Noodles from morning until night

In Vietnamese culinary terms, noodle soups are called mon nuoc, or “watery dish”. If Vietnamese don’t eat them for breakfast, they have them for lunch or as snack, or for supper. They are considered mon phu, or “secondary dishes” and are never eaten as the main meal of the day.

Pho – A Vietnamese Obsession

The most famous noodle dish from Vietnam is undoubtedly the Pho. Pho Bo (beef noodle soup) is probably the closest the country has to a national dish.

Pho started out as beef soup with rice noodles in a rich broth, topped with finely sliced beef (Pho Bo Tai) and spring onions. Pho with chicken (Pho Ga) was initially considered a soup for women and children, and before 1945 only one stall in Hanoi made Pho Ga. It only became widespread in the years immediately after the Japanese occupation of Vietnam and again during the Bao Cap Era – both times in which beef was hard to come by.