It’s Friday night in Hanoi, Vietnam. Not just Friday night – rush hour on Friday night. You’ve seen photos of Hanoi traffic. Good luck getting anywhere if you don’t know what you’re doing. Fortunately for us, we’re staying near the Old Quarter, where we’ll be going on a Friday night foodie tour.
Let the Foodie Tour Begin
At the tour office, a nice young lady named Joy greeted us. She’d be our guide tonight. After getting acquainted, we set out on foot. The first stop was a 10-minute walk from the office.
The first course on our foodie tour was a classic Vietnamese dish – Steamed Rice Rolls, (Bánh Cuốn). They’re the size and shape of egg rolls, but they’re not fried. They’re shown in the photo at the top of this post, thanks to: istockphoto/Cerise HUA.
The Bánh Cuốn place was a little stall where the cook makes your Bánh Cuốn while you watch. She started by steaming an impossibly thin piece of rice flour paper. When it was ready, she picked it up with a flat stick and moved it to a table, leaving the stick in place.
Next, she put in the filling: ground pork, chopped mushrooms, and shallots. Maybe some other stuff. Then, with a few deft hand motions, she twirled the stick around to make the whole thing into a cylindrical roll. The whole process took just a few minutes.
They served the rolls with crispy toppings, a dipping sauce, and green herbs. They were amazing. Red chilis in the dipping sauce provided some heat, but not too much. I could’ve eaten a bunch of ‘em, but we were just getting started. Time to move on.
Did Someone Say Donuts?
The next place was a 5-minute walk away, but not an easy one. We walked through narrow lanes not meant for motorbikes, but that didn’t deter commuters looking for a shortcut home from work. Pedestrians and motorbikes jammed every inch of space. Hey, no problem. I didn’t need that toe anyway.
Stop Number 2 was a stall selling “Sweet Donuts,” (Bánh Rán). Sometimes they’re called sesame balls. To make ’em, they deep-fry balls of rice flour with something sweet inside. They roll some of them in sesame seeds for a nice coating.
Just like at the previous place, they made them right there in front of us. The ones being made were too hot to eat, but they had a supply of freshly-made donuts for us to gobble down.
Of course they were really good. CNN food writers put them on their list of the top 30 fried foods in the world. Who am I to disagree?
Stop Number 3 was another 5-minute walk away. By the time we got there, we had gotten the hang of navigating the crowded lanes. I guess it wasn’t THAT bad.
The next stop would be special. The dish served there is something of a delicacy. Only available during a certain time of year. Can you guess what it is? Monkey Brains? Filet of Rat? Fried Crickets? No, no, and no. Give up? OK…
We’re gonna eat worms! But not just any worms. Sand worms, from the Red River – a Hanoi specialty. We happened to be here during sand worm season, which isn’t that long. Lucky us, eh?
To be continued…
