Photo: Thùy LinhFood / From Tân Hóa's flood valley
Mắm thính
Freshwater fish cured with salt and roasted corn in earthenware jars: flood-season food that became a dish for guests.
Mắm thính is the traditional cured fish of Tân Hóa village, in Kim Phú's flood-prone valley. Beyond the floating houses and the quiet valley, it is the dish to try here.
What is it made of?
Wild freshwater fish such as carp, grass carp and climbing perch, packed with salt and roasted corn powder (thính) in earthenware jars for at least three months. The result is rich, savoury and nutty.
How is it eaten?
Best cut into pieces and fried golden with nén, a small wild shallot. The corn crust turns fragrant, the fish stays rich, and the salty taste carries a light sourness from fermentation. Eat it with pồi or rice at a family dinner.
Flood-season food
Mắm thính was once food put by for the rains and floods. Today it is a speciality served to honoured guests, part of everyday life in Tân Hóa.
Where to try Mắm thính in Kim Phú
Most local dishes are on no restaurant menu. The surest way is to book dinner with a home cook in Tân Hóa village (200,000 VND per person, book at least a day ahead) and ask for Mắm thính. Many dishes are seasonal, so your host will tell you what is available. Staying the night? Ask your homestay host when you book.
Mắm thính in Tân Hóa
Photos: Thùy Linh
- Carp, grass carp, perch
- wild freshwater fish
- Roasted corn
- packed with salt
- 3 months
- in earthenware jars, at least
Try this
- Have it fried golden with nén (wild shallot)
- Ask your host to show you a curing jar
More Kim Phú dishes
From the hill fieldsPồiThe “rice” of the Nguồn people, made from corn and cassava.
From the limestoneỐc lènA snail that lives on the mountain, not in the water.
From the Rục peopleRượu đoác (đoác wine)A wine that is never distilled, drawn from the top of a forest palm.From the forest · March–MayTrứng kiếnAnt eggs hunted in the forest each spring: rich, and best in a sour soup with lá bún.From the stream banksLá búnA sour wild leaf from the stream banks, pickled before cooking, with an aroma all its own.From the nestNhộng ongPupae of several forest wasps and bees, ong bầu, ong chành and ong trón (vò vẽ), turned into a home-cooked treat.