Cơm hến (mussel rice) is a Hue specialty enjoyed by local people and domestic and foreign visitors alike, especially for breakfast. The main ingredients of this popular dish are cold rice and small mussels, to which are added roasted peanuts, sesame, shrimp paste, roasted pigskin, chilli, onion, and various raw vegetables. All these ingredients combine to create a unique sweet and spicy flavour.
Cồn Hến (Mussel Island) in the middle of the Hong River provides mussels for the entire city. Inhabitants of Ngoc Anh Village in Phú Thượng Commune outside the city limits shuck the mussels and prepare the other ingredients. Early each morning, hundreds of peddlers from the village shoulder baskets of mussel rice and carry them into the city. Customers squat on the pavement around a seller, creating an intimate and home-like atmosphere. Restaurants such as Mrs. Cam's in Truong Dinh Street also specialise in serving mussel rice.
A bowl of mussel rice costs from 2,000 to 3,000 VND ($0.13 to $0.19). Visitors are amazed that so little money buys such a tasty dish. Mussel-rice vendors remain dedicated to preserving this Hue specialty even though they must work hard to earn only 20,000 VND ($1.3) per day.