Bún Đậu Mắm Tôm is pure Hanoi soul: soft vermicelli, crispy tofu, and shrimp paste that pulls no punches. Funky, daring, addictive.
What’s Inside
What is Bún Đậu Mắm Tôm?
The name says it all: bún (rice vermicelli), đậu (crispy fried tofu), and the unapologetic star—mắm tôm, fermented shrimp paste that doesn’t play nice with your senses.
Once humble fuel for Hanoi’s working class—much like Cơm Tấm in the South—this dish started with simple, cheap ingredients: noodles, tofu, shrimp paste, and herbs. Over time, it’s leveled up, now often served with fried spring rolls or tender pork trotter.
If shrimp paste feels like too much of a dare, Nước Chấm (sweet-tangy fish sauce) is a totally fine backup.
So when you’re in Hanoi, don’t just stop at Phở or Bún Chả. Go for Bún Đậu Mắm Tôm—the dish that’s funky, fearless, and everything locals can’t get enough of.
Ingredients
Mắm Tôm – Fermented Shrimp Paste
Every cuisine has its funky ferment—Korea’s got kimchi, Japan has natto and miso, Indonesia swears by tempeh. Even here in Germany, sauerkraut gets plenty of love.
Mắm tôm is Vietnam’s bold entry in that club. As a kid, I ran from it. Now? I can’t imagine many local dishes like Bún Đậu Mắm Tôm, Chả Cá Lã Vọng, or Bún Riêu without it.
Ingredients for Mixing Mắm Tôm
- Mắm Tôm (fermented shrimp paste): Don’t confuse it with mắm ruốc, the fermented shrimp paste from Huế. Mắm ruốc is the funky backbone of the iconic spicy noodle soup Bún Bò Huế.
- Calamansi (best choice), or swap with lime, lemon, or rice vinegar
- Hot cooking oil + shallots: mellows the funk and lightly “cooks” the paste
- Sugar
- Chili
- MSG (optional, but gives it extra punch)
Ingredients for Northern-Style Dipping Fish Sauce
- Pickles: carrots, kohlrabi (or green papaya, cucumber), salt, sugar, rice vinegar
- Fish sauce mix: fish sauce, rice vinegar (or lime/lemon juice), sugar, garlic, chili, and a touch of black pepper
Herbs
That big pile of herbs isn’t just for looks—it’s what balances all the boldness on the plate. Think: rau kinh giới (Vietnamese balm), tía tô (perilla), húng quế (Thai basil), húng Láng (Hanoi basil), plus lettuce and cucumber for crunch.
(And if you’re a fellow herb geek like me, I’ve got a whole guide on Vietnamese herbs you’ll love.)
Rice Noodles
This dish uses bún lá—pressed rice vermicelli.
Instead of loose strands like in bún thịt nướng, here the noodles are packed into a block, then cut into bite-sized squares. Perfect little sponges for dipping into shrimp paste goodness.
Protein Toppings
Instructions
Step 1: Pressed Rice Noodles
- Cook vermicelli according to package instructions. Drain (don’t rinse), spread on a tray, press with a heavy plate or pot, and let sit for 30 minutes. Cut into bite-sized pieces.
Step 2: Herbs & Veggies
- Pick, wash, and drain herbs and lettuce. Slice cucumber thinly.
Step 3: Tofu & Vietnamese Ham (Optional)
- Cut tofu into cubes and fry until golden and crispy.
- Slice Chả Lụa thinly and pan-fry until crisp. (Traditionally, it’s Chả Cốm.)
Step 4: Pork Belly or Trotter (Optional)
- Boil pork with aromatics (shallots, scallions, ginger). Simmer until fully cooked, cool, and slice.
Step 5: Nem Rán (Optional)
- Reheat frozen Hanoi spring rolls by deep-frying or air-frying, then slice them on the diagonal. (Skip Southern Chả Giò—they don’t quite fit this dish!)
Step 6: Dipping Sauces
- Mắm Tôm: Mix paste with sugar, calamansi (or lime), MSG (optional). Add hot shallot oil and chili.
- Nước Chấm: Pickle thin-sliced carrot & kohlrabi with salt/sugar for 15 mins, drain. Mix fish sauce, vinegar (or lime), sugar, garlic, chili, and pepper. Add the veggies.
Step 7: Assemble & Serve
- Arrange everything on a big platter—rice noodles, crispy tofu, sliced pork, spring rolls, Vietnamese ham, fresh herbs, and veggies.
- Dip each bite into your chosen sauce and dig in!
Expert Tips
Go for fresh tofu: Freshly made tofu from an Asian market has way better flavor than packaged ones.
Herb swaps: No Vietnamese Balm or Perilla? Mint and Thai basil are great stand-ins.
Citrus alternatives: No calamansi for your Mắm Tôm dip? Use lime, lemon, or even rice vinegar.
