Bún mắm - Vietnamese Gumbo

Bún mắm is a kind of vermicelli noodle soup that was originally in Soc Trang, Vietnam. It is modified a lot more when introduced in Saigon. The soup broth is the key. The stock is combined of pork stock and fermented gouramy fish base. The stock is rich, sweet, salty, and smell of fish base. When you eat, basically you can put any kind of seafood into the bowl together with the vegetables and the stock. For this noodle, veggies is a MUST-HAVE ingredient.

I ate this noodle at several places but An Dong market, Vietnam is the best place. Some places don't put enough fish base into the broth because of its stinky smell so the broth is just blank.
This is my favorite Vietnamese noodle style. I can eat it for a week and still craving for more. It is so much easier to cook than I expect. Anyways, I will post the recipe for those who want to cook it at home.

Prep: 60 minutes
Cook 30 minutes.
Party of 10

Ingredients

Stock
1kg of pork bones
1kg of fermented fish Gouramy fish base ( prefer: grind fish base)
3 stalks of lemongrass
1 tablespoon of minced lemongrass
2 gloves of garlic
1 hot pepper

Method:

• Slow cook the pork bones to get the 1.5 liter of stock.
• In another pot, put 500ml water in. Cook with the fish based in 10 minutes.
• Fine chop  the garlic and pepper.
• Prepare a hot pan, put oil in. Saute the garlic, pepper, and minced lemongrass until fragrant.
• Add the mix of saute garlic, pepper, and lemongrass into the fish stock. Cook for 5 minutes.
• Strain the fish stock and add it to the pork stock. Bring the mix into boil
• Again, cut the stalks of lemongrass into 3 inch stick and saute with oil.
• Add the saute lemongrass into the broth.
• Add 4 teaspoon of sugar into the broth.
• Cut eggplant into big chunk and add to the boiled stock. Cook until the eggplant become soft and fluffy

In the bowl
Big vermicelli
Fish fillet ( tilapia, halibut, snakehead)
Squid,

Prawn,  peeled

Roasted pork, cut into 0.5 inch thick slice
Grilled chop fish

Method:

• Cook the vermicelli as the manufacturer advises
• Cut chives, lily roots, ong choy into 3 inch long
• Slice bananas pedals and put into water and vinegar until served.
• Half boil squids, prawns, and fish fillet
• Deep fried the grilled chop fish

Accompaniments:
Chives
Bean sprouts
Lily-water roots
Basil
Ong choy
Bananas flower pedals

Dipping sauce
Fish sauce or my homemade tamarind fish sauce

Method:

• Put 3 table spoons of sugar into a bowl
• Add 3 table spoons of hot water into the bowl. Mix it
• Add 1 table spoon of concentrated tamarind.
• Add 1/2 table spoon of fish sauce into the bowl.
• Add chopped pepper  ( optional)

Serve
Put a little of accompaniment veggies in a bowl.
Put a handful of vermicelli
Add squids, prawns, fish fillet, grilled chop fish, and roasted pork.
Add broth and eggplant into the bowl.

Eating time!!

Add a little of the homemade dipping sauce into the bowl if to complete the taste. 

Add more veggies if you like. I like to put a lot of bean sprouts and bananas pedals into my bowls.

Eat like you never eat. 

Enjoy~!!