Bò Bía
A Guacamole Bacon Six Dollar Burger at Carl’s Jr weighs in at a disgusting 1060 calories and 72 grams of fat according to the corporate website. A chili cheese fry’s 46 grams of fat bust guts even more all across America with another girth enhancing calorie bomb. We all saw the smelly disaster I brought home from the Carls Jr at Vincom Center a few months ago (#160). I am so thankful for the seemingly endless selection of lighter and fresher Vietnamese options served in appropriate size portions.
Just such an item has crossed my path and I must say it is now probably one of my favorite spring rolls. You know how Chinese joints all across America serve those grease packed cylinders that coat everything with a noxious sheen of slickness? In contrast, a Vietnamese spring roll is a piece of moistened rice paper holding in fresh ingredients. No cooking, no frying, no nothing. Just plain healthy goodness. Then again, healthy is subjective since the filling could be just about anything. But anyhow, that is not the point. The point is these are not dunked in sizzling oil, and that makes me feel good about shoving them down my foodhole.
A variety called bò bía is actually a common street food with an uncommonly good taste. Now this one is a good example to show just how confusing speaking Vietnamese can be. The name literally means cardboard cows. And bía can also mean beer. I give up. I just know if I see these two words together on a menu or street cart, I am going to have a taste explosion of jicama, carrots, lettuce, herbs, thin egg omelet, Chinese sausage, and dried shrimp. The dipping sauce is an amazing peanut-hoisin mixture. Pickled daikon, carrots and hot sauce add another burst of flavor to the sauce as well.
The sweet sausage mixes so well with the salty shrimp and sweet vegetables. I just can’t get enough of these things. Yes, four of these great tasting nonfried rolls hit the spot so much better than some hideous burger combo festering inside me long after the last bite.
Bò bía is a good example of Chinese-Vietnamese fusion food. These rolls were created by the Chinese immigrants in south Vietnam.