Discover More Authentic Vietnamese Recipes
(Vietnamese Sizzling Pancakes)
(Cà Phê Sữa Đá)
Bún Đậu Mắm Tôm Recipe: A Funky Flavor Adventure from Hanoi
Ingredients
- 1 pack Thin round rice noodles (or "Bún" in Vietnamese)
- 2 packs Medium-firm tofu (read my note 1)
- Cooking oil
Other toppings are optional but highly recommend (be around 1.5 lbs / 700g in total)
- 0.5 lbs Vietnamese Ham (Chả Lụa) (230g) (store-bought or homemade)
- 0.5 lbs Pork Belly or Pork Trotter (230g)
- 1 Shallot (or scallions or a small piece of ginger)
- 0.5 lbs Nem Rán (Hanoi-style spring rolls) (230g) (read my note 2 about the spring rolls)
Herbs & Vegetables
- Vietnamese Balm / Cockscomb Mint (Kinh Giới) (read my note 3 about the herbs)
- Vietnamese Perilla (Tía Tô)
- Thai Basil (Húng Quế)
- Mint
- Cucumber
- Lettuce
Fermented Shrimp Paste Dipping Sauce (Mắm Tôm)
- 4 tbsp Mắm Tôm (Fermented Shrimp Paste)
- 4 tbsp Sugar (to your taste)
- 1 pinch MSG (optional)
- 8 Calamansi (only juice) (to your taste) (read my note 4 about substitutes)
- 3 tbsp Thinly sliced shallots
- 3 tbsp Cooking oil
- Chili (sliced) (to your taste)
Nước Mắm Chấm (Northern-style Dipping Fish Sauce) (If you can't handle Mắm Tôm)
- 3.5 oz Carrot (100g)
- 7 oz Kohlrabi (Green Papaya / Cucumber) (200g)
- 1 tsp Salt (for the pickle)
- 2 tbsp Sugar (for the pickle)
- 2 tbsp Rice Vinegar (5%)
- 2 tbsp Fish sauce
- 10 tbsp Water
- 1½ tbsp Sugar
- Minced garlic (to your taste)
- Minced chili (to your taste)
- Black pepper powder (to your taste)
Instructions
Vermicelli Rice Noodle:
- Boil the dry noodles following the package instructions. Drain the rice noodles without rinsing.
- Spread the drained noodles on a tray, adjusting the thickness to your preference.
- Press the rice noodles with a plate or cutting board, and a weight on top (I use a water-filled pot). Allow them to rest for 30 minutes.
- Finally, use a knife to cut the noodle block into bite-sized parallelogram-shaped pieces.
Veggies & Herbs:
- Pluck the leaves from the herbs and lettuce. Gentle wash and drain them well.
- Wash and thinly slice the cucumber.
Tofu:
- Slice the tofu into cubes.
- Fry the tofu until they turn golden with a crispy exterior.
Vietnamese Ham:
- Thinly slice and fry them until crispy.
Pork Belly / Pork Trotter:
- Bring a pot of water to a boil, adding shallots (or scallions, ginger, etc.) since aromatics help remove the pork's odor.
- Simmer the pork belly or pork trotter until there is no visible pink or red color when pierced with a chopstick.
- Take the meat out of the pot and let it cool completely.
- Slice the pork thinly.
Nem Rán (Hanoi Fried Spring Rolls):
- Reheat the spring rolls either by deep-frying or air-frying.
- Then, cut them into smalll pieces.
Mắm Tôm (Fermented Shrimp Paste Dipping Sauce):
- In a bowl, mix the shrimp paste with sugar, MSG (optional) and calamansi juice until well-combined
- In a pan, heat some oil, add the sliced shallots, and fry until they become lightly golden.
- Add the fried shallots with some hot oil into the shrimp paste mixture. Mix well.
- Add chili slices to your liking, and your Mắm Tôm is ready to enjoy.
Nước Mắm Chấm (if you can't handle Mắm Tôm):
- Peel the carrot and kohlrabi, then thinly slice them.
- Combine the vegetables with salt and sugar, allowing them to rest for 15 minutes.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together fish sauce, sugar, vinegar, chili, garlic, and black pepper.
- Add the drained carrot and kohlrabi to the fish sauce mixture.
Assemble & Savor:
- Arrange all the components on a spacious platter: rice noodles, fried tofu, boiled pork, spring rolls, Vietnamese ham, herbs, and vegetables.
- Dip each element into the sauce and savor your meal!
Notes
- Opt for freshly-made tofu from an Asian market for the best flavor.
- Stick to Hanoi-style spring rolls; Saigon-style or egg rolls (chả giò) are not for this dish.
- If you can’t find authentic herbs like Vietnamese Balm and Vietnamese Perilla, mint and Thai basil are suitable replacements.
- In your Mắm Tôm dipping sauce, you can replace calamansi juice with lime/lemon juice or rice vinegar.
