While putting together Pho411.ca, we noticed there was something missing in cuisine literature: a comprehensive list of Vietnamese dishes, with English translations. This was not an issue at first but, it stood out more and more as we began to notice discrepancies among the writings of Vietnamese cuisine enthusiasts; they were not using the same English translations for the same Vietnamese dishes.

To keep the long story short, Pho411 has teamed up with Andrea Nguyen of VietWorldKitchen to put together this list of over 200 Vietnamese dishes and food items, and have carefully chosen their most commonly recognized (and used) English translations as the “official” English names. Feel free to suggest changes and additional dishes you’d like to have translated!

Here it is! http://www.pho411.ca/dish-names/

In today’s article I present to you our list of 10 Vietnamese dishes you must try. These are based on our personal favourites and our opinion on their popularity. We decided to leave out appetizers and beverages since we figure you get them regularly. Keep in mind that only few restaurants actually serve all these 10 items, so you might have to do some investigating!

our top 10 must try vietnamese dishes

Top 3 Dishes

The top 3 Vietnamese dishes that everyone has to have, and probably have had, are pho, rice combo, and vermicelli combo. These are not only the staples of most restaurants, they are also the representatives of Vietnamese cuisine outside of Vietnam. As discussed in previous articles (pho, rice, vermicelli), these 3 dishes can be customized based on your taste.

mouth watering pho

rice with pork chops

spring roll and grilled meat vermicelli

The 7 Musts

Here are the next 7, in no particular order.

Banh Xeo. Sizzling Crepes – “Bun say-oh” is a fun dish to try. Besides being prettily yellow, it is also fun to eat, as it is a crepe stuffed with different goodies.

sizzling crepes

Hu Tieu My Tho. My Tho Seafood Noodles is a glass noodle soup dish with lots of vegetables and seafood. Egg noodle can also be added.

My Tho seafood noodle

Bun Bo Hue. Spicy Hue Noodle – “Bun bo Hue is the most famous dish to come out of the centrally located, imperial city of Hue. Thicker, round rice noodles in a spicy beef broth flavoured principally with lemongrass and chili, bun bo Hue is extremely rich in flavour and aroma. Large pieces of pig knuckle and (fatty) slices of beef add body to the soup, while thinly sliced red onions, chopped scallion and a squirt of lime give bun bo Hue an element of freshness.”

spicy Hue noodle

Banh Cuon. Rice-flour Crepes with Minced Pork – “Banh cuon is a popular dish hailing from Northern Vietnam and is typically eaten in the day time. It is a thin rice flour crepe stuffed primarily with ground pork and minced wood-ear mushroom. Banh cuon is laid out flat on a dish, topped with fresh sprigs of coriander, accompanied by slices of pickled carrot and daikon, and doused with sweet nuoc mam. Cooked bean sprouts and Vietnamese pork sausage (cha lua) are optional, although commonly added to the dish as well.”

banh cuon

Canh Chua Ca Kho To. As traditional as it gets, this dish of Sweet and Sour Fish Soup with Braised Fish in Clay Pot is something the whole family can share and enjoy.

canh chua ca kho to

Bo Luc Lac. ” The famous dancing beef dish of Vietnam. This is Vietnamese stir-fry at its finest. Made from marinated beef cut into cubes and fried with shallots, served over watercress, and, or lettuce, it’s a simple but delicious dish for beef lovers. Just as its appearance suggests, its flavours are bold and mouth watering.”

shaking beef

Bun Rieu. “Crab meat noodle soup is an extremely rich noodle soup originating from northern Vietnam. Made with a tomato-based broth flavoured with fresh crab paste and shrimp paste, bun rieu is a fine meld of sweet, savoury and sour. Vermicelli noodles, crab cake, fried tofu, and vegetarian sausage are added to the soup base, then garnished with fresh cilantro, bean sprouts and fresh water spinach.”

bun rieu

That wraps up our top 10. Aside from the Top 3, what are your 7 must have dishes?

