1. What is Vietnamese Che?
Vietnamese Che, also called sweet soup, is a type of food made with sugar, and the main ingredients are beans, seeds, or fruits. Che can have a soup-like texture or a thick consistency. The popular habit of eating Che in Vietnam is to taste it with ice, both eating and drinking.
Che is the common name for a unique dessert food. However, you need to pay attention to some places in the North of Vietnam, like Thai Nguyen, where people call Che meaning Vietnamese tea. So, make sure you call it “Che Ngot” (sweet soup) in the Northern regions if you want to find a place to enjoy this typical food.
>> See more of the famous desserts in Vietnam.
2. Five reasons make Che well-known
2.1. Che can be eaten hot or cold in any season.
Most people in Vietnam like to eat Che with ice. On summer days, when the temperature is usually above 35 degrees Celsius with high humidity, it causes a lot of sweating, which causes the body to lose water. At that time, a cup of sweet soup with ice can compensate for the necessary amount of water and refreshment.
Many people like to eat hot Che, such as green bean sweet soup, sticky rice Che, millet seed Che, sticky-rice ball sweet soup, etc. Eating without ice will create a sugary taste.
It can be said that Che is present in most seasons of the year, rainy seasons or sunny times. Vietnamese Che contributes to enriching the local cuisine, supplying the eating needs of everyone.
2.1. Che is a nutritious food rich in vitamins and energy.
With nutritious ingredients, such as beans and various seeds, or rich in vitamins from many tropical Vietnamese fruits, such as bananas, jackfruit, and watermelons, this dish becomes a healthy food for the body.
Abundant energy from sugar can supplement strength for physical activities and manual labor. A cup of sweet soup combines many factors to help the body have enough minerals and energy for daily activities.
The price of a sweet soup cup is not high, so anyone can make an effort.
A cup of Che costs 10,000 VND, but some places sell for 15,000 VND. This price is reasonable for most consumers to eat and drink.
Therefore, in addition to filling foods such as banh mi or Hue beef noodle soup, Vietnamese sweet soup is a popular dessert choice for brunch or afternoon tea time.
2.3. This food is easy to find on a street corner or market.
In almost every city in Vietnam, you can find some tasty sweet soup shops. If you are a new visitor, just ask the locals to show you the famous ones.
Besides, most local markets in Vietnam have at least one sweet soup shop. Come to the food area of the market, you will see a Che shop with a variety of beans cooked in pots and colorful fruits in cups in front of the stalls that attract diners.
2.4. Easy to prepare Vietnamese Che.
Che is an easy food to prepare because using the simple ingredient, one type of bean or several types combined together. Then, you cook them with sugar and a little ginger. After that, you have a delicious sweet soup.
However, with some types of Hue royal sweet soup, such as longan lotus seed sweet soup or roasted pork filter powder sweet soup, the processing method becomes extremely complicated. This cooking is an advanced step of the traditional Che in Vietnam, which is not popular in daily life, just professional chefs can cook it well.
So, if you have the opportunity to come to Hue City, you should enjoy these types of sweet soups. Roasted pork soup will not be found anywhere in Vietnam, except in Hue.
3. Ways to eat Che in Vietnam
There are two ways to eat Che in Vietnam: hot and cold.
Eating hot means that after cooking Che, you can eat it without ice while it’s still hot, or you let it cool down.
Eating cold means tasting Che with ice, especially on hot days. Vietnamese Che is cooled, then you add plenty of tiny ice into a cup of sweet soup. Use a small spoon to mix until you see almost the ice has dissolved into water, and then you can start scooping it to eat. The water remains in the cup, raise the glass and drink it right away when you can’t scoop it up.
Che is a popular food, so the way to taste it is very comfortable. You don’t pay too much attention to how you eat it. Just don’t make a lot of noise when drinking a cup of sweet soup.
4. Popular types of Che
Vietnam has hundreds of types of Che, but can be classified as follows:
- Bean Sweet Soup: The main ingredients include beans and seeds, such as black beans, red beans, big beans, etc.
- Flour Sweet Soup: The main ingredient is filtered tapioca powder, which is common in Hue, such as sweet soup of filter tapioca with coconut and roasted pork filter tapioca powder. Also, sticky rice flour is used to cook Che, such as sticky-rice ball sweet soup.
- Fruit Sweet Soup: The main ingredients are fruits, such as banana sweet soup, mixed fruit sweet soup, and corn sweet soup.
There is also a common type of Che considered as a combination of all the above types, which is Che Thap Cam (mixed sweet soup), meaning ten types of ingredients mixed together. This sweet soup cup has a little bit of each type, including beans, fruit, filter powder, and coconut water, creating a mess that mixes.
5. FAQ about Vietnamese Che
Can I eat Vietnamese Che without ice?
Yes, you can. But, the taste of Che is very sugary, so it is better to eat with ice to make it balanced and to get juice to drink. When you want to enjoy sweet soup without ice, you add less sugar when cooking it.
When is Che eaten?
Che or sweet soup is sold and eaten all day and all year round, in the monsoon season or dry time. However, different types of sweet soups are cooked depending on each season and time of day.
Most people use Che as a drink when tasting it with ice on hot days, while others taste it as other desserts in Vietnam after main meals.
Can I carry sweet soup?
Yes, you can. When you carry sweet soup to another place or back home to taste, the seller usually packs it in a plastic bag with separate ice. But, we recommend you eat sweet soup for half of the day, do not keep it longer because the quality comes down.