Chả lụa facts for kids

Chả lụa is a very popular type of sausage in Vietnamese cuisine. It is also known as giò lụa. This tasty sausage is made from pork and is traditionally wrapped in banana leaves.

How Chả Lụa is Made and Eaten

Chả lụa is also popular in Thailand, where it is called mu yo. Here it is served with a som tam style dressing.

Traditionally, chả lụa is made with lean pork. Other ingredients include potato starch, garlic, ground black pepper, and fish sauce. The pork is pounded until it becomes a smooth paste. This special way of preparing the meat makes the sausage soft and not dry.

As the meat is pounded, a few spoonfuls of fish sauce are added for flavor. Salt, black pepper, and sugar can also be mixed in. This raw meat mixture is called giò sống, which means "raw sausage." It can be used in other dishes too, not just sausages.

The mixture is then wrapped tightly in banana leaves. It is shaped like a cylinder. After wrapping, the sausage is boiled. It is important that the banana leaf is wrapped tightly so water does not get inside. If water leaks in, the sausage might spoil quickly. A 1 kilogram sausage usually takes about an hour to cook in boiling water.

Different Kinds of Chả Lụa

There are a few different types of chả lụa:

• chả bì - This version has shredded pork skin mixed in with the usual ingredients. It is then steamed.
• chả bò - This is a beef sausage that includes herbs.
• chả chiên - This type of sausage is deep-fried instead of steamed. It does not use the banana leaf wrap.
• chả Huế - This sausage has whole black peppercorns and more garlic. It is also steamed.
• chả quế - This sausage is flavored with powdered cinnamon and then fried. In Northern Vietnam, when people say chả, they often mean this type.

Storing Chả Lụa

When chả lụa is made correctly, it can stay fresh at room temperature for about one week. It is even better to keep it in the refrigerator. If refrigerated, it can last for 3 to 4 weeks.

When many Vietnamese people moved to the United States in the mid-1970s, banana leaves were hard to find. So, Vietnamese chefs started wrapping chả lụa in aluminum foil. If banana leaves are available, a small piece might be used for flavor, while aluminum foil still helps shape the sausage.

How to Eat Chả Lụa

Sliced chả lụa served over bánh cuốn, and garnished with fried shallots

Chả lụa is usually sliced and eaten with other Vietnamese dishes. It is often served with bánh cuốn (steamed rice rolls), bánh mì (Vietnamese sandwiches), or xôi (sticky rice). It can also be cooked in fish sauce and black pepper with other meats. If it is fried, it is called chả chiên.

Chả lụa is also known by other names in different countries. In Thai, it is called mu yo (Thai: หมูยอ). In Lao, it is also called mu yo (Lao: ຫມູຍໍ). The name mu means pork, and giò means ham or sausage in Vietnamese.

See also

In Spanish: Chả lụa para niños