Thang co Thắng cố
Thắng cố is the northwest offal stew the ethnic desk describes two ways: horse in the lede, and horse or buffalo, meat and offal, in the body. Sa Pa serves it with rượu ngô. It was on the Cát Cát stalls at Gầu Tào on 28 February 2026.
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Search on KlookWhy it matters
The same page ties northwest feast food to guests, festivals, and visitors in a village. At Cát Cát, thắng cố was among the foods at Gầu Tào on 28 February 2026.
Taste
A first taste can be hard because of a ngai ngái smell.
How to enjoy it
In Sa Pa, eat it with rượu ngô, the highland pairing.
At Cát Cát, look for it when Gầu Tào is on; in Sa Pa town, Anh Dũng on Xuân Viên lists thắng cố ngựa.
On the Hà Giang plateau, the Hmong pot was traditionally horse and is now mostly buffalo, beef, or pork, because horse is rare and expensive. Heart, liver, lung, blood, intestine, meat, and bone simmer in a broth with spices such as star anise, cardamom, lemon leaves, thảo quả, and quế, and some cooks leave the spices out to keep the meat’s own fragrance.
In Hà Giang, eat it from the pot on cold days, feast days, and market days, with mèn mén, grilled corn cakes, corn wine, or green vegetables.
Where to try it
Cát Cát, xã Tả Van, at the Gầu Tào stalls, as on 28 February 2026, and Anh Dũng on Xuân Viên in Sa Pa town.
On the Hà Giang plateau, at the Sunday market in Mèo Vạc, where a thắng cố stall feeds the traders.