Tag Archives: Vietnamese

“Don’t Flip the Fish”: Vietnamese Folk Magic

Nationality: Vietnamese-American
Age: 53
Occupation: Mail Clerk
Residence: Iowa
Performance Date: 4/1/2021
Primary Language: English
Language: Vietnamese

Main Piece:

D: When I worked at the train station– that was the very first train station at– the area name is called Cà Ná– that’s the region, the name– so that area has a village, the fishing village, so everybody there goes onto the boats. So you know when you eat fish– you know how [the] Vietnamese cook fish or fry the whole thing– so when you eat one side, you don’t flip it. You’re not supposed to flip it. Just take the bones out and then eat the other part.  

Me: Why?

D: Because they all go on the boats, they don’t want the boat to flip. So even if you don’t go on the boats, everybody has to eat like that. So you don’t have to, but nobody is gonna let you flip it, even if you don’t go on the boats. If you flip it, other people are gonna stop you.

Background:

My informant is my father, who was born and raised in Vietnam. He explains that he used to work at a train station in a fishing village called Cà Ná, which is on the southwest coast of Vietnam. While he worked and lived here, he has told me about how he would eat fish every day because that was the main food source in this village. Mealtimes are often communal, in which main dishes are shared, fish being one of them. Thus, being a part of this community, my father had to follow the practice of never flipping the fish when eating.

Context:

This is a transcription of a live conversation between my father and me. He often tells me stories about his life and past and has told me many about his time working at the train station. He told me this story when I asked if he knew about any kinds of folk magic.

Thoughts:

My father has told me many stories about his time working at the train station in Vietnam, but this was the first time I heard about this practice. I had just finished our lecture that day, where we talked about folk magic, with homeopathic magic superstitions being common for fishing and boating communities. I told my father about one, where you are not allowed to whistle on a boat because it is thought of as “whistling up a storm.” That is when he was reminded of this story. Thinking back to our family mealtimes, I cannot recall an instance where our fish was flipped. I believe this must have become a habit for my father. As he explained, being a part of the fishing village, it did not matter if you got on the boats or not. Since everyone was a part of this community where fishing is the main source of food and work, everyone contributes to the prevention of bad luck, which would come from mimicking the flipping of a boat through flipping a fish. Though my father has immigrated to the US now and is no longer a member of the fishing village, he still continues the practice. On the sea where weather and safety are unpredictable, magical folk practices are common to resolve and alleviate the tension of uncertainty. Such is the case for Cà Ná and the prevention of boat flipping. In this case, this belief is both homeopathic (mimicking the flipping of a boat) and contagious magic (the fish was in contact with the boat).

“Cây muốn lặng mà gió chẳng chịu đừng” Vietnamese Proverb

Nationality: Vietnamese-American
Age: 53
Occupation: Mail Clerk
Residence: Iowa
Performance Date: 2/15/2021
Primary Language: Vietnamese

“Cây muốn lặng mà gió chẳng chịu đừng”

  • Transliterated Proverb:
    • Cây: tree
    • Muốn: want
    • Lặng: still (motion)
    • Mà: but
    • Gió: wind
    • Chẳng: do not want
    • Chịu: bear (endure)
    • Đừng: stop
  • Full translation: The tree wants to stay still, but the wind refuses to stop
    • Explanation: This proverb is referring to two people. One is the tree, and the other is the wind. The person who says this proverb in conversation is the tree, to say that the other person will not stop whatever they’re doing, which is directly affecting, pushing around, annoying, etc. the speaker. This implies that if the annoyance will not stop, then the tree will be forced to take action and make them stop. My father explains to me that sometimes, this entails a physical altercation. In his words, “Stop, or I’m gonna punch you.” 

Thoughts:

I love this proverb because, in Vietnamese, it sounds quite poetic. However, per my father’s explanation, its usage can conversely be quite gritty and unromantic. I find this dichotomy humorous. Looking at the proverb alone, I first thought that it referred to a person’s tough journey, and how their obstacles will not seem to cease. I thought it was melancholy and meaningful to how a person can endure so much. I was shocked to learn from my father that it instead is more of a warning, or in some cases, a threat. 

“Thầng nào cùng muốn làm cha” Vietnamese Proverb

Nationality: Vietnamese-American
Age: 53
Occupation: Mail Clerk
Residence: Iowa
Performance Date: 2/15/2021
Primary Language: Vietnamese

“Thầng nào cùng muốn làm cha”

  • Transliterated Proverb
    • Thầng: kid, brat (informal and familiar word to refer to a person; people of the same age can call each other this without it being disrespectful unless the disrespect is intended. An older person can call a younger person this without it being inappropriate, or a person in power can call their subordinate this. However, if a younger person calls an older person this, or a subordinate calls their superior this, it is very disrespectful and inappropriate)
    • Nào: every, all
    • Cũng: also
    • Muốn: want
    • Làm: do, be
    • Cha: father
  • Full translation: Every brat wants to be the father
    • Explanation: Vietnamese society is patriarchal, so the position of the father is the highest authority and demands the most respect from those under them. My father explains to me that this phrase can be used in a critical way, in contexts where a person may be overstepping their authority or is inappropriately or annoyingly trying to exert power over others. It can also be used more casually to call attention to a situation where everyone in a group is trying to give orders, and no progress is being made. In this way, it can also be used to diffuse a tense situation where everyone is trying to lead at the same time.

Thoughts:

I like this proverb because it succinctly describes a complex situation. The word “thầng” is difficult to translate directly into English because it captures a dynamic of social positions that depends on the context of its usage, which does not really exist in the same way in the English language or American culture. Depending on who is saying this proverb and to whom they are saying it to can change the meaning. I like how it can be used in a critical way; to criticize someone overexerting power. Yet, it can also be sarcastic and playful within a group of friends to point out the silliness of people not listening to each other.

Grandma’s Phở Bò Recipe

Nationality: Vietnamese-American
Age: 81
Occupation: Retired
Residence: Iowa
Performance Date: 4/2/2021
Primary Language: Vietnamese

Main Piece:

*preparing for 15 servings
*total time from start to finish: 3 hours

  • 1lb of beef bones
  • 400g of brisket
  • 250g of beef tenderloin (fillet)
  • 2 large onions
  • 3 limes
  • Thai chilis, green onions
  • Basil, cilantro
  • 50g hoisin sauce
  • 20g sriracha
  • Salt, pepper, MSG or chicken sugar (chicken bouillon)
  • 1lb of rice noodles
  • 300g of raw mung bean sprouts
  • 1 whole ginger = char the skin
  • 3 pieces of star anise
  • 1 small piece of cinnamon or one seasoning packet
  1. Beef bones: soak in warm water to drain the blood out, dump the water and repeat many times
  2. Wash the brisket with water until clean and let the water drain out
  3. Wash the beef tenderloin with water until clean, dry with a paper towel, then put in the refrigerator
  4. Raw mung beans, fresh herbs, Thai chilis and lime: prepare right before serving

Making the Phở Broth

  • Pour 12 large bowls of cold water or a little more in the pot and bring to a boil, at the same time, cook the beef bones and brisket in the pot on medium-low heat while it is uncovered. Watch the pot. Film will occasionally form at the top of the broth, skim it off and discard the film. Skim the film many times. 
  • Turn up the heat little by little so all of the film can form at the top to be removed, keep skimming it off until the water becomes clear. At this stage, you can put in the ginger and onion which should be charred right before putting them in the pot. Season by taste with chicken bouillon, a little salt, and MSG. Lower the heat.

Page Two

  • Use chopsticks to pierce the brisket to test if it is cooked properly. If it pierces through, take the brisket out and rinse with cold water and leave it until it completely cools down, then slice it.
  • Slice the beef tenderloin

*Taste the broth to adjust seasoning as needed and lower the heat to keep the broth at a simmer.

Plating the Phở

  • First put the raw mung bean sprouts in a strainer. Then put the uncooked rice noodles on top, blanch them in boiling water, strain the water and plate both the mung beans and noodles in a bowl. On top, plate the brisket, fillet, sliced onion, and green onion. Also include one piece of green onion about 2-3 inches long cut from the bottom up. 
  • Pour in the broth (brought to a boil before serving), until the raw tenderloin is covered. Add blanket tripe or honeycomb tripe.

Pho has to be eaten very hot with hoisin sauce and sriracha, lime, sliced chilis, cilantro, and basil. 

