Peanut Brittle (Kẹo Lạc)

Peanut brittle is part of Vietnamese culture, it is a gift appeared in our daily lives and is considered as a meaningful gift for your guests naturally because it is one of our Best Vietnamese Food.

Peanut Brittle (Kẹo Lạc)
 

Drinking iced tea, eating peanut brittle, dồi candy (kẹo dồi)... is simply a part of culture to the people of Vietnam, especially the North. Peanut brittle is familiar with all ages, sipping tea and being nostalgic of old memories are the images visitors can find easily in Vietnam.

According to legend from the seventeenth century, Queen of Sugar-cane (Bà Chúa Mía) (the concubine of Lord Trịnh Tráng) volunteered to rebuild Mia pagoda and teach people of Đường Lâm village how to make candy from sugar cane. Based on that, people there has created many candy versions such as: Peanut Brittle, Dồi Candy, Sesame Candy,… and all of these amazing candies become specialties of Đường Lâm village & definitely in the list of Best Vietnamese Food.
 

Peanut brittle is a traditional candy made from roasted peanut, sugar and malt. As in many other villages, Peanut brittle, dồi candy & Lam Tea has a long history in ĐườngLâm.

Peanuts used to make Peanut brittle is planted in Đoài Hills which have rich flavor & smell really good.
 

Fresh peanuts are chosen very careful to avoid rot seeds.
 

Malts - one indispensable ingredients to make peanut brittle.

Malt is made from rice porridge, corn, wheat, cassava ... combined with rice germ meal (Nha cereal) and malt germ.
 

Sesame, Nha, sugar is mixed with suitable amount then simmered on coal stove and remember to stir constantly, otherwise, one of our Best Vietnamese Food can be ruined in just seconds.

After heated malt until it reclinesto golden brown then pour peanuts in the tray and stir to mix them together.
 

Pour the hot malt and peanut on the rolling table. A layer of sesame are spread on the table.
 

Use the roller to laminate.
 

After laminating to a necessary thinness, it is cut into small pieces.
 

 

Then packed.
 

 

Today candy packages have nice design with icon is Duong Lam village gates. Peanut brittle is a gift prompted about the homeland, Vietnamese culture, seen as a meaningful gift for the guests who first set foot in Vietnam. The remote is easily identify the flavor of the ancient land through homemade gifts. And above all, it is a reflection of the soul, is the eating & living virtual style of Đoài’s people.
 

So do not hesitate anymore, let’s visit our beautiful country and try these specialties – and have a time of your life here with us!

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Grilled Sharpbelly in Phú Yên (Cá mương nướng Phú Yên)

Just a small fish in a river stream, but when roasted, Sharpbelly (Cá mương) becomes the special dish of Phu Yen people and of course one of Best Vietnamese Food too.

Grilled Sharpbelly in Phú Yên (Cá mương nướng Phú Yên)
 

In recent years, Phu Yen began welcoming tourists thanks to landmarks such as Gềnh Reef, Đại Lãnh Cape, Swallow tower ... But most tourists find Phu Yen most remembered through cuisine with unique dishes but as simple as Rice Spaghetti Soup with Green shallot, Steamed Rice Cakes, Steamed Chopped Fish, Jackfruit sweet soup, Sharpbelly, etc.

As simple as the dish is but Grilled Sharpbelly (Cá mương nướng) is a very famous dish in the land of Phu Yen where visitors can hardly ignore.
 

In the above mentioned dishes, one can hardly forget the crispy, spicy taste of Grilled Sharpbelly rolled with ricepaper (Cá mương nướng cuốn bánh tráng). It’s a simple dish with a little golden crispy grilled sharpbelly, add a little fresh noodles, vegetables, ricepaper and Boomm… you've got a dish so tasty to resist.
 

Like other freshwater fishes such as sand goby, white fish ... Sharpbelly shape is long and thin, up to an adult finger, usually live in herds in the rivers and streams in this area.