Rice combinations work the same way as vermicelli and pho. You’ll get a basic plate of steamed white rice, which comes with lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber, pickled daikon, pickled carrots, and a bowl of fish sauce. You also get up to 7 different types of meats from which to build your combo.

		English	Vietnamese	Description	Texture	Taste
Rice Combos	Meats	B.B.Q. Pork/Beef/Chicken	Thit Nuong, Bo Nuong, Ga Nuong	marinated steak is barbequed, then cut into smaller pieces ready for consumption	toughness vary between the three, but still very tender	very savoury. hints of sweet and salt
		Shredded Pork	Bi	strings' of pork meat and pork skin mixed in rice powder	the meat is soft whereas the skin is a bit chewy	meat is unmarinated, but often the scent of rice powder dominates the taste buds
		Steamed Egg w Minced Pork	Cha Trung	comes in block form and could look like cheese	loosely packed ground meat	hints of sweetness and salt
		Jumbo Shrimp	Tom Cang Kho	jumbo shrimp sauteed in savoury sauce	softer than normal shrimps due to prolonged cooking	savoury, salty
		Fried Egg	Trung Op-la	sunny side up or easy over egg
	Veggies	Lettuce	Cai Xanh
		Tomatoes	Ca Chua
		Cucumber	Dua Leo
		Pickled Daikon	Dua Cai Trang	thin strips of "white radish"	less crunchier than regular daikon	hints of sourness
		Pickled Carrots	Dua Cai Do	thin strips of carrots	less crunchier than regular carrots	hints of sourness
		Oiled Scallions	Mo Hanh	chopped scallions cooked in oil	a bit slimy, crunchy
	Sauce	Fish Sauce	Nuoc Cham	accompanies the vermicelli to be poured over noodles as desired		hints of salt, lime and sugar
Fried Rice		Chicken Fried Rice	Com Chien Ga	fried rice with bits of vegetables and small chunks of chicken	rice is a bit dryer than regular steamed rice	various flavours from different ingredients
		Shrimp Fried Rice	Com Chien Tom	fried rice with bits of vegetables and shrimps	rice is a bit dryer than regular steamed rice	various flavours from different ingredients
		Beef Fried Rice	Com Chien Bo	fried rice with bits of vegetables and small chunks of beef	rice is a bit dryer than regular steamed rice	various flavours from different ingredients
		Seafood Fried Rice	Com Chien Do Bien	fried rice with bits of vegetables and seafood, which usually includes squid, crab meat, and shrimp	rice is a bit dryer than regular steamed rice, squid is chewy and crab meat is very soft	various flavours from different ingredients
Curry Rice		Curry Chicken	Com Ca Ri Ga	yellow curry sauce is either served over steamed rice, or in separate bowl. curry comes with medium size pieces of chicken	Vietnamese curry is a mild sauce, unlike its Thai and Indian counterparts. Its texture is more runny than thick	not as sweet as Thai, not as spicy as Indian, with hints of coconut
		Curry Lamb	Com Ca Ri De	yellow curry sauce is either served over steamed rice, or in separate bowl. curry comes with medium size pieces of lamb	Vietnamese curry is a mild sauce, unlike its Thai and Indian counterparts. Its texture is more runny than thick	not as sweet as Thai, not as spicy as Indian, with hints of coconut
		Curry Beef	Com Ca Ri Bo	yellow curry sauce is either served over steamed rice, or in separate bowl. curry comes with medium size pieces of beef	Vietnamese curry is a mild sauce, unlike its Thai and Indian counterparts. Its texture is more runny than thick	not as sweet as Thai, not as spicy as Indian, with hints of coconut
		Curry Shrimp	Com Ca Ri Tom	yellow curry sauce is either served over steamed rice, or in separate bowl. curry comes with whole shrimps	Vietnamese curry is a mild sauce, unlike its Thai and Indian counterparts. Its texture is more runny than thick	not as sweet as Thai, not as spicy as Indian, with hints of coconut

One thing I’d like to note about rice combos is that they are traditionally served with steamed broken rice. Broken rice is basically broken rice grains. Nowadays most restaurant serve rice dishes with regular rice, probably because of the similarity between the two. The taste and texture are not any different from regular steamed rice, but the tradition is what some of us miss.

