls
Address: 84/32 Bui Vien, District 1, City. Ho Chi Minh City
Phone: 0903 110 141 - 0933 302 952
Opening hours: 10:00 - 18:00
3. Mrs.Phuong Vietnamese spring rolls
Address: 001 Le Hong Phong Apartment, Le Hong Phong, District 5, City. Ho Chi Minh City
Phone: 0974 277 419
Opening hours: 15:00 – 21:00
1. Pho Rolls (Pho Cuon)
Even though it is less well-known in Vietnam, pho Cuon is becoming more and more popular among foodies worldwide. On a thin piece of rice paper, meat pieces and beef pho noodles are folded together. The rolls are typically served with lettuce, mint, and a dipping sauce made from peanuts, which gives the meal a creamy, nutty flavor. It is believed that Hanoi is where the characteristic beef noodle soup known as pho Cuon first appeared. The perfect balance of flavors and sensations is achieved by combining the soft and chewy texture of the beef and noodles with the cool, reviving sharpness of the lettuce and herbs.
2. Vietnamese Grilled pork sausage (Nem nuong)
Grilled spring rolls are made from pounded lean meat, mixed well with pomegranate fat and some spices such as garlic, sugar, pepper, salt... then rolled into sticks as long as a thumb and then skewered or clamped on the hot charcoal. When the meat is just cooked, it will have a sweet, fatty smell. The way to prepare it is so sophisticated, but the way to enjoy it is extremely simple. Just add some raw vegetables, grilled spring rolls, and ram rolls to the rice paper and roll it up. And in the end we will have an attractive, mouth-watering finished product! Dip into a cup of special dipping sauce and bring it to your mouth, you will immediately feel the sweet, rippled taste spreading on the tip of your tongue. Biting a piece, you will see the salty, chewy taste of rice paper rolls, the crispiness of ram rolls, a little sourness of star fruit, mango, a little bit of acrid green banana... All blends with the sweet, salty and fatty taste of grilled meat creates a dish that will leave you in awe.
3. Grilled beef in piper lolot leaves
The beef roll with lolot leaves is attractive because of the delicious taste of grilled beef in lolot leaves, the fat of peanuts mixed with the acrid taste of banana, the sourness of star fruit, the delicate taste of many crispy vegetables, and the spicy flavor of fish sauce. The processing method is quite simple: wash the beef, drain it, slice it thinly, mince onions, garlic, lemongrass, and other spices, mix well and marinate with the meat. Wash the lolot leaves, put the beef in the leaves and wrap with pepper seeds. Put on the grill, grill over pink charcoal, until the outer leaves are just cooked, then take them out on a plate, scoop out the fat and spread it evenly again or butter.
4. Steamed thin rice pancake (banh uot cuon)
Wet cake is a rustic dish, not fussy, just thin cakes, add a few ingredients, a few vegetables, you have a delicious cake to enjoy. Because of its simplicity, in addition to the shops selling wet cakes, you can easily see loads of steamed thin rice pancakes walking around the small alleys. When enjoying this dish, there are usually two ways, one is to roll the filling into a ball and eat it with dipping sauce, or cut the cake into small pieces and eat with other ingredients. The ingredients served with steamed thin rice pancakes are very rich and diverse, such as: grilled meat, roasted pork, pork intestines, shrimp, spring rolls... But the most popular and basic method to eat it is with pork rolls, some herbs, basil, bean sprouts, and fried onions.
5. Bo Bia
Bo Bia is a cheap snack, easy to find, easy to eat, and popular with many people. There are two types of Bo Bia, salty and sweet. While Hanoi and the northern provinces often eat sweet Bo Bia, diners in Saigon and the southern provinces are often used to salty Bo Bia. Sweet Bo Bia includes soft and chewy rice paper made from flour, fatty grated coconut, crispy malt candy bars and black sesame seeds. Street snacks without fancy signs often appear at school gates as a childhood gift or mobile cars on the road.
If you want to explore the diverse and excellent Vietnamese cuisine, you can not ignore Vietnamese spring rolls, besides Pho, Banh mi and other types of vermicelli. These dishes are such mouth-watering dishes that are worth trying more than one time in life.