However, according to the people of Phu Yen, those only caught in NgânSơn River will provide fresh meat, fragrant and chewy. That's not surprising when Sharpbelly in Ngan Son River is listed par with Ô Loan lagoon oysters (a famous specialties around the country) – and definitely listed in our list of Best Vietnamese Food.

Crispy Golden Grilled Sharpbelly – its smell is really attractive.

Fresh Sharpbelly is caught, washed and grilled (or fried) then will be cooked over charcoal fire. When grilling, you need to always turnover each side so that its scab is cooked without being charred. When you can smell its attractivefragrance then you can pick up a plate and enjoy.

It is served with vegetables of all kinds, fresh rice noodles, rice paper with spicy sauce.
 

There are many ways to eat Grilled Sharpbelly (Cá mương nướng) – one of our Best Vietnamese Food, you can eat with fish sauce and rice. But the most delicious way is to roll with ricepaper and other vegetables, such as lettuce, cucumber; fragrant basil; slip basil; fresh beansprout; Perilla; ... along with spicy chilli fish sauce.

In windy afternoon here, having sit down next to a charcoal fire, grill a bunch of Sharpbelly till it is golden and enjoy will not be a letdown to anybody.

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11 Amazing Benefits of Durian

If you’re bored and feeling upset, eating durian can help you feel better due to its content of vitamin B6 which raise your mood and improve your state of mind. So let’s discover more benefits of durian with us here:

11 Amazing Benefits of Durian
 

A. Benefits: ‘King of fruits’ has a unique sweet taste & smell

1) Prevent and reduce constipation:

Durians content various fiber, an essential nutrient to absorb water and dilate gastrointestinal tract. Thus, the process of eliminating waste in the digestive system is rapid and effective.

2) Prevent anemic:

Anemia’s causes are not necessarily from iron deficiency triggers. Folate deficiency can also cause a type of anemia called pernicious anemia. Folate, also known as vitamin B9, is essential for the production of normal red blood cells and durian – our Best Vietnamese Food - is one good source.

3) Protect your skin:

Vitamin C is a crucial factor in the formation of collagen – an essential protein for skin, bones, ligaments and blood vessels. Moreover, it can also play an important role in wound healing. Every bowl of durian can contain up to 80% of your everyday body needs of vitamin C.

4) Maintain & improve bones’ solidity:

Durians are high in potassium. In speaking of “bone’s health”, people are often focus on calcium but the truth is potassium is also a vital nutrient helps maintaining a strong & solid skeleton. It keeps calcium in our bodies so that calcium will not be excreted too much in urine.

5) Helps prevent cardiovascular disease:

The presence of organosulfur in durian is the reason why this fruit can help adjust enzymes that reduce inflammation in the body. Therefore, it has the potential to eliminate cardiovascular disease.

6) Adjust blood glucose level:

This fruit can help adjust blood glucose level, thanks to the abundant manganese intake.

7) For a better libido:

Iodine is still seen as the only nutrient capable of "protecting" the thyroid gland. In fact, copper is alsoplay a major role in the metabolic activity in the thyroid gland, especially the production and absorption of the hormone. Durian provides pretty much copper. Thus, when eating durian, your sexual life is revitalizing.

8) For a healthy digestive system:

“King of fruit” also containsfull of thiamin, a vitamin B used to stimulate your appetite and helps the stomach produce hydrochloric acid to digest food better.
 

Durian sticky rice


Durian Ice cream


Durian Sweet Soup

9) Reduces migraine:

Do you suffer from migraines? Sipping durian will help you dispel pain. Riboflavin - a B vitamin found in durian, still commonly used to treat migraines.

10) Acts as a natural anti-depressant:

Vitamin B6 is found much in durian – our Best Vietnamese Food. The deficiency of vitamin B6 in the body can lead to depression, asthenic. The study results showed that patients with this disease who are deficient in vitamin B6 - one of the essential nutrients necessary to produce serotonin - the chemical was responsible for information transmission in the brain, affecting your mood.

