Vietnam might not be the first place that comes to mind when discussing snacks, but the country’s cuisine will utterly blow your mind with its wide variety of munchies. Some portray long folktales, while others draw inspiration from innovated recipes. Chill, we’ve got you covered. The top 10 Vietnamese snacks are listed below.
1. Crispy Rice (Cơm cháy) – Sài Gòn
Cơm cháy has always been a favorable snack of Western people (including Saigon). Since rice has high applications in Vietnam in all of its forms, the browned rice crust at the bottom of the pot known as scorched rice served as the inspiration for the dish. Rice that has been deep-fried has a crisp texture that pairs ideally with salted shredded pork and spring onions.
- Price: 55,000 – 110,000 VND
- Address: 61 Alley Tran Khac Chan Street, Tan Dinh Ward, Dist.1 (Co Ut Sai Gon)
2. Vietnamese grilled banana wrapped in sticky rice (Bánh chuối nướng) – Sài Gòn
When thinking about street food in Vietnam, especially in Saigon, Bánh chuối nướng is never a disappointment to local people as well as tourist. The banana wrapped in banana leaves grilled on hot coal will create a wonderful flavor with a slight smoke. And don’t forget to use it with hot coconut milk!
- Price: 15,000 – 22,000 VND
- Address: 378 Vo Van Tan Street, Ward 5, Dist. 3 Ho Chi Minh City
3. Bánh tráng trộn (Rice paper salad) – Sài Gòn
Just about $1, your mouth will be full of water with the mix of salty, sweet, spicy, and fatty tastes and the chewy chewy texture of Banh Trang Tron. Banh Trang Tron can easily be found on any corner of the street in Vietnam. You can sit and watch the city while enjoying them with a cup of kumquat tea.
- Price: 15,000 – 35,000 VND
- Address:
Ho Chi Minh City: 38 Nguyen Thuong Hien Street, Ward 5, Dist.3 (Chu Vien)
Hanoi: 2E Ward Kham Thien, Kham Thien, Dong Da, Hanoi
4. Kẹo dừa (Coconut Candy) – Bến Tre
Without stopping by the coconut candy factory, a journey to the Mekong Delta would be incomplete. As enticing as tasting the coconut candies directly from the source is directly seeing the staff cut up the pieces and wrap them in rice paper. The province of Ben Tre, where coconuts are cherished for their unrivaled sweetness, is home to the creamy, thick confections made from coconut.
- Price: 49,000 VND/500g
- Address: 212B Dong Khoi Avenue, Quarter 5, Phu Khuong Ward, Ben Tre City
5. Vietnamese Prawn Cracker (Bánh phồng tôm) – Vĩnh Long
Bánh phồng tôm are among the most well-known Vietnamese street foods, and they have their origins in Sađéc in southern Vietnam but the premium brand is located in Vinh Long. These traditional salty snacks are made with ground shrimp combined with arrowroot, tapioca, onion, garlic, and sugar. However, there is no shop that instantly fried bánh phồng tôm to serve, you can buy a pack of them and fry them at home.
- Price: 540,000 VND/500g
- Address: 72 Nguyen Van Thiet Street, Ward 4, Vinh Long Province, Vinh Long City (Banh Phong Tom Kim Chi Ba Nam Tan)
6. Peanut And Rice Paper Brittle (Kẹo cu đơ) – Hà Tĩnh
Cu Đơ Candy first appeared in Ha Tinh – a province in North Central Vietnam. Peanuts covered in molasses and malt sugar and placed between two sheets of toasted rice paper make up this unusual dish. The crispness of the toasted rice sheets balances out the stickiness of the peanuts and molasses in each bite.
- Price: 15,000 – 150,000 VND
- Address: 481 & 583A Ha Huy Tap Street, Ha Tinh City (Cu Do Ha Tinh Library)
7. Fermented Pork Roll (Nem chua) – Quy Nhơn
Nem chua is special cured and fermented meat (mostly pork) from Quy Nhon – a coastal city from Vietnam. These rolls are typically served as an appetizer or snack with raw garlic on top and sweet fish sauce/chili sauce on the side.
