Vietnamese Cuisine: New Year Dishes

An indispensable food of Tết is bánh chưng (Northern Vietnam) and bánh tét (Central and Southern Vietnam). Those cakes are made from glutinous rice, mung bean, fatty pork, peppers, and salts. All ingredients are then tightly wrapped in dong leaves. In case there are not enough dong leaves, banana leaves can be used as a replacement.

According to legend, the origin of these cakes dates back to thousands of years ago, during the Hong Bang Dynasty. At that time, a dying king organized a cooking competition to choose which of his 21 sons would inherit the throne. Most of the princes traveled far and wide, bringing back exotic and costly ingredients. Only the 18th-prince Lang Liêu brought a simple yet tasty rectangular glutinous rice cake. The humble prince explained that rice is the most valuable ingredient for the Vietnamese people and he wanted to create a dish that everyone, regardless of wealth or social status, can enjoy. Hearing this explanation, the king was so pleased and immediately declared Prince Lang Liêu as his successor.

While bánh chưng has a square form, bánh tét is cylindrical. After molding them into respective shapes, they are boiled for several hours to cook (often overnight). This traditional process of making bánh chưng and bánh tét allow family members to re-connect and work together to create the holiday treats. Bánh chưng and bánh tét are usually served with pickled Chinese onion, chả lụa, and fish sauce. After unwrapping, they can last for several days while a wrapped one can be kept for weeks.

Indispensable food of Tết holiday.

Chả lụa is the most common type of sausage in Vietnamese cuisine. It is not a particular food for Tết and can be eaten all year round, but you will often see it on the table during the holidays. Traditionally, chả lụa is made of lean pork, potato starch, ground black pepper, garlic, and fish sauce.

The pork is first pounded, then seasoned with pepper, salt, and sugar. After that, the mixture is wrapped tightly in banana leaves into a cylindrical shape and boiled. Chả lụa is normally sliced and served with bánh chưng, sticky rice and many other Vietnamese dishes. Correctly made chả lụa can stay good for about one week at room temperature.

Another must-have dish for the Tết holidays is chả giò or Vietnamese fried spring rolls. These rolls contain a wide range of ingredients: typically are minced pork, chopped boiled crab or shrimp, taro, wood-ear fungi, shredded carrots, and glass noodles. All the ingredients are wrapped in rice paper sheets, before frying until the rolls got a golden-brown color.

Unlike their Chinese counterpart, the Vietnamese spring rolls are usually smaller and they are often accompanied by a hoisin dipping sauce. Mayonnaise or ketchup also works well with this dish. Due to its complexity and the golden color, chả giò also have a more flamboyant name: “imperial rolls”.