CULINARY CULTURE IN SOUTHWESTERN VIETNAM DURING “THE FLOATING SEASON”

If Northern Vietnamese cuisine focuses on delicacy and sophistication, and the Central region is full of flavor, then Southern culinary culture has its own simplicity and authenticity. People often think of the saying “There are fish in the river, vegetables on the bank” when they think of the South. This is an empty, fertile land that is filled with rivers, canals, and arcs. The South is always favored by nature with a variety of rich and diverse products. The southern cuisine is liberal and wild, according to the rich and generous nature of the southern river region.

If you have the opportunity to come to Southwestern Vietnam, in July and August of the lunar calendar – the peak of the floating season, you will be immersed in the pure white Melaleuca flowers, the brilliant lotus fields throughout a region of Dong Thap Province, or the clusters of wildflowers that are bright yellow in the sun. So, it would be great if you didn’t forget to enjoy the delicious dishes here during the floating season.

Here below are some specialties that cannot be ignored in South West cuisine during the floating season:

A Hotpot of Linh Fish and the Common Sesbania Flower

With the rich Southwestern cuisine in the floating season, it is impossible to forget the hotpot of Linh fish and the common sesbania flower. From the beginning of September to October, there is an abundant source of young Linh fish, which has soft meat, with almost no bones, and sweet flesh. Especially the common sesban flower, which blooms at the same time as the yellow wild ones and has a crispy and fleshy taste. In addition to this, the sweet fish and crunchy leaves of the common sesban flower, dipped in diluted salty fish sauce, create a masterpiece dish that can’t be found anywhere else in the river.

Grilled field mouse in a jar

In the past, dishes made from rats were favored by people in the south-western region. Field mouse meat can be grilled and marinated with spices such as salt, chili, and lemongrass, but the most special in this region is grilled in the jar. Rats used to bake the jar must have eaten cooked rice, be fat, have their intestines cleaned, their nails cut, and then be seasoned with spices and hooked into the jar, which produces a very specific dish during this time of year in south-western Vietnam.

Grilled snakehead fish

It’s not a fancy dish, but the most rustic is considered the grilled snakehead fish, a dish that cannot fail to be mentioned among the top delicious dishes of the Southwest during the floating season. Snakehead fish has firm, sweet flesh and appear a lot in the wet season. Anyone who has tried grilled snakehead fish in a rustic style with a strong country flavor can’t help but scoff. The fish, after being cleaned, will be skewered on a bamboo stick, plugged into the ground, covered with straw, and burned. Grilled snakehead fish is a popular Southwestern folk dish.

Water lily with fish sauce

Water lilies often grow in low-lying, muddy soils, and when the floating season comes, the lilies emerge. They can be cooked after being stripped of the outer shell, cut into short pieces, and drained. This is a typical material found only in the floating season of the Mekong Delta. The fish used for stocking is usually linguine or choke fish. Braised water lilies are a typical Western dish in the floating season.

The fish sauce must be boiled in boiling water, the bones removed, and lemongrass added. Shrimp, mussels, or snakehead fish are added at the right time, when the fish sauce has just boiled again. The delicious braised fish sauce blends the spicy taste of chili, the lemongrass, the sweetness of the shrimp, and the crispiness of the water lily, making you want to enjoy it forever.

Sizzling cake with the common sesban flower

Unlike Central Vietnamese pancakes, southern pancakes (also called sizzling cakes) have many interesting points. That is, during the flood season, people add common sesbania flowers to the cake filling. The dough for the crust is rice flour mixed with coconut milk to dilute it; add a little turmeric powder to make the cake golden and fragrant. The filling consists of chopped pork marinated with stir-fried spices and sweet and crunchy common sesbania flowers. If you’re traveling to the southwest of the country, don’t forget to enjoy this sizzling cake.

Above are several dishes not to be missed in South Western cuisine during the floating season. When you have the opportunity to come here, do not forget to enjoy them all.