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Recently, a significant milestone was reached in the journey of preserving and promoting the cultural identity of Vietnamese cuisine when Hanoi pho and Nam Dinh pho were officially recognized by UNESCO as intangible cultural heritage. More than just a dish, pho is an integral part of the Vietnamese soul, a crystallization of culinary excellence and national spirit.
With a deep love for Hanoi cuisine, Vu Bang used his pen to preserve memorable moments of a bowl of pho, evoking indescribable emotions in the reader. He depicted a segment of Hanoi's "old history," an image that will never fade from the minds of those who love this dish.
For every Hanoi resident, pho remains a familiar dish, a unique feature in the culinary culture of the capital city of Northern Vietnam.
During the difficult subsidy period, pho was considered the most luxurious treat, only bought when someone in the family was sick. Today, most people believe that pho originated in Nam Dinh in the early 20th century, then spread to all provinces and cities, and is now available in many countries around the world as a Vietnamese specialty.
In his work, Vu Bang once compared the thousand-year-old cuisine of Hanoi to immortal works of literature, and if a writer...Even if I were kidnapped and taken to a foreign land for a thousand years, I would still be Vietnamese because I would never forget the delicious food of Hanoi."
He seemed to merge his soul with the sky and earth, with his homeland, so that every southerly breeze, every scorching sunny day, or when autumn clouds covered the sky, it would evoke in him a special seasonal delicacy. Perhaps because he lived in the South, his longing for Hanoi and the North was deeply ingrained in every page he wrote. He wrote about seasonal produce, about each type of cake and dish he enjoyed during "sweet days beside his elderly mother and foolish wife under the old, moss-covered roof," meals that, though simple, were enough to make the writer "eat more deliciously than eating bird's nest soup."
In Hanoi of the old days, it wasn't difficult to find mobile pho vendors with their familiar calls echoing from dawn until late at night.
Vu Bang likened pho to the "national soul and essence" of Vietnamese cuisine. In his book "Delicious Dishes of Hanoi," he affirmed an immutable truth: Vietnamese people may not eat all kinds of dumplings or steamed buns, but certainly no one can ignore the delicious flavor of a bowl of pho.
"It was very cheap. At the current value of the silver, five dong a bowl of pho, but you could get a good bowl for just three dong. Therefore, from the shopkeeper in a store to a civil servant, from a lady of high status with a gilded door to a laborer struggling to make ends meet, everyone ate a bowl of pho. If it was delicious, they'd eat two; I myself once saw someone have three bowls for breakfast, each costing eight dong, totaling twenty-four or twenty-five silver dong.
What could we see through the glass? A bunch of green scallions, a few red chilies tied together with string, several pieces of fresh, tender beef—some cooked, some rare, some with cartilage, some with fat, some with tendons... The vendor stood slicing noodles and meat constantly, occasionally opening the lid of an iron container to pour broth into bowls. A cloud of smoke spread throughout the stall, enveloping the diners in a thin, hazy mist, like a Chinese painting depicting immortals playing chess in an autumn forest.
Vu Bang was a true food critic; he remembered every pho restaurant, every type of meat, every distinctive flavor. Old Hanoi comes alive through Vu Bang's writings with all its pho flavors. He remembered every pho shop, every pho name. In the 1950s, in Hanoi, there was a famous pho restaurant called Pho Sut that created the dish called "pho gio" (beef rolled up like ham, boiled until cooked, then thinly sliced and served with rare beef), now called "nam".
Pho is considered a "national treasure" of Vietnamese cuisine.
The pho at Phu Doan Hospital was edible but the broth was a bit bland; the pho at Dong My on the new street was soft but the ginger was a bit overused; the pho at Cong Vong, pulled by a cart, was delicious, but the broth had a slightly unpleasant smell; the pho at Mu Do behind the temple at Cho Hom market… Then there was Pho Tau Bay, where every morning people crowded the intersection at the beginning of Ham Long street; and Pho Tu and Pho Trang (in front of Hang Than school), known as the “king of pho in 1952”. He was not only a discerning diner but also a talented writer, who used his pen to praise and preserve beautiful memories of this national dish.
He called that bowl of pho a "pho poem":Just looking at a bowl of pho is delightful. A handful of rice noodles, some finely chopped scallions, a few sprigs of fragrant green herbs; a few slices of ginger, thinly sliced like silk; a few thin slices of chili peppers, some a vibrant red like a hibiscus flower, others a deep red like a pomegranate blossom… the meat is tender, the noodles are chewy, and occasionally you feel the spiciness of ginger, the spiciness of pepper, the spiciness of chili; occasionally you catch the subtle aroma of scallions, the pungent aroma of herbs, and the gentle fragrance of fresh, tender beef…"To truly appreciate the value of a bowl of pho, you must eat just the cooked pho itself; only if it tastes good is it really delicious. And the most important thing for all pho restaurants lies in the secret of the broth."
Under the masterful pen of Vu Bang, Hanoi's cuisine emerges not just as dishes, but as a vibrant portrayal of the city's culture and people. The image of long lines of people waiting for a steaming bowl of pho in the early morning, or willingly climbing into dilapidated, dirty, and dark attics to enjoy the fragrant pho, has become an indispensable characteristic. It's not simply a matter of eating, but also a unique cultural experience.
Certainly, Vietnamese pho in general and Hanoi pho in particular will endure through the years, continuing to witness the changes and ups and downs of society.
One of the lesser-known ingredients in pho is perhaps the sea worm (Sipunculus nudus). This sea worm is considered the "gold" of the Quang Ninh sea, the ultimate flavoring for pho. It's said that to achieve a naturally sweet and fragrant broth, besides using bone marrow and other herbs, a handful of small, dried sea worms must be added. It is this sea worm that creates the unique, sweet flavor of traditional Hanoi pho.
Through his writings, we are immersed in the vibrant atmosphere of Hanoi's streets. We hear the calls of street vendors echoing through the alleys, and smell the enticing aromas of food filling the streets. Above all, we feel the profound love he has for his homeland.
That precious culinary gem has reached the pinnacle of excellence; it's impossible to deviate or change it. Even a small substitution would dilute and alter the dish's flavor. Therefore, future generations will continue to eat pho in its original form, accustomed to the traditional way of enjoying it passed down from their ancestors, but their discerning palates are certainly difficult to match. People from the North are incredibly picky and discerning eaters; they easily get angry if a dish doesn't suit their taste. That's why there are countless hilarious and sometimes heartbreaking stories revolving around food.
For food connoisseurs, those who appreciate fine dining, eating a delicious piece of their country's cuisine evokes a feeling of happiness, for they have absorbed a little bit of their homeland, an essence passed down from year to year.