11) For healthy teeth:

Due to the amount of phosphorus that durian is also considered as beneficial foods for teeth and gums. Although calcium is one of the best nutrients for your teeth and gums but calcium cannot complete the task of protecting your teeth without the strong support from phosphorus.

B. How to choose Durian

You should choose which have big prickly, strong fragrant and fresh stalks.

Experience in buying durian is to choose which the nose are selected, notthosedistorted but its waist looks like bread. Choosing which has slightly crazed, strong fragrant.

Note the durian spikes: Bloom big and even, less sharp, rigid. Squeeze two spikes close together, if it’s old the spikes are tough and otherwise it will be fresh. You should also pay attention to the durian stems, stalks must be fresh, dark green, not wilted stems or stems were lost.
 

 

Observing how the seller hull, old & ripened durians will have 5 upper slots hulled itself, the seller will do his/her job gently and simple. Otherwise, your durians are not ripened yet.

C. Cautions:

Durian fruit is highly nutritious, however you should not eat too much. Pregnant women or people with high blood pressure should not eat durian. The durian seeds are also quite toxic and is considered to be the cause of shortness of breath.

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Cơ Tu Bacon (Thịt Xông Khói Cơ Tu)

For who is gourmet with Best Vietnamese Food, when you come to Cơ Tu village on their festival day such as harvest day (Bhuoi Avi), happy home day (Lang tori), new rice season day (Chaha roo tomee). On festival day, buffalo are scarified to the God and then the buffalo is cut and share to the villagers. The number of sharing meat depends on the contribution of villagers to the village on festival day. On average, people receive 3 or 4 kilos of meat.
 

 

After receiving meat, they slice it into small pieces and then slope through them by one rope and put in the kitchen. This is one way of saving food in the days has a little food. When cooking food, the smoke and heat from the kitchen will dry the meat. The quality of this Best Vietnam Food is get more luscious when it is put in the kitchen for long time.
 

 

Some families has many buffalo’ meat they chill and season the meat with salt, chilies, pepper. The quality of this Best Vietnamese Food still remains the taste and sweetness. When eating it, people will tear it in long piece to grill again. After grilling the bacon, the smoke smell still stuck inside.
 

 

The Cơ Tu residents only use this Best Vietnamese Food on rainy day, storm day or festival day to serve the visitors. They make many dishes such as grilling, cook with cassava, rice, corn and some herbs. All of them are very delicious. So if you are invited this food, it means you are their special guest. Therefore, you have to appreciate it and thank them a lot.
 

 

When exchange culture amongst tribe, this Best Vietnamese Food is not served only in home’s meal. It becomes the specialty food that is served to every one for explore and discover purpose to visitors. Make sure you already take note this dish on your journey book before planning to visit Vietnam. Hope you have an excited trip with friends and family in my beautiful country.
 

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Asian Red Tailed Catfish Hotpot in Serepok River (Lẩu Cá Lăng ở Serepok)

Asian red tailed cat fish is a style of shark catfish. It belongs to one of the biggest river’s fish in nature. Some of fish was caught is weight from 40-50 kilos. In Vietnam, this fish lives only in some river on the mountainous place and someplace where it has many high Fall. It lives crowdedly in Serepok River (one of popular river in Dak Lak). From this fish, there are many traditional food are cook such as Lã Vọng fried fish (Chả Cá Lã Vọng).
 

 

Today, the illegal catching of this fish increase rapidly and the price are quite high from 250,000-300,000 VND for one kilo. So, the natural fish live in Dak Lak and someplace are very rare. Luckily, people has succeeded in breed and feed in the manmade environment.
 

 

There are two main cooking of this fish. One is strike is into many parts and then grilled it on the hot coal with chili. Another one is make one hot pot; this is one of Best Vietnamese Food that is served widely around Vietnam.
 

 

To cook this Best Vietnamese Food is quite simple, first cutting the fish into third or four parts (depends on the shape of fish). Next, cut the bamboo shoots and put all of them into the hot pot. Wait in some minutes and you can enjoy it. It is getting more delicious if it is enjoyed with fish sauce. The making of it is simple, someone think this dish might not be scrumptious; however it is one biggest fault. The delicious of this fish’s meat is perfect, so cooking it as simple as best. Diners always marks this dish is perfect 100 score after eating.
 

