Coming to Phan Thiet, travelers can easily see street food shoulder poles, street food rolling carts, shops and restaurants which serve Quai Vac cake – a specialty food of the province. A trip to Phan Thiet cannot be complete if you miss tasting Quai Vac cake. No one knows when the cake appeared or who created it. They only know that they have eaten the cake since they were young. It has been familiar with every Phan Thiet people, a favorite food during the day. Quai vac cake in Phan Thiet is not only a food but also the soul, the pride, the memory of each Phan Thiet person. It reminds Phan Thiet people who live and work far from their hometown about their birthplace.
The cake looks nice with translucent crust and orange filling. Eat a bite of Quai vac cake in Phan Thiet, you can feel the perfect blend of the chewy taste of the crust from tapioca flour, the salty taste of the filling from shrimp and pork, the sweet-sour of dipping fish sauce on your tongue.
The cake is very small so that a portion consists of about ten cakes which stick together. Top the portion with some chopped green onion, deep-fried shallot, deep-fried pork fat, chili pepper slices (optional). A portion of Quai Vac cake looks attractive and mouth-watering. You can ask the seller to pour the dipping fish sauce onto the cakes or put it separately. The cakes can be eaten using a fork or a wooden/bamboo stick. Some people prefer to eat Quai Vac cake with plain bread.
Read more about What to eat in Phan Thiet?
It is not to difficult to make Quai Vac cake but it needs skill and patience. To make the filling, stir-fry minced pork belly, shrimp meat, salt, ground black pepper, sugar. To make the crust, pour boiling water into tapioca flour, knead the dough until sticky. The cook must knead the dough when it is too hot until it turns warm. Divide the dough into pieces which are as small as a thumb nail and roll these pieces into thin round sheets. Put the filling onto the sheet, wrap the sheet in half, boil it until the crust turns transparent. Put the cake into cold water, then cover it with oil.