Some restaurants also serve fried rice and/or curry rice. With the fried rice, you’re sure to get good consistency between restaurants, whereas the curry varies a bit more. Either way, these are good alternatives to the plain steamed rice in the combos.

Part One: Vermicelli Combos

A basic bowl of vermicelli comes with the noodle, lettuce, cucumber, tomatoes, pickled daikon and carrots, and a bowl of light fish sauce, nuoc cham. Combination choices include different types of meats, and spring rolls.

Like pho, the different choices can actually overwhelm those who are new to the dish, but if you have an idea of which combo you want to try, then it’s just a matter of finding it on the menu. Some restaurants do offer “Special Vermicelli Combo”, which basically include a large combination of most of the ingredients listed here. Ordering this bowl will give you a chance try several of the meats at a time, thus giving you a better idea of what you might or might not like.

Next up: Rice Combos.

In today’s post, I will attempt to clarify and simplify the ordering process to help those of you who are new to pho – or even those veterans who still find themselves confused by the clutter of never ending choices – create a perfect bowl for yourself!

Pho, essentially, is made up of two very basic ingredients: the broth, and the pho noodle (pho is the name of the noodle as well as the dish). Restaurants often garnish the broth with chopped scallions, onions, and coriander. This is what you get when you order plain pho (pho khong). Every bowl of pho is accompanied by a plate of veggies, which often includes lime or lemon, basils bean sprouts, green chili, and culantro.

different vegs and herbs that accompany pho, as shown on the menus of Pho Hoa restaurants

A full-blown pho menu will give you up to 15-20 different combinations of pho. These combinations differ based on the cuts of beef you prefer. There are 8 different cuts, as described in the table below.

	English Name	Vietnamese	Description	Texture	Taste
Beef	Beef Balls	Bo Vien	round, firm meat balls	soft and chewy	savoury
	Brisket	Chin Nac	well-done thin slices of beef	chewy, roast beef-like	natural, unseasoned
	Flank	Nam	melt-in-your-mouth thin slices that literally disintegrate upon being touched with chopsticks	soft, juicy	natural, unseasoned
	Crunchy Flank	Ve Don	a firmer part of the flank	soft, chewy, crunchy	natural, unseasoned
	Fatty Flank	Gau	flank with extra fat	very soft and tender	natural, unseasoned
	Steak	Tai	(red) rare slices of beef	tender and juicy	natural, unseasoned
	Tendon	Gan	chunks of beige to brownish tendons	can be tough, gelatin-like	natural, unseasoned
	Tripe	Sach	tangled strips of white, rubbery looking thing..	chewy, rubbery, like calamari	neutral
Veggies
	Bean Sprouts	Gia	long, round and white sprouts of mung bean	crispy, crunchy	mild, "plain"
	Chili	Ot	thin slices of green chilies, or whole of smaller green or red chillies	crunchy	spicy
	Coriander/ Cilantro	Ngo	chopped up green leaves in the broth	soft leafy texture	tangy, citrusy
	Culantro/ Long Coriander	Ngo Gai	big, long green leaves that come with the side plate	firmer leafy texture	similar to coriander
	Lemon/Lime	Chanh	yellow or green wedges that come with the side plate		sour, tangy
	Onions	Cu Hanh	white strips of onions that sometimes come with the broth	crunchy, but soft	hints of sweetness and spiciness
	Scallions	Hanh	chopped up chucks of green stems of scallions	a little bit slimy	almost like onions, but much lighter
	Basils	Que	full stem with many green leaves that come with the side plate	leafy	a bit minty
Condiments
	Hoisin Sauce	Tuong An Pho	a brown sauce one could add to their bowl	texture is not detected once stirred in broth	a bit more sweet than salty
	Hot Sauce	Tuong Ot	a red sauce one could add to their bowl	texture is not detected once stirred in broth	a spicy sauce

eight types of beef parts, as shown on the menus of Pho Hoa restaurants

A typical combination includes rare beef slices (steak) and beef balls, while the ultimate bowl of pho includes all of the ingredients, known as pho dac biet, or “Special Pho”.

