Pa pinh top Pa pỉnh tộp
Pa pỉnh tộp is the Thái folded fish: a river fish such as carp, split along the back, stuffed with mắc khén, roasted chilli, spring onion, and herbs, then clamped in bamboo and grilled over charcoal. It comes off golden, sweet and fatty inside, and hot with chilli and the peppery mắc khén.
Food tours Pa pinh top Search a food tour or a cooking class for this dish.
Search on KlookWhy it matters
The culture desk quotes a Thái line, “cáy măn mọk má ha, báu to pa pỉnh tộp ma sú,” and glosses it as a young chicken brought over not matching this fish given as a gift. Vietnam News quotes Nguyễn Minh Phú, director of the culture department, naming the fish among the province’s specialities, and names chẩm chéo as a sauce beside it.
Taste
The culture desk says the cooked fish is sweet and fatty, hot from chilli and mắc khén, green from spring onion and herbs, and yellow at the skin. Vietnam News calls it savoury and hot from the chilli and mắc khén, and fragrant from the herbs.
How to enjoy it
The culture desk: choose 1–1.5 kg, split along the back, remove the guts, drain, rub toasted salt inside, and stuff with mắc khén, roasted fresh chilli pounded, spring onion, herbs, and coriander. Rest it, clamp it with bamboo, and grill it over charcoal. When it is golden it should still be whole.
Vietnam News: clean a 1–1.5 kg fish, stuff mắc khén, fresh minced chilli, green onions, herbs, and coriander, and cook it on a bamboo stick over charcoal until golden.
Vietnamnet: carp, trôi, mè, or trắm, a bit over 1 kg, split along the back, toasted salt, the same family of stuffing, folded in half, clamped with bamboo, and grilled over charcoal.
Eat it from the grill.
Where to try it
The Thái table in the basin. Vietnam News quotes the culture director on bản Phiêng Lơi, at the entrance to the city.