Food is a very important aspect of any culture.  So to truly understand the culture of the people, you must definitely taste their food.  Vietnamese food is delicious and varied as the northern, central and southern regions have their own distinctive flavours and fragrances.  It is said that there are some 500 traditional Vietnamese dishes, so there's definitely something to suit the taste of everyone, not forgetting the delicious offerings of seafood when you are visiting the coastal stretches of the country!  

Generally, food in the northern parts involves the use of many spices and traditional herbs to give each dish a distinct flavour.  For example, the famous culinary delight, beef noodles, involves the use at least 10 spices and herbs in making the noodle stock.  Besides beef noodles, barbequed meat with cold noodles dipped in sauce of green papayas is another must try for visitors to the north. 

The central parts tend to like their food spicy hot.  A very hot chilly pepper commonly used by the locals is the small red fruit which grows pointing towards heaven.  Unique to the central region is the dry noodle dish mixed with an interesting sweet and sour sauce as well as the meat rice dumpling eaten with sweet sauce. In Hue, where former Nguyen Emperors lived, food must not only be delicious, but it must also be decorated to please the eyes!

In the south, most food comes with a sweet taste as sugar is used in almost every dish.  Spring rolls or "nem" is a favourite cuisine in the south, and it comes in both fresh and fried forms.  Typically, an assortment of pork, mushroom, jewish ears, bean sprouts, glass noodles and egg are mixed together and wrapped in thin translucent rice paper.  For fresh spring rolls, prawns, lettuce, mint leaves and cucumber are also added to give an extra flavour.       

Up in the highlands where many of the ethnic minority peoples live, grilling or barbeque (yes, sizzling, hot & juicy) is the de facto way of cooking almost everything from meats and eggs to rice and sweet potatoes. 

There is only so much to read and research about food.  And if you ask us, the best way to know the food is to taste it for yourselves.  Bon appetite!