The ‘must try’ dishes when coming to Ninh Binh

Not only famous for its poetic landscapes, Ninh Binh is also known for famous dishes that only this land has. Here are the ‘must try’ dishes when coming to this ancient capital.

Goat meat The Truong Yen mountain area (Hoa Lu district) has many limestone mountains that have been formed for a long time. Taking advantage of this, people have formed a habit of grazing goats in the mountains, feeding them natural plants. As a result, Ninh Binh goat meat when processed often has a special delicious taste with herbal smell, sweet taste and firm meat. Goat meat is processed into many attractive dishes by Ninh Binh people such as rare lemon, pan-fried, stir-fried with chili pepper, stewed with traditional herbs or spring rolls… In 2012, Ninh Binh mountain goat was recognized by the Vietnam Record Organization. is one of the “Top 50 Vietnamese specialties”. In 2021, Truong Yen mountain goat also entered the “Top 100 Vietnamese specialties” of this organization. Burnt rice Ninh Binh elderberry was recognized by the Asian Record Organization as one of 12 Vietnamese specialties according to the set of criteria “Asian culinary value” in August 2012. Although burnt rice is a simple dish, in order to cook deliciously and meet the standards, it must go through many complicated stages, completely handmade according to the secret of Ninh Binh people. The rice selected to make elderberry must be fragrant, sticky rice or yellow sticky rice. After the rice is washed and cooked, people take each piece of rice that sticks to the bottom of the pot (burnt), dry it in the sun, then deep-fry it in oil so that the rice grains are crispy. Ninh Binh burnt rice is dipped with a sauce made from goat meat, with a strong consistency, spicy and aromatic flavor creating an unforgettable blend. Gia Vien shrimp paste Gia Vien district is a low-lying area with many rivers. People here have a profession of “riu” (catching) shrimp and making fish sauce for generations. To make delicious shrimp paste jars, people only choose old shrimp, round body, blue color and must be fresh. After washing, draining, people mix the shrimps with hearing and salt and then put them in a crockery jar, close the lid, leave in a cool place for more than a month to be used. Gia Vien shrimp paste has been recognized by the Vietnam Record Organization as one of the “100 Vietnamese gift specialties 2020 – 2021”.