The taste of Phan Thiet through dipping sauce

Besides its natural advantages of beautiful coastal scenery such as blue sea, white sand, and golden sunshine, Lam Dong's beaches are also appreciated and praised by tourists from near and far for their unique local cuisine.

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Traditional fish sauce from Phan Thiet has long been praised for its delicious taste. With an abundant supply of various types of sea fish caught annually, a portion of which is fermented to make fish sauce, including anchovies and scad, the two most protein-rich species, and other miscellaneous fish. The savory, aromatic, and rich flavor of the sea fish has created a rich and versatile seasoning for dishes in Vietnamese and regional cuisines . However, fish sauce is only a main seasoning; it is only when it is prepared and combined with other spices to suit different dishes that it becomes a dipping sauce. Fish sauce is the common name for a purely seasoning ingredient, but dipping sauce is an art form in itself. It is combined and blended to create different types of sauces that complement each main ingredient, resulting in delicious dishes that suit everyone's taste, depending on the region. The dipping sauce is constantly being improved and enhanced so that it becomes a recognized specialty dish.

In the flow of Vietnamese cuisine, from simple, everyday dishes, people have adapted, improved, and combined ingredients to create new dishes. These include various types of cakes such as: rice rolls, savory pancakes, steamed rice cakes, rice flour cakes, and rice vermicelli. There are also different types of pho: beef pho, pork pho, and chicken pho. And salads made with fish, shrimp, snails, or squid. From these purely everyday dishes, more elaborate preparations have emerged, aiming to change the way people enjoy food, to avoid boredom and monotony, and to add novelty, variety, and stimulate the appetite. However, generally speaking, the unique aspect of Vietnamese cuisine lies in its dipping sauces and the way they are mixed. Each dish, each type of food prepared, is associated with a special and suitable dipping sauce, a recipe refined over time. When something is called a dipping sauce, it's no longer just plain fish sauce, but has been processed, combined, and mixed with other spices in various, diverse, and elaborate ways.

In Phan Thiet, besides the usual dishes found elsewhere, there are also various types of cakes, salads, and grilled seafood. These are harmoniously combined with unique dipping sauces prepared according to local methods, catering to everyone's taste and unlike anything else. For example, each type of cake has its own distinct combination. Banh can, banh hoi, banh xeo, banh quai vac, and banh canh. Banh can, banh hoi, and banh xeo have similar dipping sauces, using large, ripe red chili peppers (seeds removed), fresh garlic, tomatoes, sugar, and fish sauce, all finely ground and then mixed to taste. While there's only one dipping sauce, banh hoi is often paired with boiled pork offal or steamed fish cake. Banh can is usually served with eggs, braised mackerel, and pork dumplings or skin. Banh xeo's dipping sauce must include lime juice. Even with the same ingredients like chili, garlic, sugar, lime, or vinegar, the flavors vary depending on the dish. For rice noodle soup and fried dough sticks, the dipping sauce is made with sugar, sliced ​​chili peppers, and good quality fish sauce, which is simply mixed, not pounded. For salads, because the main ingredients are usually seafood from the sea with a strong fishy smell, the deliciousness and ability to mask the fishy odor of the fish, squid, snails, shrimp, and crab all depend on the dipping sauce. A typical example is the scad fish salad, which has many variations: dry salad, wet salad, mixed salad, and floating salad, and the dipping sauce is also very elaborate. It uses chili peppers, garlic, sugar, and fish sauce, but also includes roasted peanuts, boiled tomatoes, and ripe bananas. All the ingredients are pounded and mixed together, then the tomatoes and bananas are mashed, and finally sugar, fish sauce, and cooled boiled water are added to create a flavorful sauce. This dish is truly elaborate, and this salad, when served with Bắc Bình sesame rice crackers, is simply irresistible. Oh Phan Thiet, I invite you to come and enjoy scad fish salad, hot rice pancakes at night, steamed fish cake noodle soup, and other special seafood dishes from this coastal homeland!

Source: https://baolamdong.vn/huong-vi-phan-thiet-qua-nuoc-cham-387641.html