Bún bò Huế (pronounced [ɓun˧˥ɓɔ˧˩hwe˧˥]) or bún bò (English: /buːnbɔː/) is a Vietnamese rice noodle (bún) dish with sliced beef (bò), chả lụa, and sometimes pork knuckles.[2] The dish originates from Huế, a city in central Vietnam associated with the cooking style of the former royal court.[3] The dish has a mix of spicy, salty, and savory flavors. The predominant flavors are those of lemongrass and shrimp paste.[4] Compared to phở or bún riêu, the noodles are thicker and cylindrical.[5]
History
Bún bò Huế garnished with beef brisket, shank, coagulated pork blood, and Vietnamese mortadella.
Bún bò hails from the city of Huế in central Vietnam in the late 1500s and early 1600s, when the city was ruled by the Nguyễn Lords.[6][7] This city, once the capital of Vietnam,[8][9] has a rich culinary legacy linked to the former royal court of Annam.[10][11] Beyond its hometown and certain areas in central Vietnam, the dish is often labeled bún bò Huế to indicate its place of origin and to differentiate it from bún bò found in Saigon (south) and Hanoi (north).[12][13][14]
This classic dish is celebrated for its harmonious blend of spicy, sour, sweet, salty, and umami tastes. The scent of lemongrass prominently features.[4] In comparison to dishes like phở and bún riêu, its vermicelli noodles are thicker and cylindrical.[5] In its native Huế, bún bò is typically served only in the mornings as a main meal rather than a breakfast item.[15] However, in other major Vietnamese cities, it can be found at various meal times.[16][17]
Features
Outside the city of Huế, it is called bún bò Huế to denote its origin. Within Huế and surrounding cities, it is known simply as bún bò. The broth is prepared by simmering beef bones and beef shank with lemongrass, and then seasoned with fermented shrimp sauce and sugar for taste. Spicy chili oil is added later during the cooking process.
Bún bò is commonly served with lime wedges, cilantro sprigs, diced green onions, raw sliced onions, chili sauce, thinly sliced banana blossom, red cabbage, mint, basil, perilla, Persicaria odorata or Vietnamese coriander (rau răm), saw tooth herb (ngò gai) and sometimes mung bean sprouts. Thinly sliced purple cabbage is sometimes used as a substitute when banana blossoms are not available. Purple cabbage most resembles banana blossom in texture, though not in taste. Fish sauce and shrimp paste are added to the soup according to taste. Ingredients might be varied by region due to their availability.
This version of bún bò Huế includes rice vermicelli, beef brisket, pork leg, pig blood curd, and other ingredients.
Close-up of the same dish
A pot of bún bò broth with rice noodles being cooked separately at a Ho Chi Minh City eatery
^Thanh Nien Weekly 2 Dec 2011 print edition When in HueArchived 2019-10-17 at the Wayback Machine "The most popular Hue dish would have to be bún bò Huế, a spicy beef and vermicelli soup that goes down well with Vietnamese people and foreigners alike."
^ abAruna Thaker, Arlene Barton Multicultural Handbook of Food, Nutrition and Dietetics 2012 Page 171 "Bún bò Huế" p408 "Bún bò - Spicy beef noodle soup originated in the royal city of Hue in central Vietnam. Beef bones, fermented shrimp paste, lemongrass and dried chilies give the broth its distinctive flavour. Often served with mint leaves, ... "
^Thanh Nien Weekly, December 2, 2011, print edition When in HueArchived 2019-10-17 at the Wayback Machine. "Among the most beloved dishes from Hue is bún bò Huế, a spicy beef and vermicelli soup cherished by both Vietnamese and foreigners alike."
^Andrea Nguyen Into the Vietnamese Kitchen: Treasured Foodways, Modern Flavors Ten Speed Press 2006 ISBN978-1580086653 p10 "people from the central region will at first demur and then counter that bún bò Huế, a chile-and-lemongrass-seasoned beef and rice noodle soup from the former imperial capital, is equally good" full recipe p212-214
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