Bird's nest
Bird's nest is a precious product from nature, known as "The first of the eight precious royal dishes". The Nguyen Dynasty kings considered bird's nest a national resource.
Khanh Hoa bird's nests are directly exploited from natural bird's nest islands in Khanh Hoa sea area created by the Aerodramus Fuciphagus Germani subspecies. This subspecies produces the world's top quality nests, creating a valuable specialty imbued with the identity of Khanh Hoa homeland.
Mango rice paper
The light sour taste, moderate sweetness, and natural aroma of mango make mango rice paper a favorite specialty of many diners, bought as gifts when traveling to Khanh Hoa. A delicious cake is a golden yellow piece of cake, not too dark or too light yellow, soft and chewy, easy to tear, with the natural sweet and sour taste of mango, not too sweet with sugar.
The main ingredient to make mango rice paper rolls is naturally ripe mango from Cam Ranh, the largest mango growing area in the Central region. The mango is peeled and put into a blender. Then put the mixture on the stove, add a little sugar water, crushed fresh ginger, stir continuously for about three hours until it boils and thickens. This step will help increase the sweetness and concentration of the finished product. The maker needs to watch carefully because if the mixture burns or sticks to the pot, the cake will have an unpleasant smell.
The process of making the cake also requires great skill, so that the cake pieces are even and thin. People clean the trays, winnowing baskets or steel molds, line them with plastic, then apply a little non-stick oil on the plastic surface, then pour the mango mixture on. These molds are left to dry in the sun for two to three days so that the cake dries, the surface is dry, and when touched, it is not sticky, and the cake can be lifted up.
After drying, the mango rice paper will be cut into rectangular pieces and wrapped in nylon bags for preservation.
Nha Trang Fish Noodle Soup
In 2022, Travel + Leisure India magazine published an article introducing 10 delicious street foods in Vietnam for international tourists; including fish noodle soup - a specialty of the coastal city of Nha Trang.
According to the author: Nha Trang fish noodle soup is probably the 'best version' of fish noodle soup. The delicious broth is made from fresh fish, served with fish cakes or meat.
This authentic local fish noodle soup usually has a very clear broth with a sweet taste, cooked and filtered from catfish, cowfish and a light sour taste of tomatoes and pineapple. You can order a combination of fish cake, cowfish and jellyfish in the same bowl of noodles to feel the full sweetness of the fish and the chewy, crunchy taste of the jellyfish. When eating, add a little shrimp paste, squeeze a lemon and add raw vegetables to make the bowl of noodles more flavorful.
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Photo: Le Linh Tour Guide
Sticky rice with braised anchovies
Although not as famous as Hanoi's sticky rice, Ninh Binh's ant egg sticky rice, the Northwest's five-color sticky rice,... anchovy sticky rice in Nha Trang is also a dish loved by both locals and tourists.
As the name suggests, this sticky rice dish is made from two main ingredients: sticky rice and anchovies. Sticky rice must be selected as delicious, fragrant, and plump. The rice is washed and soaked in water for 3-4 hours or overnight to soften the rice grains. After that, scoop the rice into a basket, drain, add a little salt and shake well, wait a while, then put the rice in a steamer and cook.
Sticky rice is cooked quite simply but still soft and chewy, without much seasoning, just a little salt for flavor and pandan leaves to add aroma. In some places, people also cook sticky rice a bit dry so that when eaten with anchovies it will not be soggy.
In Nha Trang, anchovies are available all year round and are famous for their delicious flavor, much better than other sea areas. There are many types such as anchovies, anchovies, white anchovies, striped anchovies, etc.
However, to get the most delicious and flavorful sticky rice, locals often use anchovies or anchovies. The anchovies are carefully selected from fresh fish of uniform size. After being cleaned, the heads and intestines removed, the fish are braised (braised) thoroughly, seasoned to have the right sour, spicy, salty and sweet flavors.
According to Ms. Loan, in addition to fresh anchovies, this sticky rice dish can also be made from dried anchovies. Not only does it attract customers because of its unique flavor, but the anchovy sticky rice dish is also popular because of its affordable price. For only 10,000 - 15,000 VND, diners can have a hot, fragrant dish of anchovy sticky rice.
Dien Khanh wet rice cake
Along Highway 1A, passing through Dien Khanh town, Khanh Hoa province, there is a street that only sells wet rice cakes, so many people call it “wet rice cake street”. This place gathers many shops, open from 4am until late at night.
After being ground, the rice flour will be mixed with water and spread into hot cakes on a clay oven. Unlike regular rice cakes that are eaten with meat, sausage or spring rolls, after being served on a plate, the maker will put on top of the cake rind, shredded meat, dried shrimp and green beans. Tourists use fish sauce made from mackerel or anchovy intestines to eat with this cake.
The price of a plate of Dien Khanh rice cake is not too expensive, ranging from 15,000 to 20,000 VND.
Nha Trang grilled spring rolls
Grilled spring rolls are a Nha Trang specialty that is famous throughout the country, appearing commonly in both Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi. However, the taste of this dish in its "hometown" still gives diners a different feeling.
Mince and pound the pork until smooth, season, sprinkle with pepper and then shape into skewers and grill until golden brown and fragrant.
Nem is served with a grilled plate, rice paper, and a few spring rolls. The accompanying raw vegetables depend on the season and each person's taste, and can include lettuce, fish mint, chives, basil, perilla, cucumber, green banana, carrot, star fruit, pineapple, shallots, thinly sliced mango...
The deliciousness of grilled spring rolls depends on the accompanying dipping sauce, which is also considered the secret of each restaurant. The main ingredients include sticky rice, soybeans, tomatoes, shrimp, lean meat, minced pork liver mixed with sugar, garlic, chili...
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