Vong village green rice is among the list of 121 iconic culinary dishes selected for the development of the National Brand. (Photo: Dang Cong san)

At the ceremony, Mr. Nguyen Le Phuc, Deputy Director of the Vietnam National Authority of Tourism (VNAT), emphasized that Viet Nam's tourism development strategy by 2030 has identified culinary tourism as one of the essential categories, contributing to enhancing competitive advantages and the Vietnam tourism brand. The creation of a “culinary map” of Vietnam will honor and preserve the cultural diversity of the Vietnamese people, thereby driving economic and social development.

To effectively make use of the potential and advantages of culinary tourisms, the VNAT focuses on developing attractive and high-quality culinary tourism products, with an emphasis on providing cultural experiences and activities related to the destination associated with each dish and beverage.

Furthermore, there will be increased promotion of Vietnamese culinary culture globally through international events held within and outside the country, especially in key markets.

Mr. Nguyen Quoc Ky, President of the VCCA shared that the association has been actively implementing the project, with a key mission to seek, collect, preserve and develop cultural heritage and culinary excellence of Vietnam into a National Brand, building up to make Vietnam the world's kitchen, contributing to the preservation and promotion of Vietnamese cultural values.

“The association hopes that businesses will lend a helping hand to promote and turn Vietnamese culinary culture into a National Brand and a National Tourism Brand of Vietnam”, he said.

In the first phase of 2022, the project has received 421 culinary nominations from 60 out of 63 localities, and 121 exemplary Vietnamese dishes were selected and honored (47 from the Northern region, 37 from the Central region, and 37 from the Southern region). These dishes represent the cultural essence of various regions and localities.

Among these, Ha Noi boasts four culinary delights (Hanoi-style pho, vermicelli with snail featuring both cold and hot versions, Vong village green rice (com) including green sticky rice cakes, che com (a dessert), xoi com (sticky rice), and cha com (a type of sausage), and bun thang). Ho Chi Minh City presents five dishes (Saigon-style broken rice, Saigon-style bread, fermented fish hotpot, Saigon-style rolls, and crispy fried noodles).

Meanwhile, Quang Ninh offers three dishes (Ha Long squid sausage, sour soup with yellow tail scad, and Ba kich spirit from Dam Ha). Dien Bien features three dishes (Mong chicken, buffalo skin salad, and Thai ethnic grilled fish). Ha Giang contributes three dishes (bong fish, au tau congee, and corn pho).

Thua Thien-Hue has six dishes (Hue beef noodle soup, tapioca pudding wrapped with roasted pork, mussel rice, fig cake with vegetarian flower salad, vegetarian lotus leaf steamed rice). Ninh Thuan has three dishes (lamb cooked with Phan Rang green grapes, Phan Rang cactus juice), Kon Tum has one dish (chicken hotpot with ginseng leaves). Binh Duong has three dishes (chicken mangosteen salad, eel porridge, and banh beo). Bac Lieu has two dishes (silk rice cake, spicy beef noodle soup)…

Also at the ceremony, VCCA announced the 2nd phase of the project for the year 2023. It will focus on implementing various activities and objectives, including supporting localities in organizing events and activities to promote the development of the culinary cultural ecosystem, national and international promotional activites to honor cultural, nutritional, and economic values to drive local culinary tourism development. It also aims to support the digital transformation of local culinary culture activities on a unified map, to build a virtual Vietnam culinary culture museum, to build a step-by-step strategy for the development of local culinary culture.

The products developed under the project "Building and developing Vietnam's culinary culture into a national brand" are expected to be a significant step in promoting the Vietnam brand globally through culinary culture, fostering national competition, and serving as a foundation for economic growth.