Bo kho
Bo kho is a take on beef stew with a French influence, mixing together European and similar Vietnamese pho-esque ingredients. Bo kho can be light with chunks of beef or rich with tomato. Lemongrass, cinnamon, and star anise are common spices.
Com
‘Com’ means rice or steamed rice which is usually served with fresh veggies and pickles or a bowl of seasoned sweet-sour fish sauce. Sometimes the rice is referred to as ‘com tam’, which means ‘broken rice’. This is rice made from grains damaged in processing. This can give rice a more chaotic textural quality which may be unexpected to some.
Bo luc luc
Bo luc luc is a stir fry mixing together chunks of beef with garlic, black pepper, and onions in a caramelized sauce. If you’re familiar with Chinese food, you’ll love this simple, sweet beef dish, typically flavored with soy sauce, fish sauce, or Maggi seasoning.
Fried chicken wings
Known in Vietnamese cuisine as canh ga chien, this is chicken fried to a golden crisp and sometimes tossed in chilli sauce, garlic sauce, or salty-sweet caramelized fish sauce. An underrated favourite, these are delicious as a side to any meal.
Banh cuon
Banh cuon are steamed rice rolls. They’re usually made as thin, steamed pancakes from fermented rice batter rolled up and sometimes around ground pork. They are relatively delicate and elastic, with a light flavor.
Bun
Bun, or rice vermicelli, is a filling and refreshing rice noodle salad. The base is cold rice vermicelli mixed with things like lettuce, cucumber, peanuts, fresh mint, chopped scallions, or tangy pickles. It’s usually topped with grilled pork, fried spring rolls, grilled pork sausage, or similar meats.
Chao
Chao is a rice porridge sometimes mixed with things like ginger, scallions, stock, and other ingredients. In a Toronto Vietnamese restaurant, chao is usually served with sticks of fried dough known as gio chao quay.
Chao tom
Chao tom is sugar cane shrimp, minced and seasoned usually with garlic, sugar, fish sauce, and shallot. You’ll find them shaped in a cylindrical patty around sugar cane before they’re grilled or fried.
These are just some of the Vietnamese dishes that have inspire the menu at Toronto Pho. Specializing in authentically prepared pho, there’s no better place to grab an East Asian meal than with Toronto Pho. Please feel encouraged to visit us today for more information on where you can pick up your next homemade hot meal.
