From street food to cuisine, Vietnam has done a great job to win worldwide tourists by creating flavorful dishes from just a few simple ingredients.
However, if you intend to try all dishes in this food nation, including local specialities, you might get into serious troubles. To prevent any health issue that could ruin your trip, try to avoid these Vietnamese foods.
Vietnam, the heaven of cheap, delicious foods（Photo from：Dmytro Gilitukha）
Index
１．Roadside coffee
Drinking roadside coffee in the morning is a culture and a way to enjoy life of the locals
Bold-flavor Vietnamese café is one of the best cafés in the world that you may want to try once in your lifetime. However, even locals sometimes avoid buying roadside coffee because of mixed fillers instead of real coffee.
Only authentic café shops or historic generation-to-generation roadside coffee are recommended. Besides, coffee from a guaranteed street stall is usually much cheaper with the same high quality as big coffee shops.
２．Tap water
Iced tea is refreshing in hot summer days but it’s not as always clean as you see（Photo from Linh.Ach）
Most of Vietnamese, including me, only use tap water for cleaning or washing purposes. In Vietnam, never drink tap water without boiling it.
You could be invited to drink free (or low price) iced tea in many restaurants but be cautious. Iced tea (Tra da) is made from green tea so it’s safe to drink but the ices, unfortunately could be made from tap water.
３．Dog meat
Because of no policies, dog thief can be caught and beaten by people as a punishment
To be honest, dog meat (Thit cho) was a traditional meal of Vietnamese. Nowadays, because of morality, locals in big cities have boycotted and avoided eating it. However, you can find somewhere in rural areas still serving dog meat but I don’t think you would want to try.
Any dog meat served in Vietnam has a high risk of making from some thieves. No one would want to eat something that could be some families’ lovely pet right?
４．Raw blood pudding
【Photo】Please refrain from opening it if you are unwilling to see a photo of blood dish.
生の血液プリンは深刻で致命的な健康問題を引き起こす可能性があります
Raw blood pudding (Tiet canh) is a traditional Northern meal which is made from fresh pig and duck’s blood and fish sauce. Although some people found this dish delicious, it contains high health risks from swine bacteria. It caused real deadly cases in people who eat this dish.
Nowadays, the young Vietnamese generation think it’s scary and disgusting to eat something raw and bloody while they have other cleaner and healthier choices.
５．Edible-skin fruits
Fruits look great, but be cautious
Fresh tropical fruits are easy to buy anywhere in Vietnam which is a great thing only when you’re cautious enough. When you buy fruits in local markets or in the roadside, give it a hygiene job before eating.
Don’t eat the edible skins as well it can contain pesticide or toxic chemicals. Eat only the fruits inside or inedible-skin fruits.
Other guides to eat the cleanest, best food in Vietnam
Banh mi and coffee– A perfect combo to complete your morning!
Banh mi is a world-famous street food that contains almost no hygiene risk. All ingredients are cooked well and the taste is incredibly amazing.
Choose roadside food carts that are full or have lots of customers. The more the people choose it, the cleaner and more tasty it is.
Avoid all drinks containing large pieces of ice like it is cut from the giant ice block. Drinks with small ice cubes are recommended because it is well made.
If you are traveling, keeping your health safe is number 1 priority. Hope this short guide can be your handy tool to continue exploring South East Asia!