*Do not use fish sauce to season the broth. It will make the broth taste sour.

*Only add fish sauce to your bowl when you’re eating, if you want to. 

*The seasoning packet is ground star anise and cinnamon. Only add to the broth when the broth is clear (all the film was removed). Leave it in for one hour, then taste for proper seasoning. If it’s good, remove the seasoning packet. 

Background:

This is my grandmother’s recipe for Phở Bò, which is rice noodles in beef broth. It is an iconic dish of Vietnamese cuisine, however, she only started to make it after immigrating to the United States in the 1990s. She explains that in Vietnam, there were phở restaurants everywhere, so there was never a need to make it yourself at home. Further, since the dish takes so long to make and requires so many ingredients, it was not convenient or accessible for the normal citizen to make it themselves. Unless you owned a phở restaurant, you were not cooking this dish at home. Thus, after immigrating, because the abundance of phở restaurants and general Vietnamese cuisine was no longer a given, my grandmother, like most other Vietnamese people in the diaspora, had to learn how to cook certain dishes themselves. It was through sharing knowledge with others and the coming of the internet that helped my grandmother develop her recipe over time. It is a loved dish for her to make and share with our (very large) family.

Context:

I have been able to visit my grandmother from time to time during the pandemic. It was during one visit where she shared this recipe with me.

Thoughts:

This is one of my favorite foods to eat, so I am delighted to have my grandmother’s recipe. Phở has always been a source of comfort and also healing for when I’m sick. Because so much effort and time are poured into the dish, as well as eating it while it’s practically boiling, the warmth of the cook shines through the meal. I also love phở because a person’s recipe can tell you a lot about their history and where they came from. The inclusion of fresh herbs, lime, among many other toppings shows that this particular recipe follows the style of phở from the southern region of Vietnam. I’ve also had the northern version, which is also delicious, but slightly different in its simplicity: very few toppings are included and the broth is made with a stronger spice base. Furthermore, this dish has changed drastically over time as new variations appear along with newly gained access to more ingredients. The Huy Fong Sriracha is now a staple topping in the southern style phở but clearly was not included in the earlier versions preceding its creation in 1980. Now, you may see variations of phở adorned with lobsters, other seafood, accommodating vegetarian or vegan diets, and many more. Tracking the differences in these variations can thus reveal changes in people’s circumstances, tastes, and trends.

“Ta về ta tắm ao ta” Vietnamese Proverb

Nationality: Vietnamese
Age: 81
Occupation: Retired
Residence: Iowa
Performance Date: 4/2/2021
Primary Language: Vietnamese

“Ta về ta tắm ao ta”

  • Transliterated proverb:
    • Ta: I, me
    • Về: home
    • Tằm: shower, bath, bathe
    • Ao: pond
  • Full translation: I will return home and bathe in my own pond
    • Explanation: An American equivalent of this proverb would be “There is no place better than home.” Thus, this proverb means the best place is home, and could otherwise be stated as “I would rather go home and bathe in my own pond.” My grandmother explains that this proverb could be used to describe a situation where you have traveled to another country, but facing difficulties there makes you realize that your home country was better. It can also be generally referring to another person’s home or an unfamiliar place that is otherwise not your own home. Within the meaning of this proverb is the possibility of the other country, the unfamiliar place, or stranger’s home being wealthier, shinier, or more glamorous than your country or your home. Yet, she explains, at least your home is yours, thus, the wealthier place is not necessarily better.

Thoughts:

I like this proverb because I believe that it attests to the culture of my family and the culture I was raised in. When my grandmother was raising my father and his siblings, Vietnam was in the midst of war, and then had to rebuild after the war. Because of this, financial instability was common. The principle of being only concerned with how you are doing and taking care of your home rather than desiring another person’s wealth shines through those circumstances and has followed how my parents raised me. I remember wanting to sleep over at my cousins’ houses often when I was younger, and sometimes complaining to my parents about things they can do or have that I cannot do or have. My parents always responded then that I should want to sleep in my own house and that “it doesn’t matter what someone else has” and reminded me to be grateful for the things that are mine. This sentiment has always been with my grandmother as well, who once expressed to me how “the best place is home” to explain why she turned down my uncle’s offer for her to live with him for a few months in California.