Stir fried baby clams (hen xao) is one of specialty foods in Hoi An, Vietnam. Its main ingredient is the baby clam collected by local fishermen in Thu Bon River, the largest river in the province. White onion and rau ram (‘Vietnamese coriander’) are also used to make it. This is simple, but delicious. Now, let’s HoiAn Day Trip Company provide all the information that you need to know about stir fried baby clams in Hoi An.
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• Content by Tam Le, founder of HOIAN DAY TRIP CO.,LTD
• Designed by Giang Cong Minh, co-founder of LS E&C LTD and his team
• Photo by Dang Cong Loi, Dao Xuan Son, Tam Le & others
Must Knows about Cam Nam Stir-fried Baby Clams
– Other name(s): Hen xao, hen xao xuc banh trang
– Origin: central Vietnam
– Ingredients: baby clams, white onion, peppermint/rau ram/Vietnamese coriander, spices, crispy grilled rice cracker
– Where to find: local restaurants in Cam Nam Island or Old Town
– Pronunciation:
– Served for: anytime
– Price: 30,000-60,000 VND/plate
– Calories:
– Gluten free: yes
– Vegetarian: not available
– Fact: stir-fried baby clams, crushed rice paper and sweet corn soup are often sold in a same place
– Travel blog: https://hoiandaytrip.com/cam-nam-stir-fried-baby-clams
Ingredients & How to Make Cam Nam Stir-fried Baby Clams
Stir-fried baby clams in Hoi An (hen xao) are made with baby clams, white onion, rau ram (peppermint, Vietnamese coriander), and spices. It’s served with crispy grilled rice papers.
Firstly, people will buy baby clams in local markets or from fishermen. If have time, living clams are the best choices, and small clams are nicer than big clams. After that, clams are washed carefully by tap water and then soaked in a fresh water pot for a few hours (to let them open the mouth and release sands, grass, etc). Vietnamese people often add chilli or something spicy into the water to make this step quicker and by that, clams will be cleaner. If don’t have time, people boil clams after washing them (because their meats are needed only) or buy boiled clam meats directly in the market. After boiling, boiled clams are placed in a basket until become dry.
The next step is stir frying boiled baby clams with spices (salt, seasoning powder, sugar, pepper, chilli, fish sauce, etc), sliced white onion, chopped Vietnamese coriander/rau ram/peppermint. After that, place clams on a plate.
Today, there are 30-40 families in Cam Nam Island still gathering baby clams in the Thu Bon River to earn a living. They use manual tools and sampan boats. The main season is from the 1st to 8th lunar month, and the best place of the day to collect depends on water flow and the weather.
How to Eat Cam Nam Stir-fried Baby Clams Like a Local
Stir fried baby clams (hen xao) in Hoi An will be served with crispy grilled rice papers. To eat like a local, visitors need to use their hands to break the rice paper into small pieces (but not too small please). After that, use the spoon to take clams and place them on the cracker, and then eat. If clams are not savory enough, locals add fish sauce nuoc mam or fermented anchovy fish sauce mam nem (usually with fresh chilli).
Where to Eat Cam Nam Stir-fried Baby Clams in Hoi An?
For local people in Hoi An, the best stir-fried baby clams are served in eateries/restaurants at Cam Nam Island where clam gatherers live. The best places are along Nguyen Tri Phuong Street (between Cam Nam Bridge and the road leading to the Hoi An Memories Land).
Stir-fried baby clams (hen xao), crushed rice papers (banh dap) and sweet corn soup (che bap) are often sold in the same place.
Better to Know about Eating Local in Hoi An
– Local family-run restaurants always serve better local foods than tourist restaurants. Places inside small alleyways potentially are hidden gems. The price is even more affordable at these lesser known spots.
– Restaurants where you can see a queue or crowds, food or drinks there are absolutely better or safer than others. Vietnamese people also avoid places without people eating, such as roadside eateries.
– Hot foods are often safe to eat for non-Vietnamese people. Refuse cold food (especially ones sold on the street, markets) or things you don’t see people cooking.
– Make sure that you learn some basic Vietnamese words or sentences to order foods, such as xin chao (hello, hi), cho toi mot (something) (I want one…), toi an chay (I am vegetarian), khong cay (no spicy), cam on (thank you), tam biet (goodbye) or numbers (mot/one, hai/two, ba/three, bon/four, nam/five, sau/six, bay/seven, tam/eight, chin/nine, and muoi/ten).
– Ask any local people you know (tour guide, driver, hotel receptionists, bellmen, etc) to receive their recommendation for good places to eat local.
– Raw vegetables are popularly used in local dishes, such as noodles or noodle soup or sandwich. They are often washed by tap water or unwashed. If can not drink tap water, remove or refuse them. Likewise, in most iced drinks (such as coffee or herbal tea), people add ice made by tap water also.
– On the 1st day and 14th-15th days of each lunar month, Hoi An citizens eat vegetarians. Many local restaurants and street businesses will be closed by that.
– If you don’t eat pork or beef, due to diet or religious restrictions, be careful when want to try local food here, if don’t see the ingredient description. Pork and beef are very popular meats, so they will be in numerous dishes. Street vendors may say ‘no pork’ or ‘no beef’ for better business, but please check before buying!
– Consider joining a food tour guided by locals who know much better about dishes in the city, including things never mentioned in guidebooks or on the internet.
– If have an allergy (milk, egg, peanut, wheat,…), ask anybody you know before trying or search for ingredients on the internet. By the way, fish sauce is popularly used to marinate Vietnamese foods, so make sure that you know this information if you’re fish allergic.
– Food portion (or size) here is often not really big (locals prefer eating with their family at home). You may try double or some different dishes for main meals.
– If don’t see the price on the menu, please ask in advance to avoid overcharging, especially when you are not a local. In Vietnamese, how much is bao nhieu.
– Most popular cutleries are chopsticks and spoons. To know how to use it, browse here
