July 22
Food in Laos
Food in Laos is focused on fresh, locally sourced ingredients. Most recipes are fairly simple. Stir fried or stewed vegetables and meat are the staples. What sets things apart in Lao cuisine is the layering of complex flavors using few but potent ingredients.
Somewhat akin to Thai cuisine, there are a lot of cross-national similarities because until the French colonizers arbitrarily used the Mekong River as a border between Laos, Thailand, Cambodia, and Vietnam, those countries were intermingled throughout the region.
Something to note is that the non-tourist adapted food is spicy like crazy. The heat levels can be almost intolerable to foreigners. Having the phrases “baw pet” (not spicy) or “pet noy nung” (little spicy) ready and memorized is recommended if you aren’t ready for nuclear explosions in your mouth.
Spicy noodle soup at the morning market in Vientiane. $3 with coffee. Nuclear heat level: 7/10
Like the other countries in SE Asia that were colonized by the French, there is a strong tradition of baking what would be considered traditionally French breads and pastries. This came about because the French colonialists wanted to feel at home while living in a tropical rain forest 8,000 miles from Paris.
They hired indentured locals to bake bread from wheat flour that had to be imported because wheat isn’t really happy growing in rain forests.
Is this a happy story of occupiers and occupied fusing cultures and cuisines so the locals could create locally inspired foods using bread? Hardly, because of course, the French passed laws making it illegal for the SE Asians to eat western style bread.
Only through a different set of circumstances related to European War mongering (World War I) did the “bread divide” break down. And the rest, as they say, is history.
Fresh baked Croissant and Coffee in Pakse, $2.50
Something I think is amazing is the fluid way in which food adapts to the tastes and availability of local eaters and ingredients. The famous story of the Vietnamese Banh Mi takes the baguette and creates a beautiful sandwich that marries the local ingredients of Vietnam to the baguette to create what a notorious TV celeb chef once called “the perfect sandwich.”
In Vang Vieng, there’s a street food called the “Vang Vieng Sandwich.” It is a potpourri of pretty much every available ingredient, fried and stuffed into a baguette. Originally designed to satiate the 3AM alcohol and drug enhanced appetites of western backpackers, it has spread and now even in Vientiane there are food carts serving up “Vang Vieng Sandwiches.”
It is amazing to see the quantities of these sandwiches that are prepared and served up on freshly baked baguettes on the streets of Vang Vieng, even during the “low season” when there are not that many tourists. A helpful tip is that if you want to make sure that the baguette is freshly baked, just don’t worry and buy one. Due to the humidity and heat, baguettes don’t last and you’re not getting one baked yesterday. That crispy crust and spongy (in a good way) crumb are worth the calories.
A Vang Vieng Sandwich being prepared by a Vang Vieng street vendor. It’s chicken strips, bacon, ham, cheese, onions, garlic, tomato, lettuce, ketchup, sweet chili sauce, and mayo to fuel your drug and alcohol bender. Goes exceptionally well with a BeerLao. Sandwich, $2. BeerLao, $1
Lao Food Gallery
Omelet rice and spicy cucumber salad
Stir fried noodles with dried chiles.
Spicy crab noodle soup. Delicious.
So much fresh fruit available! One of my favorites, Rambutan
Phad Kra Pao, a stir fry of holy basil and meat, typically pork or chicken. One of my favorites
A crispy pork stir fry (sort of like twice cooked pork) and chicken curry from a dive bar in Pakse. Both were thermonuclear spicy but sooooo good.
A chocolate croissant in Pakse
Crispy Pork and rice, sort of a SE Asian version of Tonkatsu
A fancy dinner, starting with Heineken and fried Roti chips
Pizza. Actually not that bad, they had a woodfire oven to bake the pies. Note the ketchup and mayo served on the side.
An egg + bacon breakfast sandwich on a home-baked English muffin
You can't go wrong with fried rice from pretty much any little restaurant. IT's usually about $2
Another fancy meal place in Vientiane that came recommended from the hotel. This is a Tom Yum Martini. It actually faintly reminded me of Tom Yum. Plus, the menu price was $4 with half off for happy hour.
In Vientiane, there are dozens of western food specialty restaurants. This is the same place with the $2 martinis, serving $5 burgers with Australian Beef. Actually pretty good
My hotel breakfast in Vientiane, but I'd already eaten the baguette. The breakfasts were really good.
Steamed rice noodle sheets filled with pork and chives. A really tasty $1 lunch at a local market.
Laos has a strong sausage making tradition. There are tons of different varieties available from food carts everywhere. $0.50 or less.
A Vietnamese stir fried noodle dish in Vientiane. It's hard to choose because most restaurants have huge menus.
My second bowl of soup from a particular food cart. I learned my lesson and asked for "baw pet" and it was just slightly less spicy.
A simple but delicious chicken stir fry. Yes, I did have to go back for a $2 martini again.
Lunch from a street side stall where you get rice and choose from a number of pre-prepared items. The food is prepared by students learning food industry skills at a vocational school.
Fancy chicken wings. They were absolutely delicious. The glaze was soy-ginger-garlic-sesame.
My typical hotel breakfast in Vang Vieng. A good start to the day.
Papaya salad at a restaurant that also gives free English lessons to local students. English speaking patrons are encouraged to speak to the students as much as possible, which was a lot of fun.
Another version of Phad Kra Pao in Vang Vieng.
Khao Nom Kok, little sweet coconut cakes that are fried like a pancake. A staple street food
Another simple but delicious stir fry
I got caught in a huge thunderstorm while riding the scooter, so I stopped into a small restaurant for lunch and to wait it out.
Lotee Pancakes, which took me forever to figure out was a localization of the word Roti
The famous Vang Vieng Sandwich
Morning Glory with Pork at the big outdoor Food Court in Luang Prabang
My hotel breakfast in Luang Prabang