- Price: 45,000 VND/20 pieces
- Address: 3D Tăng Bạt Hổ – Quy Nhon City
8. Vietnamese Grilled Pork Sausage (Nem nướng) – Nha Trang
Nem nướng is a traditional Vietnamese grilled sausage originating from Nha Trang. They can be eaten in a variety of ways, including with steamed rice and fresh or pickled vegetables, wrapped in rice paper, with rice noodles, or as part of a banh mi.
- Price: 40,000 VND
- Address: Nem nướng Đặng Văn Quyên
Facility 1 at 16A Lan Ong Street, Nha Trang
Facility 2 No. 02-04 Phan Boi Chau Street, Nha Trang City
9. Bread with Egg Cream (Bánh mì chấm kem trứng Hải Phòng)
Bread dipping egg cream is like “nostalgia” in Vietnamese especially Hai Phong people. The disks are extremely captivated by this meal since it is a bit warm, fatty, sweet, and crispy in the tongue.
- Price: 15,000 VND (including egg cream and banh mi)
- Address: 5D4 Nguyen Binh Apartment, Ngo Quyen Dist, Hai Phong City
10. Dalat avocado Ice-cream (Kem bơ) – Đà Lạt
The best avocados in Vietnam are found in Da Lat so their avocado ice cream is considered as a remarkable sweet you should try when visiting the town. Cool coconut candy will be with a little condensed milk placed on top of the avocado ice cream platter to enhance the flavor of the buttercream. You can request to have durian added to the butter cream to experience a new flavor.
- Price: 15,000 – 22,000 VND
- Address: 76 Nguyen Van Troi Ward 2, Dalat (Thanh Thao Avocado Ice Cream)
11. Sweet soup with grilled pork wrapped in cassava flour (Chè bột lọc heo quay Huế)
One of Hue’s most distinctive meals is Chè bột lọc heo quay (sweet soup with grilled pork wrapped in cassava flour), which combines sweet and savory ingredients. Trust me! It’s unique. The sweet flavor and chewy texture of the dough as well as the salty flavor and crunchy texture of the pork with slight ginger will blow your mind right away.
- Price: 12,000 VND
- Address: Lane 1, 29 Hung Vuong Street, Phu Hoi, Hue City
12. Bloating Fern (Bánh bèo chén) – Huế
Unlike other regions in Vietnam, the Hue likes to snack on traditional cakes and Bánh bèo (Bloating Fern) is the typical type. Most places in Vietnam sell Bánh bèo also but you will get vivid experiences from the sweetness of the shrimp combined with the tastes of garlic, chili, and sweet fish sauce in Hue.
- Price: 15,000 – 25,000 VND
- Address: 104/17/9 Kim Long Street, Hue City (O Lé – Kim Long Corner)
13. Pho Roll (Phở cuốn) – Hà Nội
When talk about Vietnamese cuisine, you may thinking of Phở right? But do you know this innovated version of this dish, Phở cuốn (Rolled Pho)? The creator of this Hanoi’s specialties said that with just one bite, customers can taste the whole bowl of Pho.
- Price: 30,000 – 55,000 VND
- Address: 25 Ngu Xa Street, Hanoi (Phở cuốn Hương Mai)
14. Chives Soup (Bánh Canh Hẹ) – Phú Yên
You must try the Cau River cuisine in Phu Yen’s specialty of chives soup. Simple components like beef, fish cake, quail eggs, soup bread, and lots of chives are used to make chives soup. The soup is made from tiny fish, not bone broth. As a result, the broth has a bar, a sweet flavor, and also contains the entire ocean.
- Price: 20,000 – 30,000 VND
- Address: 53 Dien Bien Phu Street, Ward 7, Tuy Hoa Dist. Phu Yen
Ref: https://vietnam.travel/things-to-do/vietnamese-snacks
