I have never been a very spiritual person, but have recently considered converting to Buddhism just so that I could eat vegetarian food every day. I suppose I could do that without converting also….but then again I do get fanatical cravings for grilled nem (sausage). So I’ll stick with occasional enjoyment of vegetarian fare. Which makes it more special anyhow.
My friend Lan introduced me to one of my favorite spots. An alleyway eatery off of Nguyen Thai Hoc, it’s a secret spot. In true Huế style, it’s open just whenever. There werw a very sad two weeks last month when the owner decided not to open, because she just didn’t feel like it and the rain was getting her down.
Except on the first and middle of the lunar month, there are essentially only two dishes: Noodles and Rice. On the first and middle of the month they also make vegetarian banh beo, nam etc (see “A shoutout to the Banhs”). The noodle soup is served with all sorts of potatoes, carrots and other veggies in a soothing broth. Rice is topped with a mountain of vegetarian YUM. The vegetarian rice plate is different that other Vietnamese rice dishes, because the toppings outweigh the rice; just my style! Its blasphemy to say this in Asia, but I’m unexcited by white rice, and prefer the yummy stuff that goes with it.
The noodle soup is pretty consistent, but for the rice dish, the toppings change a little every day. By chance, I went to the restaurant on the first of the lunar month, so the toppings were especially extravagant. They included tender green banana, a spongy fried tofu, miến (glass noodles), a dense, sweet meat-like tofu, steamed carrots and potatoes, vả (impossible to translate accurately, but a kind of fig that is often prepared thinly sliced and sautéed with sesame; it has a dense satisfying texture almost like a meat), and all sorts of herbs and spices mixed in. Vegetarian food tends to be generous with the herbs and spices to make up for the lack of fish sauce, a central ingredient of Vietnamese food. The noodles and rice can both be eaten with soy sauce, red chili, or a fermented soybean paste. An acquired taste, this is one of my favorite parts of vegetarian food. It has a thick bean paste texture and tastes very strong and stinky; very fermented, similar to a strong cheese.
The best part about Vegetarian foods is that after your meal, you feel a wonderful, refreshing, healthy full. Perhaps this is the first step on the way to nirvana…
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