Explore rich and flavorful dishes

Surrounded by the majestic Truong Son mountain range on one side and the vast ocean on the other, the Central region possesses a rich source of culinary ingredients with very distinctive flavors.

Stretching along the central coast, the cuisine of the central region leaves an impression on visitors with its rich, delicate flavor, like the deep affection of the people here. From daily snacks to traditional dishes or desserts, all have unique features and a distinct depth, creating the brand of central cuisine.

Hue cakes, one of the famous "specialties" of the ancient capital.

The Central region has a narrow terrain, stretching from North to South, surrounded by the majestic Truong Son mountain range on one side and the vast ocean on the other. The diversity of geography and climate gives this place a rich source of culinary ingredients, along with the tradition of going out to sea to catch seafood for generations, creating a very unique flavor of Central cuisine: spicy and salty.

Spicy and attractive taste

Chili is considered the soul of Central cuisine. In cooking, from breakfast dishes or dipping sauces, from delicacies to everyday rustic dishes, all have sour, spicy, salty flavors enough to make any tourist linger when enjoying.

Located north of Hai Van Pass, the cuisine of the North Central region tends to be spicier and more flavorful than the North, the colors of the dishes are very rich and vibrant, tending towards red and dark red. The most prominent in the North Central coastal region are the cuisines of Thanh, Nghe and Hue.

Thanh Hoa shrimp cake.

As the northernmost region of the Central region, Thanh Hoa cuisine is a fusion of the sophistication of Northern cuisine and the rich flavors of the Central region. Thanh Hoa cuisine is diverse in dishes, rich in preparation, delicious in quality, beautiful in presentation and contains the unique folk character of the locality.

Impressive specialties include fermented pork rolls, gai cakes, lam cakes, porridge, rice cakes with sauce, rolled rice cakes, shrimp cakes and dishes with a strong coastal flavor such as Dam Set perch, fish sauce, shrimp paste, and dipping sauce with fermented fish sauce. The fermented pork rolls here are made from lean meat, shredded pork skin, pepper, chili, garlic and Polyscias fruticosa leaves. When eating, visitors can feel the sweet and fatty taste of fermented meat, the spicy taste of pepper, garlic, chili and the slight pungency of Polyscias fruticosa leaves, all creating an unforgettable flavor and becoming a famous gift of Thanh land.

Going deep into Nghe An, Nghe An cuisine is simple, rich and rustic like the people here. The special feature of Nghe An cuisine is the use of unique spices, along with skillful hands and taking advantage of available ingredients such as chives, soybeans, young jackfruit to create many specialties such as Thanh Chuong pickled vegetables, Nam Dan soy sauce, wet cakes, sweet cakes and most famous are eel dishes that make Nghe An brand such as eel soup, eel porridge, eel salad, eel stewed with banana and bean, eel stir-fried with lemongrass and chili, eel with rice paper...

The eel used in the preparation is freshwater eel, known for its fresh, delicious taste and firm meat. After being carefully and meticulously cleaned, the eel will be deodorized with vinegar, chili and marinated with spices, especially shallots - a typical spice of the sunny and windy land. When cooked, the eel meat becomes rich and firm, mixed with the sweet and fatty broth and the aroma of turmeric, pepper, chili, shallots, making diners who have tried it all praise it as delicious.

Nghe An's famous eel soup and rice cake.

The most special highlight in the journey to discover Central Vietnam cuisine must include Hue cuisine, which is considered the pinnacle of Vietnamese culinary quintessence because of its quintessence, elegance and charm. In Hue, cuisine is a cultural feature, with an elegant and gentle style - the characteristics of the ancient capital where kings once reigned.

Hue cuisine is divided into two types: royal cuisine and folk cuisine. Regardless of the type, Hue cuisine is always elaborately prepared, meeting the requirements of beautiful presentation, delicious nutrition and harmonious flavor, from delicacies such as peacock spring rolls, phoenix sausage, deer tendons, bird's nest... to mussel rice, beef noodles, Hue sweet soup, banh chung, sesame candy and famous cakes.

Rich in the flavor of the sea

Going down to the South, through each locality, the culinary culture has clear differentiation, creating diversity for the cuisine of the South Central region.

Besides the long coastline with beautiful beaches and bays, nature also favors the South Central region with fresh seafood, from which local people create many famous specialties such as tuna eyes steamed with lotus seeds, tuna salad, Nam O Da Nang fish salad, bird's nest steamed with lotus seeds, shark skin, shark fin, oyster porridge, sea urchin porridge, Quy Nhon jellyfish salad, Quy Nhon fish cakes, Chau Truc black eel stewed with banana and bean curd, Tay Son grilled beef rolls with sugarcane, and street snacks such as vermicelli with crushed fish, fish cake noodle soup, grilled spring rolls...

Possessing a long coastline, the central coastal provinces are considered a "paradise" for seafood and swimming lovers.

When visiting the South Central Coast, visitors should not miss the Banh It La Gai - a traditional cake of Binh Dinh people. The cake has a very unique flavor, a harmonious combination of the sweetness of sugar, the richness of green beans, the fat of coconut, the slight spiciness of ginger mixed with the aroma of sticky rice and Gai leaves. Banh It La Gai has become a specialty of Binh Dinh with an unforgettable taste, so that no matter where they go, the children of the martial arts land still remember the cake with a shape resembling an ancient Cham tower.

Located at the end of the South Central Coast, the Cham people mainly live in Ninh Thuan and Binh Thuan, but they have their own ways of cooking that create a difference and unique flavor. For the Cham people, the cuisine has a pure, simple character that reflects the spiritual life of the people here, such as white porridge - a traditional dish often used for breakfast, expressing the desire for a peaceful and safe life.

Along with white porridge, fried eggplant is one of the traditional dishes favored by the Cham people. Eggplant is a large eggplant, has a mild aroma and a very soft and spongy core, and is often fried or stir-fried. On rainy or cold days, there is nothing better than gathering with family and enjoying a bowl of hot rice with the salty, fatty aroma, and gentle spiciness of chili and fried eggplant!

Depending on the weather, climate, rainy or dry season, Cham dishes have different cool, sour or spicy properties. Typical Cham dishes include sour fish soup, boi soup (mixed soup cooked from many types of wild vegetables), fish sauce, goat meat, taro soup, shrimp spring rolls... In addition, Cham people also have many types of cakes, mainly served in religious ceremonies, weddings and have become attractive specialties for tourists such as banh tet, banh it, ginger cake, banh duc...

For the people of Central Vietnam, their resilient, hard-working character and skillful, diligent hands have turned the wonderful products of their homeland into delicious dishes that are famous far and wide, attracting many tourists when they visit and experience them.

Source: https://baoquocte.vn/am-thuc-mien-trung-kham-pha-mon-an-phong-phu-va-dam-da-huong-vi-241529.html