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TL;DR: Tet in Vietnam's three regions shares common roots but has distinct identities. The North is sophisticated with banh chung, gio lua, and pickled onions. The Central region is meticulous with banh tet, banh in, pickled shrimp, and vinegar-soaked meat. The South is simple and rustic with banh tet, caramelized pork with eggs, and bitter melon soup.
What does Tết Nguyên Đán mean for the three regions?
Tết Nguyên Đán (the Vietnamese Lunar New Year) is the most important festival in the cultural life of the Vietnamese people, a time for family reunion and for looking back to one's roots. Although the three regions share a common cultural origin, differences in geography, climate and history have shaped distinct features in the way each celebrates Tết, creating a Vietnamese New Year picture that is at once unified and diverse.
What is special about New Year customs in the North?
People in the North regard Tết as a time for the family to gather after a long year. The festive atmosphere begins on the day of Ông Công Ông Táo (the 23rd day of the twelfth lunar month), with a ceremony to see the Kitchen Gods off to heaven. After that, every household cleans, decorates and carefully prepares its tray of food.
Distinctive food tray: The Northern Tết tray is prepared with meticulous care, showing refinement and skill. According to VietnamPlus, the tray balances wet dishes and dry dishes, meat and vegetables. The indispensable items include bánh chưng (square glutinous rice cake), xôi gấc (red sticky rice), giò lụa (pork roll), giò xào (stir-fried pork roll), chicken, nem rán (fried spring rolls), and nộm xu hào (kohlrabi salad) or green papaya salad. Soup dishes such as miến nấu lòng gà (glass noodles with chicken innards) and chân giò hầm măng lưỡi lợn (pig's trotter simmered with bamboo shoots and pork tongue) also help create the rich flavour of Tết.
A mark of its own: One interesting detail is that Northerners serve dưa hành (pickled scallions) as a side dish to balance the richness of bánh chưng and meat. The custom of asking for calligraphy at the start of the year and going to pagodas is also a widespread cultural feature in the northern provinces during Tết.
How do New Year customs in the Central region differ?
The Central region, especially the former imperial capital of Huế, carries the imprint of court culture, giving its Tết a fastidious and elaborate character. People in the Central region do not wrap bánh chưng; instead they make bánh tét (cylindrical glutinous rice cake). This is one of the most striking differences.
Distinctive food tray: According to VietnamPlus, besides bánh tét the Central Tết tray also features other cakes such as bánh tổ and bánh in. Typical dishes include nem chua (fermented pork roll) and thịt giấm (vinegared meat) with its characteristic light sourness. In Huế, the tray becomes even more elaborate with court dishes such as tôm chua thịt phay, nem bò lụi, chả tôm and gỏi vả. Some areas add bò nấu thưng and thịt nạc rim.
A mark of its own: Instead of dưa hành as in the North, the Central region is known for dưa món, a sweet and sour pickle made from carrot and papaya soaked in vinegar. The care taken in preparing dưa món and the other dishes reflects something of the careful, thrifty character of the people here, where a harsh climate has shaped a life of resilience that is also remarkably refined.
What is unique about New Year customs in the South?
The Southern land, with its mild climate and abundant natural produce, has produced a Tết that is simple and open-hearted. Southerners often say, "Chim kêu ba tiếng ngoài sông / Mau lo lựa nếp hết đông Tết về" (Three bird calls ring out beyond the river / Hurry and choose your glutinous rice, winter is over and Tết is here), speaking of the preparations for Tết.
Distinctive food tray: Southern culinary culture is generally simpler than that of the other two regions. The three most characteristic dishes of the Southern Tết tray are bánh tét, thịt kho tàu (braised pork with eggs) and canh khổ qua nhồi thịt (bitter melon soup stuffed with meat). Bánh tét here comes in many kinds, such as savoury bánh tét (filled with mung bean and pork fat), vegetarian bánh tét and sweet bánh tét (filled with banana or black beans). Thịt kho tàu is a harmonious combination of neat squares of pork belly and eggs, braised with coconut water to give a rich, fatty flavour. Canh khổ qua, with its mild bitterness, carries the wish that the misfortunes of the old year will pass away.
A mark of its own: Southerners place great importance on worshipping ancestors and often keep the custom of buying salt at the start of the year to bring good luck. The range of candied fruits is also diverse, but the main tray still revolves around the three dishes mentioned above, expressing the closeness and plain-spoken nature of the people of the waterways.
How do New Year customs differ across the three regions?
| Criterion | North | Central | South |
|---|---|---|---|
| Main offerings | Bánh chưng, giò lụa, xôi gấc | Bánh tét, bánh in, bánh tổ | Bánh tét, thịt kho tàu |
| Typical side dishes | Dưa hành, nem rán, nộm | Dưa món, nem chua, thịt giấm | Canh khổ qua, dưa giá |
| Characteristics of the tray | Refined, balanced, emphasis on presentation | Elaborate, meticulous, influenced by the court | Simple, plain, open-hearted |
| Distinctive rituals | Worshipping Ông Công Ông Táo (23rd of the twelfth lunar month), asking for calligraphy, going to pagodas | Worshipping ancestors with a full vegetarian or non-vegetarian tray, elaborate in every detail | Worshipping ancestors, buying salt at the start of the year, visiting relatives |
