Think Bigger for Vietnamese Pho

Illustration: NAM TRAN

At the end of last year, at the press conference introducing the Hanoi Food Culture Festival 2023, Mr. Do Dinh Hong - Director of the Hanoi Department of Culture and Sports - informed that after the dossier to register Hanoi pho as a national intangible cultural heritage, Hanoi will also coordinate with Nam Dinh and a number of other localities to build a dossier to request UNESCO to register Vietnamese pho cooking as a representative intangible cultural heritage of humanity.

Which pho is the "real" pho?

Both were just named to the list of National Intangible Cultural Heritage a few days ago.

However, when asking the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Nam Dinh province about "cooperation" to further promote pho's image, a representative of the department told Tuoi Tre that there is currently nothing specific.

The province does not deny that it considers this as a target. However, this does not necessarily depend on the wishes of the locality but largely depends on the will of higher levels in building a national cultural brand.

For a long time, it has been easy to see that Nam Dinh pho and Hanoi pho have been in an underground "competition".

Where is the homeland of pho?

Which pho is better?

People argue about Northern pho and Southern pho. Saigon pho also falls into a whirlpool of public opinion just because it is served with many kinds of herbs and toppings, including beef balls and served with black bean sauce.

A "war" that has no end.

The day that the folk knowledge of pho (colloquially called pho craft) of Nam Dinh and Hanoi was listed in the list of national intangible cultural heritages, there was a lot of debate online about which pho is the real pho.

Noisy, local and also very "localist". In the end, it's all because of the somewhat lovely and willful thinking that "my hometown is the best", "I'll go back and bathe in my own pond, whether it's clear or muddy, my own pond is still better".

But it must be said that this is not a very friendly cuteness. "My hometown is the best" should belittle, even deny the richness and diversity of Vietnamese pho in particular and Vietnamese culture in general. Not to mention, it creates a somewhat negative, petty, "win-lose" atmosphere.

In that context, aiming for a common goal, a larger registration outside the territory would probably open up an "unprecedented" event.

At that time, for the first time, Pho Nam Dinh or Pho Hanoi, Pho Bac or Pho Nam could temporarily "lose their names" because of a common name: Pho Viet.

And in Vietnamese pho, there is Hanoi pho, Nam Dinh pho, Saigon pho, Cao Bang pho... Thinking like that, we can see that the path of Vietnamese pho is a wide, diverse, and rich one. What is there to lose by not thinking further "after" registering as a national cultural heritage?

Clear, light pho broth and chewy noodles are a favorite combination not only in Vietnam but all over the world - Photo: Chosun Ilbo

When will pho become a world heritage?

To date, there are more than 600 intangible cultural heritages of 140 countries and territories recognized by UNESCO.

Vietnam has 14 intangible cultural heritages representing humanity and 1 intangible cultural heritage in need of urgent safeguarding (ca tru) on the list. However, no heritage related to cuisine has been named, although Vietnam has long been considered a culinary "paradise".

Vietnamese Pho has a long history and tradition, is a "national" dish present in many provinces and cities, and is loved by international tourists.

Recently, two pho regions among many pho regions, along with the folk knowledge that created it, have been recognized as national intangible cultural heritage.

But 17 years ago, in 2007, pho (pho) entered the world-famous Oxford dictionary as a proper noun, a cultural identification barcode, indicating a dish that only Vietnam has.

Pho - Vietnam's "culinary ambassador", should become an intangible cultural heritage representing humanity? Artisan Le Thi Thiet - president of the Nam Dinh Culinary Culture Association - told Tuoi Tre "why not?" and "we should also think about it to perfect our own industry".

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Source: https://tuoitre.vn/nghi-lon-hon-cho-pho-viet-20240817100539453.htm