Hanoi Street Cuisine: A Winter Adventure

Although most people think of Hanoi as a hot city, it has its own distinctive winter season. During this cooler time, Hanoi’s hot, comforting foods are perfect. Here, our team will introduce you to a variety of Hanoi winter foods that are sure to warm your body and soul.

Nodles, noodles, noodles

While pho is undoubtedly a popular Vietnamese dish, there are numerous other noodle dishes that are well worth exploring. Hanoi is a noodle heaven, with noodles coming in various shapes, sizes, and colors, with different soups, toppings and cooking methods. On a cold day, nothing beats a steaming bowl. The dishes have been perfected over decades and they are now not only a symbol of Hanoi, but also of Vietnam as a whole.

The joy of phở

The classic pho recipe consists of four key ingredients: clear stock, quickly boiled beef, rice noodles, and a variety of herbs. While each shop may have its own secret recipe, the key preparation remains largely unchanged.

To make a deep, and savory flavored broth, chefs will simmer the broth for many hours. Then, slices of beef or chicken, bean sprouts, lime wedges, and fresh herbs, including cilantro, Thai basil, and mint, are often added to the bowl.

Recommendations:
Phở Khôi Hói – No. 50 Hang Vai, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi

Phở Lâm – No. 48 Hang Vai, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi

Phở Lý Quốc Sư – No. 10 Ly Quoc Su, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi

Phở Bát Đàn – No. 49 Bat Dan, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi

The slurpable bún

Bún is rice vermicelli. It’s slurpable and versatile, with endless combinations that make it taste new every time. You can eat bun with fish sauce or tomato broth, chicken, crabmeat, snails or grilled meats, wrapped in a spring roll, or woven into small pieces with fried tofu in the form of bun dau mam tom. But the winter in Hanoi is perfect for a hot steamy bowl of bun rieu and bun oc or bun moc with a distinctive crimson color and sourness from tamarind paste in the broth. Add some chilies to make it even better for the cold weather!

Recommendations:
Bún ốc cô Huệ – No. 43 Nguyen Sieu, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi

Bún ốc Lương Ngọc Quyến – No. Luong Ngoc Quyen, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi

Bún riêu tóp mỡ Hàng Cót – No.17 Hang Cot, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi

BBQ or Hotpot?

It is impossible to miss the smell of grilling and the sizzling sound of BBQ spots, taking over pavements virtually everywhere around the Old Quater in winter. With items ranging from pork, beef, and chicken to seafood, with vegetables on the side, it will make your mouth water. Few vegan/vegetarian options are available when it comes to street BBQ in Vietnam. It is usually served along with kimchi or pickled cucumber. Wash it all down with a few beers or, keeping with the locals, a few shots of Vietnamese rice wine!

Recommendations:

Nướng 86 Tomyum: No. 86 Quang Ba Street, Ho Tay, Hanoi

Tuấn Huyền: No.34 Nguyen Thiep Street, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi

Bò nướng Tùng Quẩy: No. 6B Cua Dong Street, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi

On the other hand, hotpot offers a vastly different experience. For both BBQ and hotpot, you will be served raw foods and will cook them yourself. But that is where the similarity ends. In hotpot, you will cook in a bubbling hot pot of broth, usually Thai-style sweet and sour with a bit of spiciness for the colder days, or sometimes beef or tomato broth. Unlike BBQ, the meat used for hotpot will not be marinated, and the flavours will come from the broth and the freshness of the ingredients. Throw in some mushrooms and vegetables, and you will have yourself a steaming pot of goodness for a cool evening.

Recommendations:

Lẩu riêu cua Minh Anh: No. 8 Nguyen Bieu Street, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi

Đăng Lẩu Quán: No. 77 Bao Linh Street, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi

Bò nhúng dấm 999: No. 48 Tran Xuan Soan Street, Hai Ba Trung, Hanoi

Hot sweet soups

It will be wrong to not mention hot sweet soups on a Hanoi winter food list. For over a hundred years, the tradition of selling sweet soups as Hanoi desserts during the winter has endured. These sweet soups were brought to Hanoi by Chinese immigrants. Throughout the years, Hanoi residents have adapted the recipes to suit their own tastes.

Some of the most famous sweet soups in Hanoi are glutinous rice dumplings in syrup, glutinous rice sweet soup and sweet cassava soup. The combination of gelatinous broth, sticky, tender cassava,coconut milk and crunchy peanuts is simply perfect and warm your body up during winter days of Hanoi.

Recommendations:

Xôi chè Bà Thìn – No. 1 Bat Dan, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi/ No. 95 Hang Bo, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi

Chè sắn cô Yến – No. 76 Hang Dieu, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi

Chè sắn nóng Lý Quốc Sư – No. 39 Ly Quoc Su, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi

Grilled corn and sweet potatoes

One of Hanoi’s most distinctive winter aromas is the smell of grilled corn and sweet potatoes. They are one of the most popular snacks for Hanoian during winter. A little tray of red-hot coal, a couple of corn-on-the-cob and sweet potatoes is all that is needed for this authentic winter experience of Hanoi. For locals, the fragrance alone brings memories of the past that makes this food even more special.

Pillow Cakes - bánh gối

Bánh gối are deep fried and stuffed with a mixture of finely chopped pork, wood-ear mushroom, and glass noodles and served with a sweet and sour dipping sauce, this snack is great for between meals. There is also a meatless variety with mungbean filling, which you can find from street vendors carrying baskets.

Recomendations:

Bánh rán cổ truyền: No. 52 Hang Chieu Street, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi

Bánh rán tí hon: No. 1 O Quan Chuong Street, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi

Bánh rán Cao Lâu: No. 5 Luong Ngoc Quyen Street, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi

Quán Gốc Đa: No. 52 Ly Quoc Su, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi