For vegetarian & vegan eating travelers, Vietnam is absolutely not a bad destination. Besides natural landscape sightseeing and cultural exploring, vegetarian & vegan eating travelers also have the chance to enjoy dozens of vegetarian food in Vietnam.
I - Vegetarian in Vietnam in the view of culture
Lots of Vietnamese vegetarian dishes to try - Source: Raphael Nogueira
It can be said that vegetarianism in Vietnam is influenced by Buddhism. In Vietnam, there are two main types of vegetarianism: daily vegetarian and periodical vegetarian. For periodical vegetarians, the 1st and the full moon days of the lunar calendar are considered to be the two most important days of the lunar month. Fasting these days directs people to the virtues of life, doing virtuous deeds and not killing any kinds of cattle or poultry.
As for daily vegetarian in Vietnam, in addition to the humanitarian meaning and environmental protection, there is also a popular Vietnamese conception that vegetarianism improves health and prolongs life expectancy.
According to the Nguoi Lao Dong newspaper - a reputation newspaper in Vietnam, the number of people who follow the lifestyle of eating vegetarian and vegan in Vietnam accounts for about 10% of the population. In another survey on the current vegetarian trend of Vietnamese, when interviewed out of a total of 200 random people, the vegetarian rate accounts for more than half (55%).
In this number, people often eat vegetarian in Vietnam on the 1st, full moon days of the Lunar Calendar or whenever they have the opportunity to eat with friends and relatives. The most popular reasons are to make it good for health, to live longer, and to have compassion for animals. To these people, the vegetarian diet is meaningful because when they are vegetarian, they feel a clear change in their thoughts and body. (Source: Funny Food).
II - Top best vegetarian food in Vietnam
As an agricultural country, Vietnam has plentiful and abundant sources of vegetables and fruits, so finding ingredients for Vietnamese vegetarian dishes is quite easy and convenient. The ingredients for the vegetarian in Vietnam are extremely simple, can be mentioned as rice, flour, nuts, vegetables, fruits, mushrooms, tofu,... Vietnamese people combine these ingredients and mix them with different spices to create many kinds of vegetarian food, which are so delicious and very healthy. For those who are new to vegetarianism or simply want to experience the taste of Vietnamese vegetarian food, you can try the pseudo-meat dishes.
1 - Appetizer vegetarian food in Vietnam
Mushroom and vegetable soup
Vegetarian in Vietnam - Source: Victoria Shes
As one of the best Vietnamese vegan food, mushroom soup with a refreshing sweet taste is the perfect appetizer for all vegetarian meals. This vegan food in Vietnam is a great combination of enoki mushroom, king oyster mushroom or lingzhi, carrots, sweet corn, pumpkin, string beans, flour, and spices.
Price: 15,000 - 30,000 VND/bowl ($0.64 - 1.29)
Vegan salad - papaya salad
Vietnamese salad has a lightly spicy, sour, and spicy taste that can make you salivate. This Vietnamese vegetarian dish is made of various ingredients such as medium ripe papaya, cherry tomatoes, roasted peanuts, dried shrimp, sugar, lemon, chili, garlic, and herbs.
Price: 10,000 - 20,000 VND/serving ($0.43 - 0.86)
2 - Main dishes for vegetarian in Vietnam
Vegan Pho soup
Having a frugal taste, Vietnamese vegetarian Pho is quite easy to make. Compared with beef pho, vegetarian pho uses entirely plant-based ingredients, so it has a slightly sweet taste. A popular vegetarian Pho noodle soup consists of white rice noodles, fried tofu, mushroom, and broth made from kinds of vegetables such as radish, carrot, mushroom, and various kinds of spices.
Price of this Vietnamese vegetarian food: 25,000 - 50,000 VND/bowl ($1.08 - 2.16)
Vegan Banh mi
Banh Mi is the most popular street food in Vietnam and can be modified to be one of the best vegetarian food in Vietnam. When it comes to Banh mi for vegan and vegetarian in Vietnam, it has another taste but is great to try. A loaf of vegetarian is a combination of crunchy crust, appealing fillings that are made of vegan pate made of tofu, glass vermicelli, pickles, vegetable, and vegan sausage.
