Phu Tho land, a place that leaves many impressions on tourists with its unique landscapes and many cultural heritages preserved to this day.
In addition, the delicious dishes in Phu Tho are also among the unforgettable impressions of tourists about this land.
Collection of 12 famous and delicious dishes in Phu Tho that you must try
1. Ear cake
In the list of famous delicious dishes in Phu Tho, you definitely should not miss banh tai with a strong hometown flavor.
Banh tai, also known as "banh hon", is a famous specialty of Phu Tho. This is a type of cake with a harmonious combination of the fragrant elasticity of rice flour and rich, fatty meat filling.
Although it is just a rustic dish, the flavor is ready to conquer any diner's taste buds.
2. Scratch
Palm is a fruit that is processed and becomes one of the delicious dishes in Phu Tho.
The palm has a shiny black outer shell, yellow inside, thick, fragrant and soft pulp.
You can buy these palm fruits to take home to eat raw or prepare them into many different dishes.
For the people here, palm trees are a gift from nature.
Each young palm fruit is brought home, peeled, washed, then boiled, then taken out to cool and can be enjoyed.
The palm taste is rich and fragrant.
You can dip it with sesame salt or fish sauce to create a unique flavor.
Palm fruit when eaten raw will have an astringent taste.
The palm fruit used for braising must be old to be delicious.
The older the fruit, the richer and more flavorful it becomes.
How to braise palm is also an art, and only when you taste it directly will you know why this dish is so attractive.
3. Cassava vegetables
Cassava is grown extensively in the midland hills of Phu Tho.
This vegetable is simply young cassava shoots that Phu Tho people pick, remove the old leaves and pickle them for 2 or 3 days.
After being carefully salted, the vegetables will turn yellow and have a sour taste, then cook them.
Cassava leaves can be cooked into many different delicious dishes such as: boiled cassava, cassava in mussel soup, cassava in fish head soup, cassava cakes, stir-fried cassava leaves with pork, salted cassava leaves braised with shrimp... all are attractive.
4. Banh te molasses
Photo: Phu Tho Tourism Promotion Information Center
It would be a pity to return to Phu Tho and not enjoy the sticky rice cake!
Phu Tho sticky rice cake has a very unique flavor, the more you eat it, the more attractive the sweet taste becomes.
Te molasses cake here has no filling, is made from non-glutinous rice flour, mixed with water and molasses, wrapped in banana leaves and steamed.
When cooked, the cake is golden brown and gives off a pleasant and attractive aroma.
Enjoying the cake gives us a sweet, fragrant feeling.
You can dip the cake in molasses and feel the extremely attractive flavor of fragrant rice and sweet molasses.
5. Thanh Son fermented pork
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Sour pork is a specialty dish of the Muong ethnic group. It's no surprise that Thanh Son sour pork is on the list of the most delicious dishes in Phu Tho that you absolutely must try. It's known as a simple, everyday dish of the Muong people in the Thanh Son area. To make this dish, you need two main ingredients: pork and finely ground roasted rice flour. It sounds simple, but the finished dish is incredibly delicious with a very unique and impressive flavor. When eaten, the pork has a naturally sour, savory, and sweet taste; the meat is tender and the skin is chewy and crispy. Diners often eat sour pork with fig leaves, betel leaves, etc., and dip it in chili sauce. Besides, there are many types of sour pork to choose from according to your preference, such as: sour pork with skin, sour pork in bamboo tubes, sour pork with garlic and chili…
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6. Braised fish with persimmons
Canarium fruit is a distinctive fruit of Phu Tho province, with two types: sour canarium and black canarium. Depending on needs and uses, people have different ways of processing it.
For the people of Phu Tho, braised fish with canarium fruit remains a delicious and well-known dish, considered a representative of Phu Tho's culinary traditions. From the sour and astringent canarium fruit, through skillful preparation, it has become a truly special dish.
7. Sweet potato buds
The sweet potato sprouts were pre-processed before being stewed.
The rustic dish of braised sweet potato buds has long been a familiar food and a part of childhood memories for people in the countryside of Thanh Thuy, Phu Tho. The sweet potato buds used to make this dish are of a type with stems (or calyxes) such as: egg sweet potato, ginger sweet potato, wild sweet potato, purple sweet potato… The tubers are boiled or stir-fried to make soup; the stems are used to feed pigs; and the sweet potato buds (except for spotted sweet potato, which is very itchy and rarely used) are braised in soy sauce, creating an attractive dish with high nutritional value and good for health.
8. Sticky rice with chicken
"Nếp gà gáy" (Chicken Crow Sticky Rice) is a very rare and precious variety of sticky rice, a famous specialty of Yen Lap district with a long history. This type of sticky rice is grown on terraced fields, with long, plump grains. When cooked, the rice is fragrant, sticky, and has a distinctive, delicious flavor. When used to make sticky rice, it is soft, chewy, and fragrant, making it incredibly addictive. To enhance the flavor of "Nếp gà gáy" sticky rice, you can enjoy it with fragrant sesame salt; though simple, it creates an unforgettable taste.
9. Lam Thao Banana Stir-fry
Lam Thao banana stew is a simple dish with a rich, authentic flavor, beloved by the people of Lam Thao village, Phu Tho province. From large, round, plump bananas, not only are they eaten when ripe like other fruits, but the people of Lam Thao also use green bananas to prepare dishes such as: snails stir-fried with banana and beans, bananas stir-fried with betel leaves, and banana stew…
Ingredients for banana stew include bananas, pork ribs, a little pork blood, a little galangal, and a few tablespoons of soy sauce. The bananas used must be Cavendish bananas, not too green or too ripe, and freshly cut from the bunch. When cooked, the banana stew is served hot in a bowl. Banana stew has a sweet, soft, and fragrant taste with the aroma of galangal, making it incredibly addictive.
10. Rice balls wrapped in palm leaves
Phu Tho province boasts the largest area of palm tree cultivation in Vietnam, and rice wrapped in palm leaves has long been a signature dish of Phu Ninh district, Phu Tho. Cooked rice is wrapped and rolled in palm leaves to absorb the refreshing aroma of the tree. You can enjoy rice wrapped in palm leaves with sesame salt, grilled meat, or other savory dishes; it looks simple but its flavor is incredibly impressive and delicious.
11. Catfish hotpot
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Viet Tri catfish is one of the famous specialties of Phu Tho province. This fish captivates diners with its firm, sweet flesh and few bones, which is why it was once offered to the king. From catfish, the people of Phu Tho have created many delicious dishes such as: catfish mixed with shallots, grilled catfish with galangal and fermented rice, grilled catfish with betel leaves… among which the most impressive is still the catfish hotpot with sour bamboo shoots. With this hotpot, because catfish has naturally sweet flesh, it doesn't require too many ingredients to cook, yet it still ensures a delicious flavor that appeals to everyone.
12. Hot steamed rice rolls
Hot steamed rice rolls are a familiar breakfast dish for the people of Phu Tho. Perhaps the difference between the rice rolls here and elsewhere lies in the way they are prepared and enjoyed. The rolls are served immediately after being steamed, and eating them while they are still hot is the most delicious and appealing experience.