''Mì Quảng'' (also spelled ''mỳ Quảng''), literally "Quảng noodle", is a Vietnamese noodle dish that originated from Quảng Nam Province in central

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making ...

. In the region, it is one of the most popular and nationally recognized food items, and served on various occasions such as at family parties, death anniversaries, and

Tết Tết (), short for Tết Nguyên Đán ( Chữ Hán: 節元旦), Spring Festival, Lunar New Year, or Vietnamese Lunar New Year is one of the most important celebrations in Vietnamese culture. The colloquial term "Tết" is a shortened form of ...

. Mì Quảng can both be found in many famous restaurants and street vendors among Central provinces, and is eaten for breakfast and lunch.

Ingredients and serving

The main ingredients of mì quảng are rice noodles, meat, and herbs, most commonly served with a small amount of broth, which is generally infused with turmeric. Wide

rice noodle Rice is the seed of the grass species ''Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice) or less commonly '' Oryza glaberrima'' (African rice). The name wild rice is usually used for species of the genera ''Zizania'' and ''Porteresia'', both wild and domesticate ...

s are placed atop of a bed of fresh herbs in a bowl (or vice versa), and then warm or lukewarm broth and meat are added. The broth is usually strongly flavored and only a small amount of it is used, generally enough to partially cover the vegetables. Meats used in the dish may include one or more of the following:

shrimp Shrimp are crustaceans (a form of shellfish) with elongated bodies and a primarily swimming mode of locomotion – most commonly Caridea and Dendrobranchiata of the decapod order, although some crustaceans outside of this order are ref ...

('),

pork Pork is the culinary name for the meat of the domestic pig (''Sus domesticus''). It is the most commonly consumed meat worldwide, with evidence of pig husbandry dating back to 5000 BCE. Pork is eaten both freshly cooked and preserved ...

('),

chicken The chicken (''Gallus gallus domesticus'') is a domesticated junglefowl species, with attributes of wild species such as the grey and the Ceylon junglefowl that are originally from Southeastern Asia. Rooster or cock is a term for an adu ...

('), or even

fish Fish are Aquatic animal, aquatic, craniate, gill-bearing animals that lack Limb (anatomy), limbs with Digit (anatomy), digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and Chondrichthyes, cartilaginous and bony fish as we ...

(') or

beef Beef is the culinary name for meat from cattle (''Bos taurus''). In prehistoric times, humankind hunted aurochs and later domesticated them. Since that time, numerous breeds of cattle have been bred specifically for the quality or quantit ...

('). The broth is made by simmering the meat in water or bone broth for a more intense flavor, seasoned with

fish sauce Fish sauce is a liquid condiment made from fish or krill that have been coated in salt and fermented for up to two years. It is used as a staple seasoning in East Asian cuisine and Southeast Asian cuisine, particularly Myanmar, Cambodia, Lao ...

, black

pepper Pepper or peppers may refer to: Food and spice * Piperaceae or the pepper family, a large family of flowering plant ** Black pepper * ''Capsicum'' or pepper, a genus of flowering plants in the nightshade family Solanaceae ** Bell pepper ** Chili ...

shallot The shallot is a botanical variety (a cultivar) of the onion. Until 2010, the (French red) shallot was classified as a separate species, ''Allium ascalonicum''. The taxon was synonymized with '' Allium cepa'' (the common onion) in 2010, as the ...

and

garlic Garlic (''Allium sativum'') is a species of bulbous flowering plant in the genus '' Allium''. Its close relatives include the onion, shallot, leek, chive, Welsh onion and Chinese onion. It is native to South Asia, Central Asia and northeas ...

