5 Vietnamese representatives among top 100 Asian stir-fry dishes

The dishes are rau muong xao toi (stir fried morning glory with garlic ), pho xao (stir-fried pho), mien xao cua (stir-fried glass noodles and crab meat), qua su su xao toi (stir-fried chayote squash with garlic), and oc huong (stir-fried Babylonia snails).

A plate of stir fried morning glory with garlic. Photo by VnExpress/Bui Thuy

Stir fried morning glory with garlic ranked 13th, the highest among the Vietnamese dishes on the list, with a rating of 4.3/5 stars. TasteAtlas describes it as a traditional Vietnamese dish that’s suitable for vegetarians.

It’s cooked with a combination of morning glory, also known as water spinach, garlic, fish sauce, salt, sugar and oyster sauce. The water spinach is blanched, then stir-fried with garlic, salt and sugar, while the fish sauce is added near the end of cooking.

“This vegetable dish is served hot, usually as a part of a three-course meal, the first is a stir-fry, the second course is a boiled or steamed dish and the third course is a soup. Rau muong xao toi also makes for a great accompaniment to white rice,” according to the website.

A plate of stir-fried pho. Photo by VnExpress/Bui Thuy

Stir-fried pho occupies the 27th position.

Considered as a more convenient variation of the classic pho, this traditional Vietnamese dish employs similar ingredients, but they are stir-fried rather than cooked and the dish does not contain the broth. It is normally made with beef or chicken, flat rice noodles (pho) and various sliced vegetables.

Stir-fried glass noodles and crab meat is placed at 65th. The traditional Vietnamese dish is made from stir-fried glass noodles, crab meat, wood-ear mushrooms, shiitake mushrooms, carrots and bean sprouts.

A plate of stir-fried glass noodles and crab meat. Photo by Ngo Tuyet Phuong

The ingredients are stir-fried in a big pan, then dressed with a combination of lime juice, minced garlic, sugar, water and fish sauce. Once done, the dish is decorated with chopped green onions and coriander before serving.

Stir-fried chayote squash with garlic, a traditional Vietnamese dish originating from Sa Pa in Vietnam’s northern highlands, claimed the 68th position while sweet snails the 71st.

A plate of stir-fried chayote squash with garlic. Photo by Thuan Hung

The ingredients to cook stir-fried chayote squash with garlic include chayote squash, garlic, fish sauce, oil and dried shrimp. The chayote squash is usually sliced into matchsticks, then stir-fried with shrimps sautéed in olive oil, garlic and fish sauce.

Oc huong, a traditional Vietnamese snail dish, is cooked from large and sweet Babylonia snails with white and brown spotted shells. They’re usually stir-fried in a large wok with a sweet and sticky sauce.

When served, the snails are pulled out of their shells with a small two-pronged fork, then dipped into a combination of salt, pepper, lime juice, and chilli sauce.

A plate of stir-fried snails with butter and garlic. Photo by Chang Chep

Other top 100 Asian stir-fry dishes, according TasteAtlas, include Dak Galbi (stir-fried chicken with cabbage) from the Republic of Korea, phat kaphrao from Thailand, nasi goreng ayam (Indonesian fried rice), pad Thai, beef chow fun and stir-fry shrimps from China.

TasteAtlas, established in 2015, bases its food rankings the ratings of its audience. The website said it uses an algorithm that confirms real users and ignores bots, nationalist or local patriotic ratings and gives additional value to the ratings of users that the system recognizes as knowledgeable.

For the ‘Top 100 Asian Stir-fry Dishes’ list 3,652 ratings were recorded, of which 2,991 were recognized by the system as legitimate.