Experiencing cooking at Thanh Toan Tile-roofed Bridge
Being impressed with Hue cuisine
The tour guide named Vy from I Love Vietnam Tourism Company arrived at the hotel punctually and started taking tourists on the journey of exploring and experiencing the culinary of Hue.
Before setting off, the tour guide did not forget to share with the tourists: “Hue not only is famous for its heritage, but also attracts visitors by the unique dishes. Joining the cooking class this time, you will have the opportunity to explore the daily life of the locals. I am sure that after the tour, you will be equipped with the knowledge of regional gastronomy of Vietnam, especially of Hue. Thereby, you will fulfill your dream of becoming a chef with the guidance of the best chefs in Hue”.
The promising words of the tour guide made all the visitors more excited. The van took them to the restaurant on Vo Thi Sau Street where the cooking class occurred. There, they could drink coffee, read cookbooks, listen to the instructor introducing the cooking program.
After that, the tour guide took the visitors to Dong Ba Market so that they themselves could buy the ingredients for the cooking class. Here, they not only bought the ingredients, but also explored the uniqueness of the most famous traditional market of Hue Ancient Capital, which has existed for nearly 120 years.
Chloe Ashley (a visitor from England) said: “It was amazing that we could use the traditional spices to cook some Vietnamese traditional dishes with the guidance of the chef. That was an interesting way to spend a morning in Hue to learn about Vietnam”.
Another culinary discovery journey began. This time, visitors rode bikes to Thanh Toan Tile-roofed Bridge. Calgary (from Canada) could not hide the surprise at small gardens covered with fresh vegetables.
The cooking class took place on the cool veranda overlooking the garden. Interestingly, the ingredients used in the class are the vegetables taken from the garden.
The dishes introduced and taught to tourists are chiefly the typical and famous ones of Hue such as Bun Bo Hue (Hue beef noodles), Banh Khoai (crispy pancake), Banh Beo (Hue water fern-shape cake), Banh Nam (Flat Rice Dumpling), Banh Loc (Tapioca Dumpling), vegetarian food and the rustic dishes made from the ingredients from the garden.
Calgary shared: “In just three hours, I had a chance to understand more about your country. It was tranquil and distinguished. Thank you all for giving me a great day after two weeks in your country. I will recommend this cooking class to my friends and I will definitely comeback here someday to join the cooking classes. This is a special tourism product and I’m sure Hue is the culinary capital of Vietnam”.
Young visitors are also attentive when cooking the typical dishes of Hue
Diverse tours and routes
Mr. Truong Thanh Minh, Chairman of the Information Travel Association, said: “Nowadays, there have been a lot of enterprises exploiting cooking tour for tourists. Besides the diversity of kinds of tours, there have also been a variety of class locations for tourists to opt for such as luxury restaurants, homestays, or community tourist spots. Those who choose cooking tours are mainly international visitors, with a desire to deeply understand Hue culture”.
Recently, Hue is renowned for its rustic cooking tours, close to locals and nature. It is worth mentioning the tour to Thuy Bieu in which tourists learn to make sesame candies or cook dishes made from thanh tra pomelo, or the tour to Thanh Toan Tile-roofed Bridge where tourists collect ingredients from home garden or from the river flowing under the bridge.
The features of the aforementioned tours are the journey of exploring and experiencing. A haft-day tour by bike along the roads through the riverside villages and the journey of exploring culinary and the traditional villages of Hue make the visitors more interested.
According to Ms. Ngo Thi Kim Hong from Thanh Toan Ecotour Travel Company, in order to attract tourists to the cooking tours, the organizers are required to highlight the diversity, importance, and tradition of Hue cuisine for Hue’s tourism.
Recently, hotels have also launched cooking classes for their own guests. Here, tourists can extensively explore the Hue Royal dishes, more sophisticated cooking methods, and food pruning art. The diversity of the tours also helps tourists to cook the typical dishes of France or Italy where they have not had the opportunity to set foot on.
Mr. Le Huu Minh, Acting Director of Tourism Department, said: “Hue is in the process of forming “Hue - the Capital of Culinary” in order to preserve and promote the elite of Hue cuisine, thereby, enhance the image of Hue cuisine domestically and internationally.
The launch and deployment of professional tours, as well as the diversity of Hue culinary such as royal cuisine, traditional cuisine, vegetarian food, street food, regional cuisine, etc., will give Hue a better promotion of culinary, affirming Hue is the capital of Vietnamese cuisine.
Story and photos: Duc Quang