Bún Thang Recipe (Hanoi Vermicelli)

Bun Thang is a meticulously prepared dish originating from Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam. It is a beautiful culinary feature of Hanoi in particular and Vietnam in general. This article by Food Vietnamese will guide you on how to cook Bun Thang simply at home, yet with the taste of a luxurious restaurant.

To achieve a delicious and authentic bowl of Bun Thang, the cook must be very diligent, combining skill and meticulousness in the cooking process. The bowl of Bun Thang, with its rich flavor, sweet and clear broth, and attractive presentation, makes many expatriates nostalgic. The following tips will help you learn how to cook a delicious and authentic Hanoi-style Bun Thang.

What is Bun Thang?

Bun Thang is an indispensable specialty when it comes to Hanoi cuisine. To cook a delicious bowl of Bun Thang, one must go through a meticulous preparation process with many different steps. This dish must be a combination of many factors to create a clear broth with an amazingly delicious taste.

Bun Thang can be eaten with shrimp paste to enhance the flavor. The name “Bun Thang” originates from the story of a housewife. During the Tet holiday, when she saw that the ingredients for cooking were left over in small quantities, she used them to create this unique dish. Many people believe that “thang” means a combination of many ingredients and elements. Since then, the name “Bun Thang” has been used to this day.

Ingredients for Cooking Vietnamese Bun Thang

Below are the ingredients you need to prepare for making Bun Thang:

• 1 free-range chicken
• 500g pork bones
• 100g dried shrimp
• 1 dried squid or alternatively, dried peanut worms
• 100g dried radish
• 3 chicken eggs
• 10 shiitake mushrooms
• 1 bunch of Vietnamese coriander (rau răm)
• 200g Vietnamese pork sausage (gio lua)
• 3 shallots
• 1 handful of spring onions
• 1 handful of cilantro (rau mui tau)
• 1 fresh ginger root
• 1 small bowl of shrimp paste
• Rice vermicelli noodles
• Ca cuong essential oil
• Seasonings including fish sauce, seasoning powder, salt, vinegar, white sugar, and shrimp salt.

Detailed Instructions on Cooking Vietnamese Bun Thang

To cook Bun Thang, follow these steps:

Preparing the Ingredients

1. Pick, wash, and drain the Vietnamese coriander (rau răm), spring onions, and cilantro (rau mui tau), then chop them finely and set aside.
2. Soak the dried mushrooms until they expand, remove the stems, chop them finely, and reserve three whole shiitake mushrooms to add to the broth for extra aroma.
3. Wash the shallots and ginger, then roast them on the stove until they are cooked and fragrant.
4. Grill the dried squid and then pound it lightly.
5. Separate the heads and shells from the dried shrimp, then roast them in the microwave until fragrant and pound lightly. Soak the shrimp meat in warm water until it expands, then squeeze dry and pan-fry until the shrimp are firm and golden. Pound this toasted shrimp until fluffy to use as a topping for the Bun Thang.
6. Clean the chicken by plucking the feathers, rubbing it with salt to remove odors, and washing it with clean water. Let it drain.
7. Boil the chicken until cooked, then immediately immerse it in an ice water bath to make the skin crispy. Remove the chicken, let it cool, debone it, shred the meat into small pieces, and slice the skin into thin strips like noodles.
8. Cut the dried radish into bite-sized pieces and soak them in warm water for 30 minutes. Rinse, squeeze out the water, and mix with 2 tablespoons of vinegar, 1 tablespoon of white sugar, 1 tablespoon of fish sauce, and chili sauce or fresh chili, then marinate for 30 minutes to let the radish absorb the flavors.
9. Thinly slice the Vietnamese pork sausage (gio lua) and set aside.
10. Blanch the rice vermicelli in boiling water and drain.

Cooking the Bun Thang Broth

1. Clean the pork bones and blanch them in boiling water to remove any impurities.
2. Add the pork bones to the chicken broth and simmer for about 1 hour in an electric pressure cooker.
3. After 1 hour, add the grilled dried squid and roasted dried shrimp in a filter bag, tie it up, and drop it into the broth.
4. Add the roasted ginger, shallots, and the three whole shiitake mushrooms, and continue to simmer for another hour.
5. When the broth is nearly done, season it with 1 tablespoon of sugar, 1 tablespoon of seasoning powder, 1 tablespoon of fish sauce, and 2 tablespoons of shrimp salt. Adjust the seasoning so that the broth is slightly less salty than usual, to ensure it won’t be too salty when served with shrimp paste.

Cooking the Egg Crepes

1. Crack 2 chicken eggs and 1 egg yolk into a bowl.
2. Add 1 tablespoon of white rice wine and 1 tablespoon of water, then whisk until well combined.
3. Heat a pan on the stove, add a little cooking oil, and use an oil-absorbing paper to spread a thin layer of oil evenly on the pan, leaving very little oil on the surface.
4. Pour 1 spoonful of the egg mixture into the pan, swirling to create a very thin layer of egg, and cook over low heat.
5. Repeat the process for each thin layer until all the egg mixture is used.
6. Stack the cooked egg layers on top of each other, roll them up, and cut into thin strips resembling noodles.

Finishing the Dish

When ready to serve, place the rice vermicelli into a bowl and arrange the shredded chicken, egg strips, thinly sliced Vietnamese pork sausage (gio lua), chopped shiitake mushrooms, Vietnamese coriander (rau răm), spring onions, and cilantro (rau mui tau) on top. Pour the broth over the ingredients to heat them up, then pour the broth back into the pot. Pour the broth a second time over the bowl, and sprinkle the fluffy shrimp topping (ruoc tom) on top. Adjust the seasoning to your taste by adding chili paste, chili slices, and a squeeze of lime while eating.

A successful bowl of Bun Thang will have clear broth with a sweet and delicate flavor, and the dried shrimp will add a fragrant aroma. The overall appearance will be very appealing with the yellow of the thin egg strips, the white of the chicken meat, the gentle pink of the pork sausage, and the golden hue of the chicken skin.

I hope that the above sharing has helped you learn how to cook authentic Hanoi-style Bun Thang. Although it takes nearly an hour from preparation to completion, when you enjoy the fragrant and nutritious bowl of Bun Thang, you will surely feel that the effort is well worth it. Visit Foodvietnamese.com daily to discover more authentic Vietnamese recipes!