Nem Chua Bà Thu

Thanh Hóa, Vietnam

Bà Thu is one of the longest-running nem chua producers in Thanh Hóa city, operating from a shophouse on Lê Hoàn Street in the city centre. The shop sells nem chua wrapped in banana leaves and also vacuum-sealed parcels for travellers. Three to five days of fermentation at ambient temperature is the standard, and the sausage is made fresh each morning. Buyers line up in the early afternoon when the day's batch reaches the right sourness. The ratio of lean pork to bì (pork skin strips) leans toward the lean side, giving the Bà Thu version a firmer, denser texture than the sweeter southern styles. The parcels come tied with a strip of banana leaf and a whole garlic clove and a dried chilli tucked against the surface. The shop also sells nem nướng (grilled pork sausage) and chả quế (cinnamon pork roll) alongside the nem chua, but the fermented sausage draws the most traffic.

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Sausages served here

Nem Chua

Thanh Hóa, Vietnam

Nem chua is a Vietnamese fermented pork sausage eaten raw, straight from its banana leaf wrapping. Made from lean pork pounded to a smooth paste, it incorporates strips of boiled pork skin (bì), garlic, fish sauce, sugar, and salt, then wrapped tightly in banana leaves and left to ferment at room temperature for three to five days. Lactic acid bacteria do the preserving work, acidifying the paste and firming the texture without any heat. The finished sausage is pink, fragrant with garlic, and sour from the ferment. Vendors sell it in small parcels tied with a strip of the same leaf. Buyers unwrap it at the table, often eating it with a toothpick alongside fresh chilli slices and pickled garlic. The most cited origin is Thanh Hóa province in north-central Vietnam, where the technique and proportions have a long history. Versions from Lai Vung in Đồng Tháp and Bình Định province each have local champions, but Thanh Hóa remains the benchmark.

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