“Nem chua” (Vietnamese fermented pork roll); Khoai cake; sucking snails/escargots, fried shrimp rolls and other kinds of cakes are the popular street food in Thanh Hoa city.
You should try them to feel the essence of street food lifestyle in this city.
1. Nem chua (Vietnamese fermented pork roll)
“Nem chua” is the most famous specialty in Thanh Hoa province. Based on the traditional “nem chua”, Thanh Hoa local people are very creative to make “nem chua” under various forms with different ways of processing and eating.
Shapes and sizes of “nem chua” vary from small long sticks to squares and sometimes, even in large containers full, depending on their usage purposes, but the taste is unchanged. There are also some other forms of “nem chua” like: “nem chua” mixed with “thinh” – a kind of powdered grilled rice, grilled “nem chua”, fried “nem chua”… that bring different flavor to food lovers.
You can buy “nem chua” at Goc Da shop, Cuong Dung shop, Vu Linh shop, Ba Thuong shop, Ba Nam shop, or in the sidewalk shops in Dinh Le street, To Vinh Dien street, Ngoc Trao street,..
2. Khoai cake (literally “delicious cake”)
Khoai cake is rather similar to Southern-style “banh xeo” (literally “sizzling cake”) in terms of food processing, but different in ingredients which contain the features of Thanh Hoa province. It includes julienned cabbage, celery, fennel and fresh baby shrimps. Khoai cake can be eaten with sweet sour fish sauce mixed with figs. Sometimes the fresh baby shrimps can be replaced with chicken eggs to change flavor.
The best time to enjoy khoai cake is when you get off work in the afternoon. You can easily find the cake shops in Truong Thi street, Dao Duy Tu street, Han Thuyen street, Vuon Hoa market,…
3. “Cha tom” (Fried shrimp rolls)
Fried shrimp roll flavor seems to be strange but interesting to visitors. The food processing is rather complicated and meticulous.
The fresh shrimps are cleaned, peeled off the cover, pulled out the black lines on their backs and then crushed. To make the stuffing have beautiful pink color, the shrimps are mixed with cochinchin gourd, then with fried pork belly with minced garlic and purple onion. The stuffing is wrapped in square-shaped rice noodles, then put in broiler and grilled on charcoal.
The sweetness of shrimps, mixed with sour pickles, spicy chili and cooling herbs create an unforgettable taste to the dish. The price of fried shrimp rolls for 2 people is about 30,000 – 40,000 VND.
4. Banh cuon (literally “rolled rice cake”)
Rolled rice cake in Thanh Hoa is soft, chewy and fragrant. Thanh Hoa locals can enjoy a delicious but cheap plate of rolled rice cakes anywhere in the city. Rolled rice cake is made from fragrant rice flour, even when getting cold, it is still delicious.
Thanh Hoa people usually eat rolled rice cakes in the morning. If you want to enjoy them at any time of the day, you can drop in Tong Duy Tan street, Tran Phu street, Le Quy Don street,…
5. Sucking snails (close to Thanh Ha pagoda)
Ben Ngu street, where Thanh Ha pagoda is located, is the familiar address for food lovers to enjoy sucking snails and other dishes mixed with snails.
The taste of marinated snails and aroma of lemongrass and chili will be an unforgettable experience when you try to suck them for the first time. The heat and spiciness of this dish may take you aback a little bit.
6. Nam Ha bread
“Nam Ha bread” is the name of a series of heirloom bread shops in Truong Thi street. Their bread has its own flavor which is not changed for more than 20 years. The stuffing is various for customers to choose: mixed with fried “nem chua”, air-dried beef, roasted pork,…
What makes Nam Ha bread favored is the fresh, carefully selected materials and its special homemade sauce.
7. Ich cake
Ich cake in Thanh Hoa is not much different from ich cake and sticky rice cake in other localities. The soft, round ich cake contains shrimps and braised pork inside and can be eaten with sweet sour fish sauce.
It can be easily found in Vuon Hoa and Tay Thanh markets, or in some sidewalk shops in Dinh Le street. It is very appealing to customers and often sold out quickly.