Traveling Through with David Prior · Thursday, July 2, 2026
Andy Baraghani draws a parallel between the abundant use of herbs in Persian cuisine and Vietnamese food, noting Vietnam as a place where he experienced a similar cultural embrace of fresh herbs. He highlights the country's diverse range of herbs and their integral role in dishes like 'Bún riêu' and 'Chả lá lốt'.
“Out of all the place that I've been to, I say this over and over, I've not been able to go to Iran. It's like the kind of missing piece, which I'm sure we'll talk about. But the place that I have been to that has the same, imagine, the same love verbs is Vietnam.”
“I mean, I really have not experienced a country that just consumes herbs in a way that is so similar to the way I grew up, where it's like the fistful and it's platters of herbs, platters of raw herbs and that you kind of throw into whatever soup or noodles or you eat in between bites.”
“And there were dishes like Boonrio, which if I could, that would be a dish I'd have every single morning. That would be the dish I'd have every morning. And it's a hot soup. It's noodle soup but with tomatoes and tofu and sometimes some seafood and it's just delicious.”