Sour pho from the highlands

Amidst the towering, jagged mountains, the ethnic minorities in Dong Van and Meo Vac still preserve sour pho as a part of their memories and a unique flavor of the rocky plateau.

Unlike beef pho from the lowlands, sour pho from the highlands doesn't have a bone broth but is skillfully mixed with many ingredients readily available in the mountain people's kitchens. This is a familiar dish at markets, on hot summer days, or during family gatherings.

Sour pho is a harmonious blend of soft rice noodles, crispy and fatty roasted pork, refreshing fresh vegetables, fragrant roasted peanuts, and the mild sourness of the sauce – a balanced, rustic yet sophisticated combination of flavors.

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Most of the ingredients for sour pho are prepared by the locals themselves. These include rice noodles made from white rice or a mixture of white and glutinous rice, thinly spread, wide, and chewy. The dish also includes roasted pork, usually pork belly, roasted over charcoal fire for crispy skin and sweet meat. This delicious dish also includes boiled liver, sausage, and sometimes thinly sliced ​​pork intestines, along with various fresh herbs such as coriander, lettuce, dill, and onions grown in the home garden. In addition, to enhance the flavor, it's often served with crushed roasted peanuts, fried onions, and sweet and sour pickled carrots and cucumbers.

In particular, the sweet and sour sauce is the "soul" of the dish, made from rice vinegar, meat broth, sour plum or tamarind juice, with added sugar, fish sauce, crushed garlic, and a little fried oil. A skilled cook can create a sauce with just the right balance of sour, sweet, fatty, and slightly spicy flavors, without overpowering the natural aroma of the ingredients.

When preparing the dish, the rice noodles are blanched until hot, then arranged in a bowl. Roasted pork, liver, fresh vegetables, peanuts, and fried onions are then added on top. The sweet and sour sauce is poured evenly over the noodles, then gently stirred to coat evenly before serving.

The dish is not only delicious but also easy to digest, perfect for the cool mornings and dry afternoons of the highlands. The refreshing sourness stimulates the taste buds, prevents satiety, and makes diners savor every bite.

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Nowadays, many restaurants in Tuyen Quang have included sour pho on their tourist menus. But to truly experience the full flavor, nothing beats sitting in a small village of an ethnic minority group and enjoying a simple yet profound bowl of sour pho – a flavor born from the rocks, the mist, and the kindness of the highlanders.

Source: https://baotuyenquang.com.vn/van-hoa/am-thuc/202507/pho-chua-vung-cao-5442ede/