A fresh couple

Online Travel Vietnam: If there is one dish that defines Vietnamese food, it should be bun thit nuong or grilled pork with rice vermicelli.

 

Generally speaking, Vietnamese food is as fresh as it gets. They've perfected the use of all of their fresh vegetables and herbs such as coriander, spearmint, green onions, lemongrass, basil and parsley, etc. This is true even when we're talking about any of the delicious noodle soups, like pho (Vietnamese noodle soup) or hu tieu (Cambodian noodle soup), or any of the rice dishes.

These herbs are sprinkled on top for an added freshness to noodle soups. On the other hand, meats are grilled with these herbs to bring out the taste of different types of herbs

However, bun thit nuong has freshness written all over it. It's neither too hot nor too cold. It's made of vermicelli noodles, strips of lettuce, cucumbers, bean sprouts, fried spring rolls, grilled pork, green onions, peanuts and drenched in spicy fish sauce, well that's how I like it anyway.

Bun thit nuong is a dish that I always ordered at the local Vietnamese restaurant in Fort Smith, Arkansas. And it's the dish that my mom has put her own twist on, with her homemade egg rolls.

Luckily, we live on a street bustling with street food all day long. Just a few alleys down from ours, is a sweet lady who sells bun thit nuong for just VND15,000 (US 72 cents)!

Ambiance is not the reason to come to this food stall. The food is definitely the reason. She cooks the fried spring rolls (cha gio) while a gentleman cooks the grilled pork (thit nuong). You can get this dish at most chain restaurants and you can find food stalls around Saigon, but hers is by far the best. She's open for lunch only or until she runs out of food, which is usually between 11:30am and 2:30pm. Check it out at 61B Tran Van Dang, Ward 9, District 3, Ho Chi Minh City.

Bun thit nuong is perfect for those quick yet fulfilling lunches. However, if all you need is a just a simple snack, then look no further then the ladies who sell snacks just outside of schools. Some are simple and some are more complex. My favorite is banh trang tron or mixed rice paper

This seems simple because it comes in a small plastic bag. But, as you watch the lady make it, it is far from simple. She puts about nine or ten different ingredients together and mixes it to create a fresh spicy jungle of fulfillment in the middle of the day. I work at VUS and this is the most popular snack during break time. Her bicycle that carries all of her ingredients attracts the most students.

And as a teacher who works 10-hour Sundays, banh trang tron is the best snack for an afternoon pick-me up. It consists of strips of rice paper mixed with spices such as paprika, pepper, strips of mangoes, diced peanuts, spicy chili sauce, soy sauce, hot oil, green mint leaves and a quail egg. What makes it even more unique is that you eat it with small sticks - not chopsticks but more like large toothpicks. For only VND 5,000 (US 20 cents) it keeps my mouth still kicking with spice even when I begin to teach again.

In my opinion, banh trang tron is a healthy snack as long as you don't go overboard with it. The amount that they give you is just enough.

Whether it's a snack or a meal, Vietnamese food never seizes to be healthy and fresh.Bun thit nuong and banh trang tron are excellent representatives of this freshness.

 *Born and raised in the southern state of Arkansas in the United States, Shauna Vo has been living in Vietnam since September 2010. She's a graphic designer by trade, a writer by university major and an English teacher by night. Her roots are from Vietnam, although she doesn't know the language or culture very well because her mother was adopted. Shauna is here to learn more about her heritage. Follow her adventures on her blog at www.vo-pulayya.com.

Source: Tuoi Tre