My Sis and I (Mummy) were in Ho Chi Minh City for a weekend break.
We have been to most of the sights with HCM City itself during our last short vacation 2 years back so this time around we decided to do something different.
Though we are not connoisseurs, we love good food so we definitely agree with the quote below. What better way to understand a culture than through its food?
Indeed, Vietnamese cuisine is something we are fairly familiar with as there are now many Vietnamese eateries back home where we dine from time to time. Rice and noodles form the staple of Vietnamese food served with fresh meat, vegetables and herbs. The ingredients are usually steamed, stir-fried or grilled, making it healthier than many other cuisines.
We can, of course, replicate authentic Vietnamese food in the comforts of our home with the help of recipe books. But since we’ll be in the country, we might as well learn a thing or two from the locals. So, we enrolled ourselves into an ‘Introductory Course’ in Vietnamese cooking for tourists. The half-day course conducted by The Vietnam Cookery Centre cost us US$45 per person.
Our class of 8 assembled at Ben Thanh market on a Saturday morning, for an introduction into ingredients used in Vietnamese cooking by a representative from the cookery centre.
The feel of the market resembled the older wet markets in Singapore. Layout-wise, individual stalls selling the same food produce are grouped together for the convenience of the shoppers.
We walked through the market as the cooking school representative explained and pointed out the main and unusual ingredients to us; from fish and seafood to meat and offal, from vegetable and fruits to preserved food products.
It was a real eye-opening. Seriously, I’ve never seen so much pig offal displayed out for sale in a single stall.
At the vegetable stalls, we saw some unusual greens we don’t see back home too; such as the water mimosa (bottom right hand corner in photo below), pumpkin leaves and lotus stem.
After a walk around the market, we were led to the Vietnam Cookery Center school itself, located on the 4th storey of a French colonial building built in 1930.
Everything were set and ready for us to get started. The necessary ingredients readied in the right portion for our use, together with cooking utensils. It was reassuring to see that the most of the ingredients were covered with cling wrap for hygiene reasons and we were thankful for that.
We cooked 4 dishes in total, with a fifth prepared by the school for our sampling. The pace of class was just right as we were guided step-by-step through the cooking process.
Lotus stem salad with pork and shrimps. First time trying lotus stem, they’re crunchy and make a good salad base. It is not a dish we can make back home though since lotus stems are not readily available.
Glutinous dumplings with mung bean and minced pork filling and fish sauce dip.
Ingredients for our chives soup with tofu and minced pork.
This particular dish was close to what we cook at home: fried rice with garlic and egg.
Due to time constraints, we did not get to prepare the last dish: cassava pudding, which was readied beforehand for our sampling.
We were given a short break in between each dish to sample our cooking.
Being regulars in our kitchens, the dishes in this ‘Introductory Course’ were simple enough for us so we did not take away much from the class. But we did enjoy the course and it was time well-spent, especially in the colourful Ben Thanh market.
Interesting to note that sugar is added to all the dishes except the fried rice. Vietnamese do like their food with a hint of sweetness it seems. π
The experience added another dimension to our understanding of the Vietnamese culture. We received a certificate for memento and a recipe book too!
