Thác Bạc (Silver Waterfall), whose cold water feeds Sa Pa's fish farms · Photo: Heiko Carstens / CC BY 2.0 (Wikimedia Commons)
VietnamSa Pa's "Salmon": How Trout and Sturgeon Came to the Mountains in 2005
There is a clear starting point for how "salmon hotpot" became a signature dish in tropical Vietnam's mountain town of Sa Pa. Here is the 2005 trial with Finland, how cold-water fish farming became a village livelihood, and how to eat it.
"Salmon" in the Mountains of a Tropical Country
One of the words you will see most often on Sa Pa menus is cá hồi. It is usually translated as "salmon," but what Sa Pa farms is mainly cá hồi vân, rainbow trout. Together with sturgeon (cá tầm), it makes up Sa Pa's cold-water fish farming. These cold-loving fish can grow in a tropical country because of Sa Pa's altitude. Sa Pa is a highland town with an average annual temperature of around 15°C, and local media report that the farms sit above 1,800 metres, fed with cold water channelled from Thác Bạc, the Silver Waterfall. Before domestic farming took hold, Vietnam imported more than 2,000 tonnes of salmon and sturgeon from Europe every year, according to the newspaper Nhân Dân.
2005: A Trial Farm Started With Finland
Sa Pa's salmon story starts in 2005. According to Nhân Dân, a trial rainbow trout farming project began in Sa Pa that year with support from the Embassy of Finland and the Vietnamese government, led by Research Institute for Aquaculture No. 1. It was the first time commercial rainbow trout of European origin had been established in Vietnam. The trade magazine Tạp chí Công Thương writes that the project announced its success in 2006, after which trout farming gradually spread around Sa Pa. Fertilised eggs imported from Europe hatched into fry after about one and a half to two months. Fry raised in Sa Pa were moved to Lâm Đồng in the southern highlands in April 2006, and Lâm Đồng became the second province after Lào Cai to farm cold-water fish successfully.
From Experiment to Village Livelihood
Over nearly two decades, the trial turned into a livelihood across the Sa Pa area. According to Tạp chí Công Thương, farms are now spread around Thác Bạc and in villages such as Tả Giàng Phình, Bản Khoang, Tả Van, Tả Phìn, San Sả Hồ and Lào Chải. The same article says Sa Pa has 307 cold-water fish farms, more than 60 percent of them run by ethnic minority households. It does not stop at selling whole fish. Products bearing the Sa Pa name include salmon sausage, salmon fish cake (chả cá hồi) and salmon floss (ruốc), and some of these products have been certified under Vietnam's OCOP local-products programme.
Hotpot, Raw or Grilled: How Sa Pa Eats It
The signature salmon dish in Sa Pa is lẩu cá hồi, salmon hotpot. Fish and mountain greens are cooked at the table in a clear, tangy broth, and it is especially popular in the evening after climbing Fansipan or trekking, when highland temperatures drop sharply after sunset. There are plenty of other ways to have it: gỏi cá hồi (a raw fish salad), sashimi, charcoal grilling, steaming, deep-frying and even curry. Sturgeon is often served in hotpot or grilled as well. Local media describe Sa Pa salmon as firm and slightly crisp, with an attractive colour and less fat. If you expect the soft, oily richness of imported salmon it may feel different, but many say its clean, springy texture suits hotpot particularly well.
Good to Know Before You Order
First, knowing that cá hồi on the menu is mostly rainbow trout helps close the gap between expectation and reality. If you want sturgeon, look for cá tầm. Second, choose a trustworthy restaurant if you want it raw as gỏi or sashimi. If raw fish worries you, the cooked hotpot is the safe choice, and it suits cool evenings too. Third, prices vary a lot by season and restaurant. Even the same salmon hotpot can cost quite different amounts depending on portion and what comes with it, so check how many people it serves and the price before ordering. Finally, processed products such as salmon sausage and fish cakes make good edible souvenirs to take home from Sa Pa.