Bun Bo Hue is a “legendary Hue dish that has been embraced all over Vietnam,” explains Rusty Compass. It’s a spicy noodle (bun) soup with slices of beef (bo) simmered with lemongrass -- “the chili is what gives bun bo its distinctive bite,” plus there’s “plenty of greenery in the mix” there is also usually “a little cake of congealed pig’s blood -- the red wine coloured cube.”
Then there’s Nem Lui ... “finely ground beef and pork, plus shredded pork skin and fat, garlic, sugar and fish sauce are formed into sausages around stalks of lemongrass, grilled over charcoal and set in front of diners,” explains Food Republic. It’s served with “half-moons of rice paper (for wrapping around the meat), to which you add sliced lettuce, cucumbers and trai va (a green fig unique to the region), lightly pickled strings of carrot and green papaya, cold rice vermicelli and a pile of herbs.” Then “hold the whole package securely and pull out the lemongrass skewer, then dip it into a chunky, mild-yet-complex hoisin-based sauce … add chiles to taste.”
“When I’m craving something sweet,” says Almost Italian, “I start munching on Keo Dau Phụng, a peanut and sesame brittle treat.” A “double layered version, with ample toffee between the layers” can be found in Hue’s Dong Ba Market. It has “just a hint of residual smoky flavour left from the open charcoal cooking.”