 

Hope to see you at Serepok when enjoy this Best Vietnamese Food. I think it would be a great meeting because it is the first time we meet and enjoy the delicious fish together. Hope you have an interesting trip in my beautiful country and guarantee that you will not miss this dish when you have a chance to visit this place.
 

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Le Bamboo Shoot in Tây Nguyên (Măng Le ở Tây Nguyên)

Do you known there is one tree that you even burn or cut it, it still grow up? This immortal tree is Le Bamboo. It is also the main ingredient to make many traditional Vietnamese Food. It belongs to bamboo style. It lives and spread strongly on Bazan’s lane (one of best fertile lane in Vietnam). On the way finding the lane to plant, Tây Nguyên residents do not afraid of predators or somethings, however they are really afraid of Le Bamboo’s forest. It seems to there is no way to destroy it instead of digging all of their roots up. In Tây Nguyên, the value of Le Bamboo is only bamboo shoot.
 

 

Fresh Le bamboo shoot is really delicious, but the fried Le bamboo shoot is much better. Coming to the village and is served the one meal include rice, Le bamboo shot with deer meat is the best serving of local residents to the visitors. The Best Vietnamese Food like Le Bamboo make this combination is wonderful and the diners will hardly forget the taste. However there is one great concern of the existence of this bamboo shoot in near future. On rainy season, the number of bamboo shoot’s market increase rapidly.
 

 

You may see one Le Bamboo Shoot’s market in previous year, but it might be three or four in next year. It could cause by the illegal destroying forest of people not only the local one but also the others. If this destroying continues occur, the Le Bamboo shoot will no longer exist. The numbers of this Best Vietnamese Food rise rapidly, but people eating it are limit. So, the fried Le bamboo shoot is accumulating year by year. I saw someone throw them into garbage; it is really a wasteful thing that I viewed.
 

 

  >>> Food for Luna New Year in Vietnam (Part 1)

To sum up, Le bamboo shoot is one Best Vietnamese Food and it is in danger due to the illegal destroying forest rising sharply. On one day, this food may no longer exist, so if you come to Vietnam, especially come to Tây Nguyên, you should quickly enjoy it. Hope you have a happy trip in my country. See you.

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Sour Soup with Queen Orchid Leaves (Canh Chua Lá Móng Bò Tím)

According to Ban Mê residents, Queen’s Orchid Leaf has a violet color and it has another name is Camel’s foot leaf (its scientific name is Bauhinia variegate belongs to Fabaceae’s style) is planted widely on the milpa. It is also a style of landscape tree in the park or on the sidewalk. However, the Ban Mê residents find a way to process this leaf and make it become one of  Vietnamese Food.
 

 

Cooking this Best Vietnamese Food is quite simple. Firstly, you boil the fish or beef, pork in the hot water pot. When the water is boiled, you add the queen’s orchid leaf in the pot. This soup would be more fantastic if the ingredients are the Queen’s orchid leaf has a red tail and stream fish, forest chicken or duck, especially the yellow ants’ nest.
 

 

In someplace in Vietnam such as Sapa, people plant this leaf like other vegetables to cut the fresh one and bring them to sell at the supermarket. This Best Vietnamese Food occurs mostly on the SaPa‘s restaurants. It is so weird to say that this leaf belongs to Tây Nguyên. No matter this leaf come from where, people like eating this leaf due to its sour taste.
 

 

Besides of making food, this leaf is also useful for medicine. It contains a high calcium and Fe. So it is used for treating sick, reduce pains, stomachache and treating the wounds.
 

 

It is really fantastic, one leaf that can make one Best Vietnamese Food and also a useful medicine for treating sick. So, I think this leaf should be planted widely in the city. People can take them to cook and for treatment in terms of getting sick. Vietnam is very proud of having this leaf.

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