Price: 10,000 - 25,000 VND/loaf ($0.43 - 1.08)
Tofu dishes
Tofu dishes are very popular for vegan in Vietnam - Source: Mariana Medvedeva
Quite a lot of Vietnamese vegetarian dishes are made from tofu such as tofu cooked with tomato, tofu stewed with lemongrass chili, fried tofu,... Each of these vegetarian dishes in Vietnam has a different way of making but it turns out to be delicious.
Price: 87,000 - 100,000 VND/portion ($3.75 - 4.3)
Stir-fried dishes with lots of Vietnamese vegetables
For a vegetarian in Vietnam, the top stir-fried vegetable dishes can be mentioned as:
- Morning glorying stir-fried
- Pumpkin buds & leaves stir-fried
- Bamboo shoot stir-fried
- Mixed vegetables stir-fried
Price: 30,000 - 60,000 VND/portion ($1.3 - 2.6)
3 - Sweet soups & cake - best best vegetarian food in Vietnam to end a meal
Sweet soup or Chè in Vietnamese is one of the most common desserts, with lots of kinds of sweet soups. This kind of vegan food in Vietnam is mainly made of tapioca starch, kinds of beans, lotus seed, fruit sugar, and milk or coconut milk. When eating, you should add more ground ice to enhance the cooling taste. Top famous sweet soups for a vegetarian in Vietnam can be mentioned as three-color sweet soup, mixed sweet soup, longan & lotus seed sweet soup,...
Price: 10,000 - 30,000 VND/portion ($0.43 - 1.3)
Besides that, many fried or steamed cakes are made from ingredients such as fried banana cake, vegetarian dumplings, fried rice flour, vegetarian Vietnamese pancake,... are also worth a try.
III - Top-rated vegetarian restaurants in Vietnam
1 - Hanoi
Uu Dam Vegetarian restaurant - Source: Uudamchay
Uu Dam Vegetarian Restaurant
- Address: No.34 Hang Bai street, Hoan Kiem district, Hanoi
- Price: 70,000 VND - 350,000 VND/person ($3.02 - 15.1)
Minh Chay Vegan Restaurant
- Address: No.30 Ma May street, Hoan Kiem district, Hanoi
- Price: 116,000 - 232,000 VND/person ($5 - 10)
Huong Thien Restaurant
- Address: This Vietnamese vegetarian restaurant is located at No. 261 Xa Dan street, Dong Da district, Hanoi
- Price: 120,000 VND/person ($5)
2 - Vietnamese vegetarian restaurants in Ho Chi Minh city
Hum Vegetarian, Cafe & Restaurant
- Address: No.32 Vo Van Tan street, ward 6, district 3, Ho Chi Minh city
- Price: 100,000 - 250,000 VND/person ($4.3 - 10.8)
Shamballa Vegetarian Restaurant & Tea House
- Address: No.17-19 Trinh Van Can street, Cau Ong Lanh ward, district 1, Ho Chi Minh city
- Price: 465,000 - 2,325,000 VND/person ($20 - 100)
3 - Top Vietnamese vegan restaurants in Danang
ROM Vegetarian Restaurant
- Address: No.87 Hoang Van Thu street, Hai Chau district, Da Nang city
- Price: 50,000 - 200,000 VND/person ($2.2 - 8.6)
Da Nang Vegetarian Cuisine Restaurant
- Address: No.60 Thai Phien street, Hai Chau district, Da Nang city
- Price: 50,000 - 200,000 VND/person ($2.16 - 8.6)
That is a brief look at vegetarian in Vietnam. It is hoped to be helpful for travelers who are interested in looking for some information about the best Vietnamese vegetarian food and restaurants to try.
— Ha Bich
