The principal took advantage of the summer to help out at the restaurant.

Ca Mau has spicy rice cake, do you know?

As a true "Ca Mau native", since childhood, spicy curry rice noodles with chicken, meatballs, vegetables, and bean sprouts have become my family's "favorite" dish. Coming to Ho Chi Minh City to live and work, I have been looking for a spicy rice noodles shop with the right hometown flavor but have not found one, so I have to wait until I return to my hometown to go to the famous Ca Mau spicy rice noodles Ong Dao to enjoy.

The spicy and unique rice cake at Ms. Xiu's shop is delicious.

In recent days, on social networks, many people who love this typical dish in Ho Chi Minh City have been "buzzing" about a restaurant selling spicy rice noodles located in Binh Thanh District, owned by a generous Ca Mau woman, cooking the authentic taste of her hometown. Of course, I couldn't miss the opportunity to go to the restaurant to verify whether it was true or not.

I heard that the shop is open from 7am to 9pm, so at noon I went to alley 128 Le Van Duyet street. Too bad! The shop was closed. I sadly turned around and went back the next day. Ms. Tran Thi Xiu (50 years old, shop owner) welcomed me with a bright smile, speaking in a strong Ca Mau accent: "The other day, Ms. Xiu forgot to eat so she was sick and took a day off, and just reopened today. Please understand!"

Asked, I found out that Ms. Xiu's spicy rice cake shop has only been open for less than 2 weeks, but she said she was lucky to have customers supporting her so she sold it... and forgot to eat it.

Most of the diners here are Ca Mau people working in Ho Chi Minh City and neighboring provinces, as well as many people who are curious about the taste of this strangely named dish.

Banh tam noodles are also made from rice, but are different from vermicelli, pho, and hu tieu noodles.

In the small space of the restaurant with a steady stream of customers, in a flash a plate of hot and spicy banh tam was served on the table. The spicy taste of curry, the fatty taste of meatballs, the chewy taste of chicken, the rich taste of banh tam covered with a thick sauce, the fresh and fragrant vegetables... made my stomach growl, I immediately started eating.

Really! The Banh Tam here has exactly the flavor I imagined and expected. How could it not be the same, because the owner is also from Ca Mau. With an average price of 30,000 - 60,000 VND depending on demand, diners have had a delicious portion of Banh Tam. Personally, I give it a 9/10, worth trying and becoming a "regular" restaurant in my list of regular restaurants.

The principal works as a… shop assistant.

Talking about the opportunity to open a restaurant, Ms. Xiu laughed heartily, then said that while traveling with her son, she was suggested by her son: "Why don't you go to Saigon to sell spicy rice noodles? Not many people sell this dish here!". It seemed reasonable, and also wanted to be near her son who was living and working in Ho Chi Minh City, so Ms. Xiu and her husband decided to close their house in the countryside and come here to open a restaurant.

“I prepared for 4 days. Luckily, everything went smoothly. Back in my hometown, I have been selling food and drinks next to the school for decades. Coming here, I hope to do business for a long time. The happiness is being with my children as well as selling Ca Mau specialties to people far from home as well as introducing this dish to more people," Ms. Xiu expressed.

Ms. Xiu has 4 days to prepare to open the shop.

The cake is a harmonious combination of many ingredients.

The shop has a few assistants, all of whom are relatives. Her husband, who is the principal of an elementary school in Ngoc Hien District, also came to help his wife during the summer. This "special assistant" often travels between Ca Mau and Ho Chi Minh City to both handle work and help his wife.

The owner smiled and said that most of the ingredients for this dish, from rice noodles, chicken, raw vegetables... were all brought from Ca Mau, through her acquaintances. That is the reason why the dish's flavor is "very Ca Mau", unmistakable.

To have a recipe for spicy banh tam that is suitable for many customers, not just locals, Ms. Xiu spent time researching. Of course, she also has her own cooking secret that cannot be "revealed".

Originally from Ca Mau, when hearing that a spicy rice cake shop had just opened near her house, Ms. Hieu Hanh (28 years old, living in Binh Thanh District) immediately invited her housemate to try it. The customer said that after taking the first bite, she immediately recognized this as a familiar flavor from her hometown.

The restaurant sells many specialties of Ca Mau.

“There are only a handful of shops selling spicy banh tam in Saigon, and even fewer that sell the right flavor. The owner cooks it like my mother cooks, I will definitely come back many times,” she said.

Next door, Ms. Nhu (28 years old, Ms. Hanh's friend) although this was her first time eating this special cake, said it was "absolutely delicious". At first, she thought this was a sweet cake like many other Western cakes she had eaten, but after researching, it was not. Because her house is nearby, she said she will often come to support because she happened to... fall in love with Ms. Xiu's spicy rice cake.

She hopes that her "start-up" journey at the age of 50 will be more and more favorable, and that she can sell this restaurant for as long as possible, to bring the flavor of Ca Mau to people from all over the world as well as to be close to her children...

Source link: https://thanhnien.vn/co-xiu-chiu-choi-len-tphcm-ban-banh-tam-cay-ca-mau-thay-hieu-truong-tranh-thu-he-phu-quan-18523071113093642.htm