Turmeric Turmeric () is a flowering plant, ''Curcuma longa'' (), of the ginger family, Zingiberaceae, the rhizomes of which are used in cooking. The plant is a perennial, rhizomatous, herbaceous plant native to the Indian subcontinent and Southeast ...

is often added to the broth, giving it a yellowish color. As with many Vietnamese dishes, Mì quảng is served with fresh herbs ('); commonly used herbs include

basil Basil (, ; ''Ocimum basilicum'' , also called great basil, is a culinary herb of the family Lamiaceae (mints). It is a tender plant, and is used in cuisines worldwide. In Western cuisine, the generic term "basil" refers to the variety also k ...

cilantro Coriander (;

(' or '),

scallion Scallions (also known as spring onions or green onions) are vegetables derived from various species in the genus '' Allium''. Scallions generally have a milder taste than most onions and their close relatives include garlic, shallot, leek, c ...

s or

onion An onion (''Allium cepa'' L., from Latin ''cepa'' meaning "onion"), also known as the bulb onion or common onion, is a vegetable that is the most widely cultivated species of the genus '' Allium''. The shallot is a botanical variety of the on ...

leaves,

Vietnamese coriander ''Persicaria odorata'', with common names Vietnamese coriander, rau răm, laksa leaf, Vietnamese cilantro, phak phai, praew leaf, hot mint and Cambodian mint, is an herb with aromatic leaves, used in Southeast Asian and Northeast Indian cooking. ...

('), sliced

banana A banana is an elongated, edible fruit – botanically a berry – produced by several kinds of large herbaceous flowering plants in the genus ''Musa''. In some countries, bananas used for cooking may be called "plantains", disting ...

flower (''bắp chuối bào''), and

lettuce Lettuce (''Lactuca sativa'') is an annual plant of the family Asteraceae. It is most often grown as a leaf vegetable, but sometimes for its stem and seeds. Lettuce is most often used for salads, although it is also seen in other kinds of food, ...

. A variety of other herbs may also be used in mì quảng, including common knotgrass ('),

water mint ''Mentha aquatica'' (water mint; syn. ''Mentha hirsuta'' Huds.Euro+Med Plantbase Project''Mentha aquatica'') is a perennial flowering plant in the mint family Lamiaceae. It grows in moist places and is native to much of Europe, northwest Africa ...

('),

perilla ''Perilla'' is a genus consisting of one major Asiatic crop species ''Perilla frutescens'' and a few wild species in nature belonging to the mint family, Lamiaceae. The genus encompasses several distinct varieties of Asian herb, seed, and veget ...

('), and heartleaf ('). Mì Quảng is commonly garnished with

peanut The peanut (''Arachis hypogaea''), also known as the groundnut, goober (US), pindar (US) or monkey nut (UK), is a legume crop grown mainly for its edible seeds. It is widely grown in the tropics and subtropics, important to both small an ...

s and toasted sesame rice crackers called ', which sets the dish apart from other noodle dishes. Additional ingredients may include hard-boiled

quail Quail is a collective name for several genera of mid-sized birds generally placed in the order Galliformes. The collective noun for a group of quail is a flock, covey, or bevy. Old World quail are placed in the family Phasianidae, and New ...

eggs, steamed pork sausage ('), or shredded pork rinds ('). Lime juice and fresh

chili pepper Chili peppers (also chile, chile pepper, chilli pepper, or chilli), from Nahuatl '' chīlli'' (), are varieties of the berry-fruit of plants from the genus ''Capsicum'', which are members of the nightshade family Solanaceae, cultivated for ...

s are often used as an added seasoning; other seasonings may include

soy sauce Soy sauce (also called simply soy in American English and soya sauce in British English) is a liquid condiment of Chinese origin, traditionally made from a fermented paste of soybeans, roasted grain, brine, and ''Aspergillus oryzae'' or '' As ...

or chili sauce. Mì quảng can also be served without broth, as a salad ('). Mì Quảng.jpg, Mì Quảng with ''bánh tráng'' rice crackers and peanuts Mi Quang at Ngoc Mai (with noodles uncovered).jpg, Mì Quảng with yellow noodles dyed with turmeric

Cultural aspects

There is a Vietnamese saying about this dish: This couplet describes a girl from Quảng Nam, a province on Vietnam's

South Central Coast South Central Coast ( vi, Duyên hải Nam Trung Bộ, links=no) or (South Central Region) is one of the regions of Vietnam. It consists of the independent municipality of Đà Nẵng and seven other provinces. The two southern provinces Ninh ...

, who warmly invites her lover to drink a cup of tea and a bowl of ''mì Quảng'', to show him the depth of her love for him.

Notes

References

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Mi Quang Culture in Da Nang Vietnamese noodle dishes

Ingredients and serving

Cultural aspects

See also

Notes

References