Dining with Chef Peter in Dalat
The senior chef at Anan Saigon, a contemporary Vietnamese eatery tucked away inside the Cho Cu wet market, is Peter Cuong Franklin. Peter is a Le Cordon Bleu graduate who has studied culinary anthropology and gastronomy in the United States. He developed his abilities at eateries like Chicago's Alinea and Hong Kong's Caprice before returning to Vietnam where he is working to reinvent Vietnamese cuisine. He shares his favorite recipes and recollections from his birthplace of Da Lat here.
When she was a teenager, my mother left the central province of Quang Nam and moved to Da Lat. I recall accompanying her to the Da Lat market when I was a young child to get ingredients for her mi Quang (mì Quảng), a traditional pork noodle soup with yellow turmeric rice noodles. The market was a unique setting consisting of unusual meats, seafood, and colorful vegetables as well as bustling commerce.
The best Da Lat dishes nowadays are created with seasonal ingredients and meats acquired from the farms that surround the hill town. Just about anything may be cultivated in the city due to its fertile terrain and mild highland environment. Avocados, strawberries, asparagus, artichokes, grapes, tea, coffee, flowers, and wild mountain mushrooms are just a few of the best ingredients in Vietnam that can be found in Da Lat.
The French built Da Lat during the colonial era as a hill station to get away from the oppressive Saigon heat and as a health spa for soldiers and government workers. Da Lat's population has greatly risen from the early days when there were only a few ethnic minorities. Like my mother, the majority of recent immigrants are from various regions in Central Vietnam. As a result, Da Lat is home to numerous well-known foods from the central region, including bánh bèo, bánh xèo, and bn b Hu. Due to its moderate mountain environment and the mixture of culinary traditions from many parts of Vietnam as well as from Europeans, Chinese, and ethnic minorities, Da Lat has some of the most diversified cuisines in all of Vietnam.
When I find myself back in Da Lat, I invariably eat these five dishes.
Mì Quảng
Mi Quang (mì Quảng) is one of my mother's signature meals. I've eaten my mother's recipe and many other variations of this dish, but I recently came across a flavorful and rich version of it in the wet market of Da Lat. The pork knuckle was added in such large quantities to the broth that it began to resemble tonkatsu ramen rather than the typically light and occasionally watery variety. This bowl of noodles in a turmeric broth with pork knuckles was a revelation.
Try it: Mì Quảng Thành, 58C Phan Đình Phùng, Da Lat
Bánh Bèo
Because of its brevity and purity, bánh bèo is one of my favorite foods. The Hue variation is a spoon-sized snack consisting of rice and tapioca flour that is boiled in a little ceramic bowl. The bánh bèo is delicately scooped out of the steaming bowl after steaming and served with a light fish sauce, crispy pork skin, fresh chiles, and fried shallots. Consider having it for a morning or afternoon snack.
Try it: Banh Beo so 4 Ba Huong, 402 Phan Dinh Phung, Da Lat
Phở Bò
The pho of Da Lat is extremely distinct from other areas. With the addition of a dish of fresh herbs and crisp European lettuce greens brought by the French during the colonial era, its food is made in the style of Hanoi that combines with the fertile, abundant mountain climate of Da Lat. It's fusion, right? Most people would undoubtedly scream "fusion" if I served Da Lat lettuce with the ph at my restaurant Anan Saigon. This is how the locals of Da Lat consume ph every day. It makes sense to include the lovely lettuce greens they have on hand.
Try it: Quán 1C, 1 Tăng Bạt Hổ, Da Lat
Bánh Mì Xíu Mại
The Da Lat-style banh mi xiu mai is served hot, in contrast to the cold slices banh mi served in Saigon. The sandwich is presented as a bowl of warm pork meatball soup, a heated grilled baguette, and a blend of shredded papaya and fresh herbs due to the cooler climate in this mountain city. Most locals only eat one, but this lady is aware that I frequently buy two with more chili because I enjoy a little heat with my bánh m and the chili is so great.
Try it: Bánh mì xíu mại BH, 16 Nguyễn Chí Thanh, Da Lat
Bánh Căn
The steamed rice cake known as Hue bánh bèo gave rise to the Da Lat delicacy known as bánh căn. Bánh Căn is barbecued over a charcoal brazier with a quail egg or duck egg on top in Da Lat due to the region's milder environment. It is preferable to have this traditional Da Lat dish for breakfast or a light snack in the early morning. The dish bánh căn is more common in Da Lat, and you can currently find it at numerous locations in the city's center, particularly in the Hoa Binh region.