An Giang's Signature Dishes You Have to Try

An Giang is a province on the border with Cambodia. It is considered a sacred land, home to ancient temples and pagodas and the majestic mountains that nature has bestowed on it.

Beyond the natural beauty that captivates visitors, its cuisine, with special dishes found only here, gives people even more reason to stay. If you get the chance to visit the land of the Ba Chua Xu Temple on Sam Mountain, try everything on the list below and you'll understand why it's so appealing.

Chau Doc fermented fish hotpot (lau mam)

Lau mam is a hugely famous specialty of Chau Doc, so if you visit this small city, you simply have to try it. It is made with fermented snakehead fish or linh fish (a small Mekong carp), which gives the broth an unusual flavor, and it is served with fresh rice vermicelli and vegetables such as banana blossom, eggplant and water spinach.

The appeal of lau mam has made the Chau Doc area famous. The saltiness of the fermented fish meets the sweetness of fish from the Mekong Delta's rivers, so the fish is very sweet and fresh. But there is a catch: if you can't stand the smell of fermented fish, you'll have to steer clear of Chau Doc hotpot, because its rather pungent aroma is a real challenge for some diners.

It's also fairly hard to find at ordinary hotpot restaurants or eateries in Chau Doc; you'll need to look for places that specialize in lau mam. A hotpot for 4 people is quite cheap, just 100,000 - 150,000 VND for a filling pot.

Fish noodle soup (bun ca)

Bun ca, also known as bun nuoc leo, is a specialty of Chau Doc and Long Xuyen in An Giang Province. Just walk along the main streets of either city and you'll find somewhere selling it.

Turmeric cooked with wild snakehead fish and served over fresh rice vermicelli gives diners a rich, savory taste. Locals usually eat it with shredded water spinach, bean sprouts and so on, and in the flood season they also add sesbania flowers (bong dien dien).

Today bun ca has been updated with extra toppings such as roast pork, spring rolls and squid, and it's just as delicious as the traditional version. A bowl here is very cheap: from just 12,000 VND you can get a filling bowl, and extra toppings cost only 5,000 - 10,000 VND each.

The snakehead fish is sweet, rich and firm, and it is cooked with lemongrass and ginger, so there's no fishy smell. Instead of the usual salty fish sauce, vendors here serve bun nuoc leo with chili salt, which people use to season their bowls to taste.

Sam Mountain beef seven ways (bo bay mon)

The sacred Seven Mountains region that nature has gifted An Giang draws large numbers of visitors every year. Part of what keeps them here is the region's famous beef seven ways.

Fresh beef prepared with simple ingredients such as lemongrass, sate chili paste, Vietnamese coriander, onion and cilantro makes for distinctive dishes. The beef is bought straight from the farms, so it is guaranteed fresh, with no chemical preservatives.

The most popular beef dishes here are beef grilled with sate, beef grilled with fermented tofu, beef tendon, beef tripe grilled with sate and beef hotpot, each with its own unique flavor. To make good beef dishes, locals usually use young beef (from cattle that are grown but not yet mature) so the meat is as tender and pleasantly chewy as possible.

For the best beef at the best price, head to the restaurants along the road from Ba Chua Xu Temple to Tinh Bien, where a serving costs just 80,000 to 140,000 VND.

Xoi Xiem (Siamese sticky rice)

Because the province borders its close neighbor Cambodia, its food is a blend of both countries' cuisines, and xoi xiem is a perfect example of that harmony.

Xoi xiem is sold mostly in Tan Chau Town. It is made from glutinous rice cooked with mung beans. What makes it special is the topping: a coconut cream mixed with egg, made to a very special secret recipe.

It's a fantastic treat for anyone with a sweet tooth: the soft, sticky rice and the rich, fragrant coconut sauce go together perfectly. Nowadays many vendors also add durian for extra aroma.

