Speciality from Mekong Delta. Originally from Cambodia!
Preparing soup for rice noodles, we traditionally need either chicken or pork, sometime crabs or prawn...but for bún mắm we need fermented fish (mắm cá)! And not only one! At least two kind of fermented fish!
To be honest I'm not a big fan of mắm! But I have to say it's very tasty! Irresistible!
Fermented fish is an unique thing in our food culture!
In my previous post about a day trip to Can Tho, I did mention about this delicacy!
National taste, national pride!
According to my father's old friend - a widely famous professor and musical researcher, in Asia only Vietnam can create a such variety of mắm, esp. in South. Every province in Mekong Delta has their own recipe, their signature mắm, Châu Đốc seems the most famous!
Fermented fish (mắm cá linh)
As said, to have a good soup for bún mắm, we need three kinds of fermented fish: fermented snakehead fish (mắm cá lóc), mắm cá linh and mắm cá sặc!
The combination of these three mắm gives soup a deep rich taste, an attractive brown color and an unforgettable flavor!
Depends on each province, Châu Đốc or Trà Vinh, or Sóc Trăng, different toppings can be added: either cuttlefish or octopus, snakehead fish or fish cake, roasted pork but always a big prawn in the center as the major decorative detail!
And here we go - our traditional signature dish from Mekong Delta! Homemade version vs popular street stand's version in district 4!
To my opinion, after my first cooking attempt, I may prefer fish than cuttlefish for toppings! And the soup should be more spicy!
According to the judges (hope they are honest!) homemade version' soup seems better than the street version! Thank you!
Anyway, to try this speciality from Mekong Delta, I recommend you to go to "bún mắm chị Sen" on Vinh Khanh street, dist 4 (photos below), next to popular snail spot "Ốc Oanh" and opposite "Ốc Sáu Nở"! 45,000 VND per bowl or you can try it in Bến Thành market!
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