There Is a Hanoi That Is Just a Simple Cup of Tea – a Peanut Candy Bar

The astringent taste of green tea blends with the nutty, crispy flavor of peanut candy, which has passed through the memories of many generations of Vietnamese people.

As a child, I would idly watch the gate, waiting for my mother to return from the market and share a honey peanut candy wrapped in a dry banana leaf, and I would be overjoyed. Growing up, I grew to love sipping the cool, astringent taste of green tea, blended with the nutty, crispy flavor of peanut candy, to hear the gentle sweetness gradually melt on the tip of my tongue.

With over 30 years of experience in preserving Hanoi's flavors, Bao Minh always delivers high-quality products.

Therefore, it is easiest to notice that wherever peanut candy appears, there will be green tea. Peanut candy and green tea are paired together in shops for common people. Peanut candy is a rustic gift that is not picky about who eats it, “present” in water shops along the dike nestled under green bamboo shade, in the street vendor stalls of old ladies selling tea, in student iced tea stalls...

I do not know since when Vietnamese people have had such a rustic yet profound cultural feature. In the noisy and bustling afternoon of the city, one will find moments of peace and relaxation when slowly enjoying a cool, refreshing cup of iced green tea, accompanied by a peanut candy bar. It feels warm on a cool, drizzly rainy night, a cup of hot green tea burning the hands, smelling wonderfully when eaten with peanut candy.

Peanut candy is produced in many places, but perhaps this simple yet delicate dish is more special than anywhere else in the land of Hanoi. Delicious peanut candy must be made from sugar or honey made from sugarcane with malt. The peanut filling inside must be firm, plump peanuts, roasted just right to bring out the nutty aroma. After the mixture is poured onto a tray, a thin layer of sticky rice flour must be sprinkled so that the candy does not stick together. The kind of peanut candy that is crispy, sharp, sweet, and nutty when eaten is the standard candy.

Rarely is there any candy that “understands” green tea like peanut candy, so drinking green tea must be accompanied by peanut candy to be the proper way. Eat a piece of peanut candy, take a sip of fresh tea, remember to smack your lips a few times to feel the sharp sweetness of the peanut candy being softened by the strong astringent taste of fresh tea, and pleasantly puff on a tobacco pipe to fully appreciate the pleasure of life in sidewalk culture.

Hanoi people have always been like that, very delicate even in the way they enjoy the most popular things. Drinking green tea and eating peanut candy is also as simple and gentle as enjoying other dishes, calm and not noisy. You can go alone, you can go with a few close friends, but you will definitely sit at a familiar shop, quietly and slowly listening to the stories of people around or focusing on a game of Chinese chess. There is no need to know or be close; just by ordering a cup of green tea and a peanut candy bar, people can easily sympathize and share with each other.

The savory peanut candy line will be a new flavor that attracts customers.

With over 30 years of experience in preserving, conserving, and developing the quintessence of Hanoi's cuisine, Bao Minh Confectionery Joint Stock Company always focuses on the products released to the market.

With three main product lines of peanut candy brought to the market: Premium peanut candy; savory peanut candy; peanut candy bars, Bao Minh wishes to bring customers many choices suitable for their taste while still maintaining the essence and simplicity of Vietnamese cuisine.