Phu Quoc's stir-fried noodles originated from Binh Dinh's shrimp noodles, the most controversial dish in Ho Chi Minh City?

In the diverse culinary scene of Ho Chi Minh City, one of the dishes that divides diners the most is Phu Quoc bun quay.

Bun Quay is a unique dish of Phu Quoc, featuring fresh seafood ingredients and clear broth - Photo: TO CUONG

On social networks like Facebook, Instagram or YouTube, people who have tried the vermicelli dish of Phu Quoc Island are divided into two opinions: one side thinks that the vermicelli soup has a bland broth, nothing special; the other side is crazy about this dish and cannot stop eating it.

"Can't stand this dish, the smell is fishy from the moment you enter the restaurant, the broth is terribly bland and has a lot of MSG, and the price is expensive. I'd rather eat beef noodle soup or crab noodle soup" - a user commented on Facebook.

"I love this dish from Phu Quoc to Ho Chi Minh City. The secret is to add the dipping sauce so it's rich. The ingredients are all fresh and delicious. In general, bun quay is light and not boring" - another user expressed the opposite opinion.

So what is so special about this dish that causes such fierce controversy? Let's find the answer with Tuoi Tre Online through two famous bun quay restaurants in Ho Chi Minh City: Thanh Hung bun quay and Kien Xay bun quay.

Is there a misunderstanding about bun quay?

Bun Quay actually originates from the rustic shrimp noodle dish of the "martial arts land" Binh Dinh. This is also a light dish, using fresh vermicelli and crushed shrimp. The delicious taste mainly comes from the freshness of the ingredients and the way the eater seasoned it to suit their taste.

Following that philosophy, Phu Quoc's Bun Quay also uses fresh rice noodles pressed on-site when customers visit. Both shops have chewy rice noodles that still have a certain crunchiness when bitten.

A bowl of bun quay from Thanh Hung (left) and Kien Xay shops costs an average of 50,000 - 90,000 VND, with quite similar flavors, the difference lies in the freshness and deliciousness of the shrimp and fish cakes - Photo: TO CUONG

To achieve this quality, the noodles are blanched in boiling water as soon as they come out of the oven, then immediately blanched in a layer of cold water to firm them up.

Ingredients such as fish cakes, shrimp cakes and squid must be fresh to "carry" the broth because this is not a broth made from pork, beef, fish bones... like many other Vietnamese dishes, but only seasoning powder, MSG and pepper are added to keep the light taste.

Two types of meatloaf are spread thinly at the bottom of the bowl so that when boiling water is poured in, they will cook themselves. This is also the reason why many bowls of stir-fried noodles are served to customers with only noodles and onions because the ingredients are sleeping at the bottom, which somewhat creates a negative impression for those experiencing it for the first time.

When eating bun quay, every customer has to stir the dipping sauce - Photo: TO CUONG

Of course, the soul of this dish cannot be ignored, which is the dipping sauce, which includes ingredients such as seasoning powder, MSG, sugar, ground chili and a little lime juice, creating a very spicy and sour flavor that awakens all the senses.

The scene of diners stirring the dipping sauce to blend the spices together is also the origin of the unique name of this dish.

Not only is it the dipping sauce for spring rolls and squid, this is also the core element for Bun Quay to have a delicious broth, with the spicy taste of pepper and chili rushing straight to the nose along with the memorable sour taste, it can be said that the flavor of Bun Quay depends entirely on the dipping sauce.

At this point, the two restaurants have a difference. While Kien Xay encourages customers to mix their own dipping sauce to have an interesting experience and to season it to suit their taste, Thanh Hung will help diners prepare a pre-mixed bowl with a recipe according to the "golden ratio".

However, despite being competitors, different bun quay shops all agree on the point of view that the dipping sauce should be added to the bowl of bun, and the bun quay should also be a bit spicy to fully exploit the flavor of this unique dish.

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/bun-quay-phu-quoc-chang-qua-goc-tu-bun-tom-binh-dinh-mon-gay-tranh-cai-nhat-o-tp-hcm-20241114062023233.htm