Although these 8 cuts of beef can combine to create more than 40,000 different combinations!, most menus only list up to 20, to save you the headaches. If your ideal combination of pho isn’t on the menu, you could ask (depending on the restaurant) the server to customize your bowl for you.

I hope this addresses some of your concerns and confusions. Feel free to post questions if you are still unsure.

Similarly, I will post an article explaining the different choices of vermicelli and rice combinations in the upcoming weeks.

I stopped by just a little before they opened

I recently made a return trip to one of my favourite sandwich shops in town, Ba Le Sandwiches.  Located in Chinatown, on Dundas Street just west of Spadina, this little shop boasts of a true “French style”.  The setting is of a typical Vietnamese operation: small space, few tables and chairs, moderately decorated interior,  and an assembly line of Vietnamese ladies working robotically away behind the counters.  But the expertise behind this mom and pop operation is of French background and influence.  I spoke with the owner, Christine, who told me that her inspirations have roots in France, where she was a former resident and restauranteur.  The occasional Francophone customer enjoys a small chit chat with this delightful lady.

If you are curious, ask them about choices number 2, 9, and 10

What makes this place special?  Everything here is made fresh and from scratch every morning!  Evertything from the baguette, to all the ingredients, including bbq pork, chicken, shredded pork, veggies and herbs.  The baguette here has a thinner and crispier crust, and less chewy filling than most Vietnamese breads.  They even toast it for you if you wish.

tofu, shredded chicken, bbq pork, cold cut meats

I was told that the runaway favourites are the cold cut combo, bbq pork, and tofu sandwiches.  My personal favourite is the tofu in tomato sauce.  Being used to the firmer texture of pork and chicken, I was amazed at how well the soft texture of tofu mixed with the crispy baguette and crunchy vegetables.  Also, the coolness of the tomato sauce allows the tofu to be readily detected, and its flavours isolated and savoured!

For $2.25, this is a great choice!  In addition to the sandwiches, Ba Le also offers a moderate selection of desserts and prepacked heat-and-eat foods.  Stop by on the weekend and you’ll find even a larger range of choices!

Ba Le Sandwiches
538 Dundas St West
Toronto, ON M5T 1H3
(416) 977-2168

After the fall of Saigon, many Vietnamese people fled the Southeast Asian country, and found new homes in Europe, North America, and Australia. They brought with them – along with a rich culture – a vast selection of culinary masterpieces, which were, at the time, foreign to the New World.

Vietnamese Food In Canada
Today, there are over 500 Vietnamese restaurants in Canada, each with its own individual style and flair. Although more than 30 years removed from its origin, Vietnamese-Canadian cuisine still carries many of the traits that are easily recognized by foodies around the world as being distinctly Vietnamese. This allows it to retain its classic flavours and aesthetics, and at the same time be kind to the taste buds of non-Vietnamese admirers.

Although the restaurants in Canada may differ in atmosphere and food presentation, most menus often reflect a core group of dishes that are staples to Vietnamese venues around the world. This group includes salad rolls, pho noodles, rice dishes, vermicelli noodles, and fruit shakes. Typical servings of many dishes come in sizes of small, medium, large, and for the glutton in all of us, extra large. It’s also not out of the question that the main dishes be accompanied by a side plate of fresh vegetables and herbs, if they are not included in the main dish already.

Congratualations! You are now well on your way to discovering Vietnamese cuisine. We invite you to visit all the welcoming Vietnamese restaurants in your area, and we hope that you will enjoy the journey as it takes you through hundreds of years of culinary artistry.

Additional information on some of the typical dishes served in restaurants in Canada can be found throughout the site. While some restaurants have over 200 items on their menu, we have narrowed the list down to only the most common dishes. Please note that the content on this website should only be used as a general guideline, and that the specific ingredients and preparation methods of each dish may differ between the restaurants.