This special sticky rice is very cheap, just 10,000 to 15,000 VND for a good-quality box. In the past, vendors wrapped it in lotus leaves to keep it fragrant for longer, but for convenience and to save time they have switched to boxes, like other sticky rice dishes.

Tan Chau rice noodles with shredded pork skin (banh tam bi)

Not many places still sell this humble dish; banh tam bi can now only be found at a few markets such as Chau Doc market and Tan Chau market. What makes it special is that it is served with bi, shredded pork and pork skin. It is very satisfying and never feels heavy.

Banh tam are thick rice-flour noodles, as thick as banh canh noodles but richer. That richness is boosted further by a drizzle of savory coconut cream, which diners love. A bowl of banh tam consists mainly of rice-flour noodles, shredded pork skin, grilled pork, pickles, blanched bean sprouts, savory coconut cream and homemade fish sauce.

Each component is different, yet they come together so delicately that you'll be hooked from the first taste. It's even better with a little ground chili to add heat and cut the richness of the coconut cream.

A good bowl of banh tam is very cheap: for just 15,000 to 25,000 VND you'll have a delicious breakfast.

Fine broken rice (com tam nhuyen)

Broken rice is familiar everywhere, so why try it here? That's a question many people ask, but once you've eaten An Giang's famous broken rice, you'll understand what makes it special.

It is cooked with fine broken rice (the crushed fragments of rice grains, only 1/3 to 1/5 the size of a normal grain). As elsewhere, it is served with grilled pork, egg, steamed pork and egg meatloaf (cha) and other sides. But what makes it special is the fish sauce, made to the vendor's own recipe: mildly spicy, slightly thick and a beautiful glossy golden color.

Broken rice is mostly sold in the morning or in the evening. A plate usually costs 15,000 to 25,000 VND, plus 5,000 to 15,000 VND if you add extra sides.

The best places to eat broken rice here are Long Xuyen and Chau Doc.

Tan Chau coconut milk honeycomb cake (banh bo)

Visiting Tan Chau without trying its banh bo with coconut milk would be a big miss. The palm sugar banh bo here is made fresh every day, so it is always fresh and delicious.

It is made mainly with pure palm sugar (from the sugar palm, a specialty tree of An Giang), so its sweetness is light and clean rather than harsh like white sugar, and it has a lovely golden color. It is served topped with a rich coconut cream.

Banh bo isn't only sold in Tan Chau; these days plenty of places in Chau Doc sell it too, so location needn't be a problem. A cake usually costs 15,000 to 35,000 VND depending on its size.

Cho Moi puffed sticky rice (xoi phong)

This dish has such an unusual shape that the moment you see it, you'll want to try it. The sticky rice is cooked with mashed mung beans mixed with other seasonings, then fried in a pan of hot oil. It is usually served with roast chicken, beef or roast pork.

At just 120,000 to 200,000 VND for a serving of xoi phong that feeds up to 6 people, it's very reasonable.

Dishes made with lia

If you're not a local, you probably won't know what lia is, and the answer may surprise you a little: "lia is another name for baby clams". Because the province is crisscrossed by silt-rich rivers, lia is plentiful in An Giang.

Locals cook lia in many ways: boiled, stir-fried, braised and so on. The two lia dishes people go crazy for are stir-fried lia and sun-dried lia. Stir-fried lia is usually cooked with garlic or tamarind; the clams release their juices as they cook, giving a lovely sweet flavor, and when stir-fried with tamarind they have a tangy note that is wonderful.

Sun-dried lia may be new to some people. It's a specialty of An Giang: the clams are marinated with chili salt and then dried in the hot sun, which cooks them while keeping each one sweet - which is why the dish is so famous. Lia is dipped in thick fish sauce or salt, pepper and lime, depending on your taste.

A heaped plate of stir-fried lia is very cheap at just 15,000 to 25,000 VND, and a can of sun-dried lia costs only 10,000 to 15,000 VND.

Source: compiled