The spicy breadsticks that won over MasterChef judge

Luke Nguyen, born in 1978, is an Australian-Vietnamese chef. He serves as a judge on the MasterChef Vietnam competition, and has hosted several culinary shows. He is considered an ambassador for promoting Vietnamese cuisine worldwide. In 2019, he launched "Luke Nguyen's Railway Vietnam," a culinary series along the North-South railway, which garnered numerous awards and aired in 150 countries.
In episode 8, filmed in Hai Phong, Luke visited Khanh Nap’s spicy breadstick shop, where he spent a day learning how to make pate bread. Luke compliments the restaurant and said he was very impressed with it.
"The pate here is popular, sold from northern to southern Vietnam," the chef said. Photo courtesy of Facebook/Luke Nguyen

The shop is situated at 192 Khanh Nap Street, near the corner of a major intersection. Housed in a centuries-old French-style building, it has been cherished by generations of Hai Phong locals and is listed as a must-visit alongside esteemed establishments within the city. Khanh Nap is even rated slightly higher by locals.

The sales location also serves as the production site, allowing diners to observe bakers preparing the breadsticks and making pate. On peak days, customers queue outside, enduring long waits before their turn. The shop sells thousands of cakes daily.

Hai Phong breadsticks measure only about two knuckles in length. They are baked fresh in an oven nearby. New batches continuously emerge all day every day starting before dawn. After the dough is shaped, it rests outdoors for 3-5 hours depending on the temperature, then bakes for about 10 minutes. The resulting breadsticks are not only hot and crispy but also delicious enough to enjoy on their own.

After baking, the breadsticks are transported to the store, where a family recipe pate is added to the filling, a secret weapon ensuring the Khanh Nap breadstick's irresistible flavor.
Shoulder pork and lard are boiled to remove impurities, then mixed with pork liver, fish sauce, soy sauce, black pepper, stock powder, and puree, before adding fried shallots and bread crumbs to create a thick texture. The mixture is steamed for about 5 hours to produce a finished pate that breaks down into large, smooth, and fatty chunks.
Many customers not only purchase breadsticks but also buy pate by weight to take home as gifts or for later consumption.

In the store, specialized cutting machines are used to cut the breadstick in half, while another area is dedicated to spreading the pate inside. For customers who prefer to eat immediately, the staff grill the bread until it's hot and crispy .

Given the high volume of customers, the store employs about 10 staff members working continuously. These breadsticks also pair well with pork floss and Hai Phong chili sauce, called chi chuong, which is always provided for customers to take home. The chili sauce, thick, spicy, and slightly sweet, helps balance the fatty taste of the pate.

Customers from afar often purchase dozens or even hundreds of pieces as gifts, and there are even orders of up to thousands of pieces for shipping outside the city. At only VND2,500 (10 cents) each, the price is affordable.