Anyone visiting Tra Vinh will have the chance to enjoy a rustic noodle dish – Bun Suong, one of Vietnam’s 10 famous specialty dishes that achieved Asian culinary value.

Bun Suong is also known as Bun Duong; this noodle soup originates from Tra Vinh. “Suong” is a type of shrimp sausage (called shrimp suong); some people steam it while others fry it, resulting in a fresh, soft, and smooth texture shaped like a coconut worm (duong). The appeal of this dish lies in the broth, which carries the distinct essence of Tra Vinh. The broth must be cooked with pork bones; it is not clear but has a deep brown color because a bit of tamarind and fermented soybean paste are added, creating both a refreshing sweetness and a subtle, attractive aroma of fermented beans.

To make the shrimp suong, the shrimp are peeled, marinated in high-quality fish sauce, dried, and finely ground with a bit of pepper for extra flavor. Then, the shrimp paste is put into a plastic bag with a small corner cut off to “squeeze” the suong into the size of a pinky finger and drop them into a hot oil pan or a pot of boiling water. When the suong floats and turns a golden hue, it is cooked.

The shape of the suong strands resembles a coconut worm; they can also be made slightly longer, looking like thick rice noodles (banh canh), with the brick-red color of the shrimp.

According to a restaurant owner, there are only a few places left in Tra Vinh that sell this type of noodle soup, and they only sell during one part of the day rather than all day because the process of making shrimp suong is very meticulous and time-consuming.

A bowl of Bun Suong consists of some lean pork, a bit of pig’s trotter, and the shrimp suong. This dish is served with shredded white cabbage, bean sprouts, scallions, and cilantro. The dipping sauce is a mixture of ground fermented beans and ground chili.

In Saigon, you can enjoy this specialty of Tra Vinh at the Bun Suong stall at 130 Nguyen Dinh Chieu – District 3 (open in the morning) or Dieu’s Bun Suong stall in Ben Thanh Market. (according to Ngoisao)

Tra Vinh Bun Suong was recognized by the Asian Records Organization as one of Vietnam’s 10 famous specialty dishes achieving Asian culinary value in 2014.

How proud we are of Vietnamese cuisine, where the simplest and most rustic dishes become regional specialties and are inscribed on the golden pages of world gastronomy. Let’s join vanhoamientay.com in promoting the culinary essence of Vietnam.

Compiled by Bang Tam