Vietnam's cuisine is very much a reflection of its culture and contacts with other cultures. Rice, com in Vietnamese, is the main staple of the diet and the basis of the country's agriculture. The years of Chinese influence and occupation are evident in the use of chopsticks and the tendency to eat plain white rice separately with their foods, rather than mixing them together. The extensive use of Nuoc mam (fish sauce), fresh herbs - lemon grass, basil, coriander, mint, fresh lime - and practically all the spices used in Southeast Asia, in Vietnamese cuisine, lend it a subtlety of flavour which sets it apart from Chinese cooking. A delicious soup accompanies virtually every meal.
The later French influence brought with it the baguettes and pate sold in the markets and roadside stalls today and an appreciation of French food is shared throughout the country. Fresh and salt water fish, shellfish and crustaceans are eaten as the main source of protein in delicious dishes such as cha ca, barbecued fish and various minced fish meat cakes.
Many South Vietnamese delicacies are served with raw,
leafy vegetables, bean sprouts and herbs and are wrapped up in a do-it-yourself manner.
This custom, far from being Chinese, is probably indigenous to the area.
Rice cake(Banh Chung) is our custom dish, which never lack in Nguyen Dan Lunar New Year of
Vietnamese people. At least, Vietnamese people who have to prepared a couple of rice
cake.
Rice cake is in a green cover and four-cornered dumpling made of glutinous rice
wrapped in rush or bamboo leaves and steamed. By the rice cake legend, it is founded in
the Hung Vuong Empire, when prince Lang Lieu submitted it to the King Hung, he was
praised and taken the post. The wrapping works are very painstaking. The sticky
rice must be very good and is soaked in water the day before. The pork meat for
filling must be pig with full lean, aft and peel. Rice cake is wrapped square, not tight
nor loose. Rice cake should be steamed at once, by wood, wood duct or rice husk.
Whether it be boiled, barbecued, grilled, stewed or fried, Vietnamese cuisine is a skilful and deliciously different blend of many unique flavours, textures and influences. Variety is certainly the spice of life and cuisine in Vietnam.
