Searching for hypotheses about the origin of Hanoi pho

Pho is an attractive topic that has inspired writer and researcher Nguyen Ngoc Tien to spend a lot of time and effort researching for many years. For him, Hanoi pho contains many very interesting stories.

Pho in historical records

In the flow of Vietnamese cuisine, pho is the most special case when it is very famous, extremely loved by diners, famous all over the world , but the origin of this dish is a mist. Where did pho originate, Hanoi or Nam Dinh, from which dish of which ethnic group, which country…? Until now, all these questions have not been answered, but there are only a few “clues” coming from some notes of scholars scattered from the 19th century to the early 20th century.

Among many researchers on Hanoi, writers, researchers Nguyen Ngoc Tien is someone who spends a lot of time and effort learning about pho.

In his book “5678 steps around Hoan Kiem Lake”, he wrote that some researchers believe that pho originated in Nam Dinh , starting with pho noodles with bone broth sold to textile workers. And the proof is that Nam Dinh pho restaurants are now springing up in many northern provinces.

However, writer Nguyen Sieu Hai cited the records of the Nguyen Dinh family living in Dien Hung ward (now Hang Gai) from the 18th century to 1854 to prove that the origin of pho was from buffalo stew sold at Cot Dong Ho wharf.

Pho was introduced to the world in the 90s and was quickly recognized as a low-fat, easy-to-eat dish, so on September 20, 2007, the Shorter Oxford English Dictionary included pho in this dictionary when it was published.

Pho Hanoi at the beginning of the century. (Photo courtesy)

Writer Nguyen Ngoc Tien said that in the dictionary of Paulus Huynh Tinh Cua published in 1895 and of Génibrel in 1898 as well as in the research article Essay on the Tonkinese (Essai sur les Tonkinois) published in the Revue Indochinoise issue on September 15, 1907 by the first Vietnamese and Hanoian scholar Georges Dumoutier, many dishes and drinks commonly found in the North in the late 19th and early 20th centuries were introduced, but pho was not mentioned. However, that cannot be confirmed with certainty that pho had not yet appeared. Have the dictionary makers and journalists surveyed all of Bac Ky cuisine?

Different theories about pho

According to researcher and writer Nguyen Ngoc Tien, there are many different hypotheses about the origin of pho. He has researched many sources of information about pho, such as sources in libraries, the National Archives Center, etc.

In particular, he researched the family history of the Nguyen Dinh family on Hang Ngang street, originally from Thanh Tri (mentioned in the book "5678 steps around Hoan Kiem Lake" above), but moved to live in Thang Long from the end of the 17th century. The family history mentioned the origin of Pho, originated from buffalo noodle soup.

Buffalo noodle soup is made from buffalo bone broth mixed with noodles, with onions, Vietnamese coriander and a little buffalo meat. This dish is mainly sold at the ferry terminal and Hong river beach. Later, the vendors replaced the noodles with sliced rice rolls, then with beef because beef was cheaper than buffalo meat, originating from the fact that cows were raised a lot by the French in Ba Vi. Later, Thanh Tri rice rolls were made thicker, similar to today's pho noodles.

There is also another hypothesis that pho originated from the French beef soup pot-au-feu, with the word feu meaning “fire”. This soup originated in 1894 at the De Lanessan Hospital, now the 108 Military Hospital, which specialized in treating French wounded soldiers. It was a dish that hospital chefs cooked to nourish wounded soldiers. However, according to the writer, this is not correct, because although this dish is made from stewed beef bones, it also has vegetables such as carrots, radishes, etc.

Another theory is that pho originated from the Cantonese dish “ngu nhuc phan” in Hanoi. The cooking method is different, but when street vendors go out on the street, they often shout “phan o” which is later mispronounced as “pho”.

Illustrations in the book — Illustration from the book "Industry of the Annamese" by Henri Oger.

Writer and researcher Nguyen Ngoc Tien believes that, from the four origins mentioned above, pho may have appeared around the end of the 19th century, and it is difficult to determine the exact year. Later, in the book “Industry of the Annamese” in 1908-1909 by Henri Oger, there was a picture of a pho street vendor. In the dictionary of the French School of the Far East compiled in the 1920s but published in 1933, there was a clear definition of the word “pho”, including cooked pho and rare pho. Then there was the poem “Pho Duc Tung” by Mr. Tu Mo in 1937. The first pho restaurant to appear was on Cau Go Street, owned by Chinese people, but it is also difficult to prove whether it was a Nguu Nhuc Phan or a Vietnamese-style pho restaurant.

Writer and researcher Nguyen Ngoc Tien believes that pho originated in Vietnam, not a dish that was transformed from foreign dishes. Because people in Thang Long - Hanoi at that time also created many dishes, because there were many middle-class people who had time, money, and were very sophisticated in their eating habits. People in Hanoi at that time "transformed" many dishes from the countryside into Hanoi dishes, with "refinement", sophistication...

Writer Nguyen Ngoc Tien said that he has cherished and pursued the idea of discovering the origin of Vietnamese pho for many years. This journey has many interesting stories and shows how our ancestors changed to create and preserve pho through many eras. That is also the reason why pho has followed Vietnamese people all over the world, contributing to shaping Vietnamese identity through cuisine, and also contributing to preserving ancient values in today's era.

Source: https://baolangson.vn/di-tim-nhung-gia-thuyet-ve-nguon-goc-pho-ha-noi-5018668.html