Sweet black sesame soup (xi ma, chi ma phu, che me den) is one of Hoi An’s specialty dishes, and is specific to the Hoi An Old Town. It’s a kind of dessert introduced by Chinese Cantonese people who migrated to the town hundreds of years ago. Later, it became popular with other communities. Now, it’s in the checklist of all foodies and in the itinerary of numerous local food tours. In this article, HoiAn Day Trip Company will tell you everything that you need to know about the Sweet black sesame soup in Hoi An.
You may also like: Black Sesame Soup Demonstration in Hoi An
• 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 Sweet Black Sesame Soup in Hoi An
– Other name(s): Hoi An Sesame Soup, Xi Ma, Chi Ma Phu
– Origin: Canton, China
– Ingredients: black sesame, kudzu or arrowroot powder, dried sweet potato (it don’t have arrowroot powder), pennywort or centella asiatica, cheese grass or paederia lanuginosa), cane sugar, and fresh water from Ba Le Well
– Where to find: vendors in the front of Hoi An Catholic Church, the Sweet Black Sesame Soup Demonstration
– Pronunciation:
– Served for: anytime
– Price: 10,000-20,000 VND/bowl
– Callories:
– Gluten free: yes
– Vegetarian: already vegetarian
– Fact: in many local food tours
– Travel blog: https://hoiandaytrip.com/sweet-black-sesame-soup-hoi-an
Ingredients of Make Sweet Black Sesame Soup in Hoi An
To make Hoi An Sweet Black Sesame Soup, these ingredients are needed: black sesame (me den), cu khoai lang (cu khoai lang), bot san day (kudzu or arrowroot powder), dried sweet potato (it don’t have arrowroot powder), rau ma (pennywort or centella asiatica), la mo (cheese grass or paederia lanuginosa), duong mia (cane sugar), and fresh water from Ba Le Well.
Black sesame seeds are the main ingredients. Local makers in town buy them from people living in nearby districts, Duy Xuyen, Dien Ban or Dai Loc.
Cane sugar is taken from Que Son district, a famous producer in the province (40km southwest of Hoi An).
Rau ma (pennywort or centella asiatica) and La mo (cheese grass or paederia lanuginosa) are usually planted in the gardens of the soup maker’s house.
Last but not least, the water from Ba Le Well is also important. From past centuries to present day, local people still believe that it’s freshest and cleanest to use for cooking food.
Steps to Make Sweet Black Sesame Soup in Hoi An
Step 1 (sifting & cleaning black sesame): Use a bamboo tray to separate qualified and unqualified seeds with grass seeds. Makers will use the hand to throw seed into the air and use a fan to blow away unqualified seeds and grass seeds (because they are light).
Step 2 (roasting black sesame): After having good and clean black sesame seeds, local people will put them into a pan and then roast. Because these seeds are small and easy to be burnt, it’s needed to use chopsticks to stir them frequently and keep the fire medium or low (depending on the temperature). In the past, there was no thermometer to check the temperature, so the maker will smell or use personal experience to know when sesame seeds become fully roasted. After that, hot roasting sesame seeds are kept until cool. Today, gas stove or electric stove replace coal stove because of easier and safer usage.
Step 3 (grinding roasting black sesame): Use a stone grinder to grind roasting black sesame seeds into powder, by hand. To save time, many people buy black sesame flour in the market and skip step 1 and step 2. In Hoi An, locals follow all traditional steps and make the soup from scratch.
Step 4 (preparing other ingredients): Use a stone mortar and pestle to smash pieces of dried sweet potato into powder (if don’t have arrowroot powder), fresh cheese plant’s leaves and pennywort leaves (and then filter to have juice), and pieces of cane sugar into powder.
Step 5 (boiling Sweet Black Sesame Soup): Black sesame powder, fresh water of Ba Le Well, pennywort juice, cheese plant juice are boiled together in a pot. After that, arrowroot flavor is added to make the soup thicker. Sometimes, Chinese medical herbs are also used to bring it more health benefits (and make it smell better).
Sweet Black Sesame Soup making was recognized to be Vietnam’s national intangible cultural heritage. It’s well kept by some local families in the Hoi An Old Town, just like Cao Lau noodles or white rose dumplings.
How to Eat Sweet Black Sesame Soup like a Local
The Sweet Black Sesame Soup will be served when it’s hot or warm. So, it’s always in a hot pot, and is spooned when eaten. This dessert is served in a small bowl (smaller than the common rice bowl) and people use a small spoon to eat it. Someone believes that if use the bigger bowl, the soup will become cool quickly, making its taste not great then.
Although sold at street vendors and served on the street, visitors can eat the Sweet Black Sesame Soup at a restaurant or anywhere.
Where to Find Sweet Black Sesame Soup in Hoi An?
In Hoi An, visitors can go to these places to try the Sweet Black Sesame Soup:
– the Sweet Black Sesame Soup Demonstration at 45/17 Tran Hung Dao St (we highly recommend this place because it’s the house of ‘Sweet Black Sesame Soup master’ who make and sell it for over 70 years)
Business hours: 8 am to 8 pm
Price: 10,000-20,000 VND/bowl
– vendors on the pavement in the front of the Hoi An Catholic Church
Business hours: during the day, no clear timetable
Price: 10,000-20,000 VND/bowl
Food Tours in Hoi An Vietnam
Here are the best food tours in Hoi An Vietnam:
– Hoi An Old Town Food Tour with Lantern Boat Ride
– Hoi An Private Food Tour with Local Expert
– Hoi An History & Food Tour – Famous Landmarks & Specialty Dishes
– Hoi An Markets Food Tour
– Hoi An Evening Walking Food Tour
– Hoi An Morning Walking Food Tour
– Hoi An Walking Street Food Tour
– Hoi An Vegetarian Food Tour
– Hoi An Vegetarian Street Food Tour
– Hoi An Vegan Food Tour
– Hoi An Food Tour by Bike
– Hoi An Motorbike Food Tour
– Tan An Market Food Tour
HOIAN DAY TRIP CO.,LTD organizes guided tours and transfers everyday in Da Nang and Hoi An. Contact us by +84968009827 (hotline/whatsapp/line/zalo) or browse www.hoiandaytrip.com to see tours & make a reservation. Thank you very much!
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
Local Food & Street Food in Hoi An
– Hoi An specialty food & street food: Cao Lau Noodles, Mi Quang Noodles, Banh Mi (Hoi An Style), Pho (Hoi An Style), White Rose Dumplings, Fried Wonton, Banh Dap (Smashing Rice Paper), Cam Nam Stir-fried Baby Clams, Cam Nam Sweet Corn Soup
– Other food & street food: Banh Beo (Steamed Rice Cake), Banh Xeo (Crispy Rice Pancake), Banh Bot Loc (Tapioca Dumpling), Banh Nam,
