Bun rieu - An excellent representative of Vietnamese crab dishes

If you are a fan of crab dishes, Vietnamese bun rieu will steal your heart. Bun rieu is a traditional Vietnamese noodle bowl with red soup made from paddy crab meat. It is also a popular breakfast and street food throughout Vietnam.

“Bun” is the Vietnamese name for fresh rice vermicelli noodles—the most traditional kind of rice noodle in Vietnam. “Rieu” is the name of a paste made with boiled crab roe and pounded crab meat. Making this crab paste is the most important and time-consuming step in the bun rieu recipe.  

(Source: Internet)

The broth in bun rieu is always red, owing to the color of the tomatoes that are stewed in. Raw water morning glories, banana flowers, and Vietnamese oregano are three indispensable vegetables served to enjoy with the dish. Vietnamese people also add tiny salted shrimp and crushed lime or tamarind juice directly into the bowl of bun rieu to further enhance the flavor.

An interesting fact about bun rieu is that it is a special food in both northern and southern Vietnam. The homeland of bun rieu is in the North, where food culture centered around wet rice cultivation very early on. As it spread down to the South, bun rieu underwent some changes in taste and ingredients. Because of regional taste preferences, southern bun rieu is sweeter than its northern counterpart. Boiled pork, lean pork pie, and tofu can all be added to make the broth of southern bun rieu more robust and tasty.