Soup · National Breakfast

Mohinga

📷 Closely related photo — Photo via Pexels/Unsplash — free for commercial use

The broth gets part of its body from the tender inner core of the banana tree stem, sliced and simmered along with the fish.

Rice noodles are ladled with a broth of simmered catfish or snakehead fish, thickened with toasted rice flour and seasoned with lemongrass, garlic, and ginger, then finished with crunchy fritters, boiled egg, and lime. It's sold from street carts and market stalls from early morning onward.

Why it's made this way: Its exact origin is debated, but the combination of freshwater fish and rice noodles suited the river and delta country of Lower Myanmar, and it became the everyday breakfast of a working population long before it was embraced as a national dish.