Food in Hoi An, Vietnam

In many rural regions in the country, “banh it la gai”, a kind of cake, has existed in life of the Quang people for a long time. It has become meaningful offering in the traditional lunar new year ’s festival, ancestors’ anniversary, funeral, wedding ceremony.... The process to make “banh it la gai” isn’t very complicated, but every stage must be done carefully, especially when choosing ingredients: sticky rice, green bean, sugar, thorn leaf (pinnate leaf), banana leaf. The filling is made from green bean. All is wrapped with banana leaf, having a conical shape.

Rice Cracker or smashing rice paper derives its name from the action needed to produce the dish. It is made from two pieces of rice paper – the first piece is crispy, the second is wet. To join them together, they must be smashed on to the table. Soft, thin fresh rice paper between crisp, grilled rice paper, making pleasant sounds when squeezed. A bowl of special fish sauce, with chili, so you can enjoy the flavor of a rural dish from Hoi An.

“Banh xeo” is Vietnamese style crepe with whole shrimp, thinly sliced pork and bean sprouts. “Banh xeo” is a popular street snack in Vietnam, especially the Central and the South of Viet Nam. The name means "sound crepe," the “ xeo” being an onomatopoeic word for the sound of the cooking process when it hits the hot skillet.

One piece on the bottom, and another on top encase what is usually a salad consisting of bean sprouts, prawns, boiled pork, taro and carrot. Drenched in fish sauce, and you have a deliciously messy slice of fine pleasure. The dish is round, and you cut it into slices, like a pizza, so it resembles a triangle on the main platter, but usually by the time it arrives on your plate, it could resemble anything. The mixture to make “banh xeo” is a liquid of rice flour, soy bean and sliced spring onion.

With a recipe that has descended over four generations, White Rose is a must try local favourite. It's a shrimp dumpling, that due to its shape (similar to the rose) and white starch colouring, was given its memorable name. In Vietnamese, it is called “Banh Bao Banh Vac”

Ground black sesame seeds are mixed with sugar, vegetable juice, and thanh dia (a kind of Chinese medicine) and then boiled to make a pudding. Chi Ma Phu is also a tonic for people recovering from recent illness.

This dish comes from China but has been adapted by the inhabitants to suit localastes. Similar to ravioli, wonton is made with rice flour and filled with ingredients like shrimp, pork, egg, and spices. There are many kinds of wonton dishes: fried wonton, wonton soup or wonton and noodle soup are a few examples

Cao lầu is a regional Vietnamese dish made with noodles, pork and greens and is only found in the town of Hội An, in the Quang Nam Province of central Vietnam. Its unique taste is rumoured to be contributed by the water from an undisclosed ancient Cham well just outside of the town. This rumour is promulgated in a popular guide book and has become something of an urban legend. It is likely that the origin of Cao Lau in Hoi An goes back to the town's history as a trading port

A bánh bèo (literally "water fern cake") is a variety of small steamed rice cake or rice pancake in Vietnamese cuisine. It is white in color and typically features a dimple in the center, which is filled with savory ingredients including chopped dried or fresh shrimp, scallions, mung bean paste, crispy fried shallots, fish sauce, rice vinegar, and oil.

Hoi An chicken rice is very simple: the recipe includes only rice, chicken, sauce and pickled carrots. The combination of the different ingredients further create a wonderful blend of flavors between the saltiness of the topped onions, spiciness of the Vietnamese coriander, pepper and chilli, sourness of the papaya and the sweetness of the chicken and rice. All these pleasant tastes fused together in a single meal would make anyone truly savour your dining experience.

It is pronounced "bun me." Sometimesspelled banh my. Banh My includes freshcoriander, pickled vegetables, chili. Theycan be filled with barbecue pork, grilledchicken, tofu or even scrambled eggs in abreakfast version. For Vietnamese style,they can be filled with slices of cha lua(also known as Vietnamese devon) and thit nguoi (ham).

This iconic Vietnamese Beef Noodle Soup or Pho Bo is probably one of the most well-known noodles to come from Vietnam. It features succulent medium rare beef slices on top of the pho together with some wonderfully fresh veggies and herbs that bring a fresh balance to the tasty and nutritious soup.

Minced clams is a combination of clams and crispy rice paper. The clams are fished up from the Hoai River, which runs through Cam Nam village. The clams are boiled and then fried with dozens of fragrant vegetables and spices, including onion, spring onion, pepper, chilli, ginger, sugar water and peanuts. When the clams are ready, crispy rice paper is set on the table, which is also used as a spoon for the dish.