Bringing the taste of Vietnamese spring rolls to international friends in Africa

Spring rolls are very popular with international friends.

According to a VNA reporter in South Africa, excitedly showing off her neatly rolled spring rolls, Ms. Paula shared: “Vietnamese spring rolls are really good for your health. I put all the ingredients in here, lots of vegetables, especially coriander to enhance the flavor.”

Ms. Paula made and enjoyed her first spring roll at a cultural exchange event between countries in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the international diplomatic corps in the capital Pretoria (South Africa) held on April 25.

At this event, the Vietnamese Embassy in South Africa promoted two famous and familiar Vietnamese dishes: fried spring rolls and spring rolls. These traditional Vietnamese dishes have been loved by many international diners. In particular, the guests directly prepared spring rolls under the guidance of home-grown chefs from the Vietnamese Embassy. The guests were given detailed instructions from dipping Vietnamese rice paper to soften it and make it easier to roll, to selecting and processing vegetables, tubers, spices, shrimp, meat, etc. to have a spring roll that is not only fresh and delicious but also very beautiful.

For many international friends, this is the first time they have known Vietnamese spring rolls and have been able to roll them themselves with fresh ingredients and attractive colors.

Guests were instructed to make Vietnamese spring rolls.

Sharing her experience of rolling spring rolls for the first time, Ms. Paula said: “When I first started making them, I wondered how Vietnamese people could put so many ingredients into the same thin and fragile rice paper and yet the finished product was so beautiful and neat. When I actually started making them and was guided by Vietnamese friends, I knew how. It turned out that I could make spring rolls easily, thank you very much for teaching me how to roll spring rolls.” According to Ms. Paula, this first experience with Vietnamese cuisine has given her more motivation to travel to Vietnam in the near future.

Like Ms. Paula, Ms. Zoe Maphala, a South African, was surprised to see how the Vietnamese girls “rolled the whole world into a spring roll” at the event. Ms. Zoe said: “It turns out that rolling spring rolls is not too difficult. And I really like Vietnamese spring rolls, they are really fresh and delicious. This dish has enough starch, vegetables, and meat to create a balance. I really love Vietnamese food, Vietnamese culture and I am happy to add a dish to the list that I will make a lot in the future.” Ms. Zoe added that she will buy Vietnamese rice paper at supermarkets or stores in South Africa to roll herself.

Speaking at the event, as Chairman of the ASEAN Committee in Pretoria, Vietnamese Ambassador to South Africa, Hoang Sy Cuong affirmed that this event is an opportunity for ASEAN countries to bring Southeast Asian culture closer to international friends in general and South Africa in particular.

VNA/Tin Tuc Newspaper

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