Commune merger, province merger, Thai Binh fish cake, Hung Yen soy sauce, Luc Ngan lychee, what to call?

Many people are asking the same question: after the merger of communes and provinces, what will the specialties and dishes bearing the mark of villages and communes be called, such as Hung Yen soy sauce, Luc Ngan lychee (Bac Giang), Nguyen village's fish cake - Thai Binh, Nam Dinh beef noodle soup, Hai Duong green bean cake, etc.?

With a diverse ecosystem, stretching from the mountains to the plains, the sea, and ethnic communities with unique cultural identities, Vietnam possesses many specialties and extremely unique and attractive dishes. It seems that each village and commune on this S-shaped strip of land has its own typical products, imbued with the regional culture, the crystallization of the land and sky there, demonstrating the ingenuity, talent, and creativity of the people through many ups and downs, changes of history.

Now, many village specialties have gone beyond the bamboo fences of the village, consumed domestically and internationally, such as: Hung Yen soy sauce, Luc Ngan lychee (Bac Giang), Nguyen village's fish cake - Thai Binh, Nam Dinh beef noodle soup, Hai Duong green bean cake,...

Luc Ngan litchi is a famous specialty of Bac Giang province. Photo: N.Chuong.

For example, when talking about the specialties of Thai Binh, it is impossible not to mention Banh Cay. This is a rustic cake with a very unique flavor made by the skillful hands of the people of Nguyen village, and in the past was also used as a product to present to the king.

Banh Cay originated from Nguyen village, Nguyen Xa commune, Dong Hung district, Thai Binh province. When eating, the diners will feel the sweetness, richness, and a little fat mixed with the crispiness, both soft and chewy. Even more interesting is to sip hot green tea in the cold weather, the warm tea flavor combined with the hot spicy taste of ginger in the cake will make the diners feel warm and comfortable.

Banh Cay is made from sticky rice, sesame, peanuts combined with leaves and fruits to create white, green, and yellow colors for the cake. It can be said that this is a very typical cake that cannot be found anywhere else except Thai Binh.

Nguyen village's rice cake is made from carefully selected ingredients, including plump, golden sticky rice, ripe red gac fruit, sesame, roasted peanuts, lard, sliced ​​coconut rice marinated with sugar, fragrant, chewy pumpkin jam, and malt and grapefruit essential oil.

To make a fish cake requires many steps as well as the meticulousness of the maker because the main ingredient is sticky rice but also comes with many other accessories, each type of ingredient has its own way of processing.

Luc Ngan district (Bac Giang) is famous nationwide for its lychee specialty that no other region has. When ripe, Luc Ngan lychee has a bright red color, small seeds, thick flesh, sweet and rich in nutrients. The lychee here is larger and has a distinctive flavor that is completely different from lychee in other regions. Luc Ngan lychee is not only famous domestically but also present in many countries around the world such as: China, Thailand, America, Australia and many other countries.

With its natural sweetness and attractive aroma, Luc Ngan lychee is not only a great choice for daily meals but also an ideal ingredient for desserts and cool drinks on hot days. Not only delicious, lychee is also known for its diverse health benefits. They are rich in antioxidants, fiber and other essential nutrients, helping to provide energy and maintain good health in the summer.

Fish cake, a specialty of Thai Binh province.

Likewise, Nam Dinh beef noodle soup has long been famous everywhere. Nam Dinh people have brought the noodle cooking profession to all provinces and cities in the country and gradually built and affirmed the Nam Dinh noodle brand. Now, Nam Dinh noodle soup is not only a famous delicious dish but also the crystallization of Nam Dinh culinary culture.

Nam Dinh pho being recognized as a national intangible cultural heritage is not only the pride of Nam Dinh people, enhancing the province's brand, contributing to the development of local economy and tourism, but also creating motivation in preserving and promoting the culinary cultural value of Nam Dinh pho.

In particular, since the implementation of the One Commune One Product (OCOP) Program, many local specialties have been upgraded. According to statistics, by the end of 2024, 63/63 provinces and cities nationwide had evaluated and classified more than 12,000 OCOP products. Of these, 73.9% of OCOP products achieved 3 stars, 24.7% of OCOP products achieved 4 stars and 42 products achieved 5 stars, the rest had 5-star potential.

The Red River Delta is the leading region in the country with 30.7% of the total number of OCOP products in the country. Next is the Mekong Delta (18.3%), the Northern mountainous region (16.8%), and the Southeast region (5.8%). Currently, there are 6,542 entities participating in the evaluation and classification of OCOP products, of which 32.5% are cooperatives, 22% are enterprises, 40.3% are production establishments/business households, and the rest are cooperative groups.

The names of dishes and specialties have been closely associated with the history of formation and development of a land for hundreds, even thousands of years. Since the news of merging communes and provinces, on social networking forums, many people have had the same question: after merging communes and provinces, what will the specialties and dishes with strong village imprints such as Hung Yen soybean paste, Luc Ngan lychee (Bac Giang), Nguyen village's fish cake - Thai Binh, Nam Dinh beef noodle soup, Hai Duong green bean cake,... be called?

People strongly agree and support the merger of localities, which will open up new development space, reduce the cumbersome apparatus, thereby saving resources for investment and development. However, many people are also concerned about the names of places, dishes, and specialties that have existed for generations, how will they be called by new names?

Regarding this issue, talking to Dan Viet, agricultural expert Hoang Trong Thuy said that even if the province is merged, the village names will still be there, the local dishes and specialties will still be there, will not be lost, and even have more opportunities to develop after gathering resources.

"It is possible that the brand name, packaging of a product, the name of the commune, the name of the province may change according to the policy of the Party and the State, but I believe that the soul in each local specialty, the cultural value of each product will be preserved and developed. Banh cay will always be a specialty of Nguyen Thai Binh village while pho bo is always the pride of Nam Dinh people. The names that have been positioned on the map of Vietnamese specialties will certainly never fade away if people still wholeheartedly preserve and promote them in the new era," expert Hoang Trong Thuy emphasized.

Source: https://danviet.vn/nguoi-dan-ban-khoan-sap-nhap-xa-sap-nhap-tinh-banh-cay-thai-binh-tuong-ban-hung-yen-vai-thieu-luc-ngan-goi-the-nao-20250322114816347.htm