Why Saigon Food Tour? Diverse Feels for Food of Southern Vietnam
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Saigon Food Tour is famous for a variety of food of the Southern Vietnam, and other regions as well because this city is the venue for citizens of all corners in Vietnam. As Saigon (now called Ho Chi Minh City) is most crowded, sleepless, and bustling, there stand out the unlimited opportunities for sightseeing, eating, and cooking during the Saigon Food Tour.
About Ho Chi Minh City and Saigon Cuisine
Ho Chi Minh City is the biggest city and is positioned in the south of Vietnam, around 1750km away from Hanoi Capital. This City is the destination for people to gather, study, and work to earn the daily bread. That said, Ho Chi Minh City is the busiest and less sleepless place in Vietnam. The fast pace urges everybody to try best; otherwise, they will step back and find it hard to catch up. Overcoming the hard past, the city named after Uncle Ho remains and boosts its significance as well as attractiveness. While some French-built attractions are protected, lots of skyscrapers are being constructed, in combined with the expanding industrial zones. Saigon today is recognizable for the economy, tourism, and also cuisine (to the foodies). You have diverse feels for many great dishes in the exquisite land.
About Saigon Cuisine, it is the result of diverse regions, and the most influential one is the Mekong Delta. As noted, people of all corner of Vietnam gather at Saigon to live and work; therefore, the cuisine in this city is influenced by many different sources. You can easily find the specialties of Hanoi (namely “Pho”), of Hue (namely Hue beef noodle), of Quang Nam (namely Quang Noodle), etc., right in Ho Chi Minh City. Meanwhile, the city owns many other dishes of the Mekong Delta that play stress on the use of herbs and vegetables. What’s more, Saigon cuisine might be somehow affected by the exotic flavor because there are many fine-dining and upscale foreign restaurants there. Nonetheless, the roadside food carts, street markets, and little eateries still attract foodies effectively… Let’s discover with Vietnam Food Travel !
5 Best Food in Ho Chi Minh City
#1: Banh Mi (Vietnamese Bread)
The Vietnamese bread can be widely found almost every corner in Ho Chi Minh City. This is the culinary proud of Saigon people, and they love to take it for breakfast, lunch, and even dinner. The bread includes the fillings of roasted pork/omelet/fried fish sausage/boiled sausage/meatball/boiled chicken/Chinese barbecued pork, etc. Also, there add the pickled vegetables, butter, pate, chili, soy sauce, etc. The additions might vary from seller to seller. “Banh Mi” is recognized internationally as the Vietnam’s signature dish, and “Banh Mi” in Saigon is the most praiseworthy version!
#2: Com Tam (Vietnamese broken rice)
A plate of Vietnamese broken rice is the favorite option that the Saigon people enjoy every moment of the day. The dish includes the broken rice served with grilled pork, omelet, shredded pork skin, or steamed pork and egg patty. Besides, there are several additional choices of the diced tomatoes, cucumber, or fermented carrot. The key to the delicious Vietnamese broken rice might lie in the sweet-and-sour fish sauce; it must be appetizing. The dipping sauce decides the success of the dish. In Saigon, “Com Tam” is the hot dish, and you can easily find it from the luxurious restaurants to the street markets or the roadside carts.
#3: Hu Tieu (Rice noodle soup)
People say this is a smart version of “Pho” noodle. Anyhow, “Hu Tieu” is famous on its own as the best soup in Saigon for everybody to slurp at leisure. It includes the transparent pork broth, flat rice noodle, and the toppings of pork meat, shrimp, squid, fish, and some kinds of vegetables. In Saigon, “Hu Tieu” might be best offered by the street vendors, called by the popular term “Hu Tieu Go” while “Go” refers to the vendors’ activity of chiming to announce their selling, especially at night.
#4: Bun Thit Nuong (Vermicelli noodles with grilled pork)
This is the greatly mouth-watering and eye-catching dish that is best served in Saigon. While the pork is grilled or barbecued, it remains hot and aromatic enough to mesmerize every passer-by. A bow of “Bun Thit Nuong” should include the vermicelli served with the barbecued pork, spring rolls, slices of cucumber and chopped lettuce, bean sprouts, mint, peanuts, etc. The use of these additions might be more or less due to the sellers’ preference. Like the Vietnamese broken rice in Saigon, the secret of the vermicelli noodle with grilled pork lies in the fish sauce – it must be flavorful!
#5: Bun Mam Saigon (Vietnamese fermented fish vermicelli soup)
This is one of the not-to-miss dishes in Saigon that many food bloggers recommend. Though “Bun Mam” has the extreme spell for the first-time patrons, its flavor is very delectable and addictive. The Vietnamese fermented fish vermicelli soup belongs to the Mekong Delta people who create the soup from some kinds of fish fermented for a period for the flesh to be dissolved. Then, they have the transparent essence to be spiced preferably. A bow of “Bun Mam” should include the vermicelli and the fermented fish soup served with pork, shrimp, minced banana blossom, bitter vegetable, etc. This food might come with lots of diverse flavors.
Cooking Classes in Ho Chi Minh City
When it comes to “How to Cook” during Vietnam Food Tour in Ho Chi Minh City, the culinary tourists are stimulated to join the cooking classes managed by the professional chefs. The cooking courses take you the local Ben Thanh Market to buy some ingredients for practice and then carry out the lessons in the well-equipped kitchens.
In particular, Vietnam Cookery Center in Ho Chi Minh City is worth participating in. The Center ensures the participants to leave with the good recipes, the happy hands-on experience, and the inspiration for later performance.
The other fantastic choice is to work with your reliable travel agents who often offer the half-day culinary classes to the foreign guests. These classes begin with the quick introduction about the dishes to be practiced, the necessary ingredients, the purchases in the market, and then cooking time. After all, you enjoy the self-made dish and get constructive comments from the instructors.
Also, the 5-star hotels in Saigon like Caravelle Hotel also provide the cooking sessions for around 10-15 people every day. You and the chefs will have a cyclo trip to the market, buy the ingredients for the class, and then perform.
What’s more, Ho Chi Minh City has several Culinary Art Schools for the travelers to join and learn how to cook. Some helpful addresses include Saigon Cooking Class in District 1, Mint Culinary School in Phu Nhuan District, The Saigon Culinary Art Center in Phu Nhuan District, and more.
Conclusion
So why Saigon Food Tour? Saigon is the magnetic land for many reasons, and cuisine is one of the most unbeatable magnets. Traveling to Ho Chi Minh City, people might surprise at the huge chains of food stores, from luxury to simple level, which serve a wide range of dishes. Just a city tour can allow you to delight the palate with the 5 top-recommended dishes above as well as the other fascinating choices. Plus, the Saigon Culinary Tour offers the chances to join the authentic cooking classes for the valuable hands-on experience and bring home the accurate recipe as well as the culinary knowledge.
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