GOOD morning Vietnam!

Thai food? It’s SO yesterday. For trendy (and ultra-healthy) Asian food, it’s time to say . . .

ONCE, eating Asian food meant a trip to the Chinese takeaway for greasy spring rolls and sweet-and-sour chicken with a bright orange sauce.

How times have changed! Chinese is no longer a foreign cuisine to be sampled with trepidation, and Brits are increasingly well- versed in Thai, Japanese and even indonesian food.

Now Vietnamese food, with its sharp, fresh flavours and generous use of herbs, is the latest trendy Asian cuisine.

Marks & Spencer is leading the way with its Taste Vietnam range, which includes the national dish of pho (pronounced f-oh) — a savoury broth with rice noodles, beansprouts, mint and coriander, plus chicken or beef. it’s a very healthy meal, being low in fat, low- calorie and glutenfree, and full of immune-boosting vitamins. M& S say its Chicken Pho and Beef Noodle Pho are best- sellers. They were originally launched as ‘ noodle bowls’ because Marks thought the word pho wasn’t sufficiently recognisable. recently, however, the name was changed to pho … and sales took off.

Waitrose has picked up on the trend and sells Pho kits (£2) so you can make the dish yourself at home. it also has kits to make Vietnamese spring rolls (raw veg, prawns or pork, plus herbs, in a featherlight rice wrapper), plus dipping sauce.

Waitrose buying manager Zahra Coggins says: ‘Dishes from Vietnam are soaring in popularity, as customers seek to recreate the dishes that they tried abroad.’

Experts at price-comparison site MySupermarket.com report that sales of Vietnamese foods have soared 150 per cent since the beginning of this year.

Here are six of the best products available on the High Street:

Taste Vietnam Chicken Noodle Pho, £4, Marks & Spencer

VERMICELLI rice noodles and chargrill chicken with beansprouts and spring onions in a lemongrass, Thai basil, mint, red chilli and coriander broth. The strong, fresh flavours in this microwaveable dish belie the fact that it has fewer than 400 calories. Deliciously comforting.

Nem Viet Vietnamese Spring Roll Kit, from £2, Waitrose, Sainsbury’s

THIS contains sheets of rice paper, vermicelli noodles and dipping sauce, so you just need to add prawns or cooked, shredded meat, lettuce and herbs for an authentic taste of Hanoi.

Easy to Cook Pork Loin with Vietnamese sauce, £3.99, Waitrose

THESE lean pork loin medallions come with a zingy sauce flavoured with anchovy extract, lemongrass, fennel and star anise. Good with bowls of rice and a salad of shredded cabbage, spring onions, and red chilli.

Innocent Vietnamese Curry Noodle Pot, from £2.60, Tesco, Ocado, Sainsbury’s

THIS vegetarian dish features thick noodles with red peppers and edamame beans in a mild coconut and lime leaf sauce. Filling and not too strongly spiced, it makes a great lowcalorie (353 per pot) introduction to the flavours of Vietnamese cooking.

Nem Viet Pho Kit, £2 (until December 2), Waitrose

THIS kit comes with rice noodles, a seasoning mix containing star anise, cinnamon and cloves, and a chilli and soybean sauce. Add stock, meat or fish, a handful of beansprouts and some coriander for a warming bowlful of this Vietnamese staple.

Wok-fried Shaking Beef with a Lime and Chilli Dressing, £4.50, M&S

THE shaking refers to the way the slices of meat are seared — shaken back and forth in a wok — and this is a hugely popular Vietnamese favourite. This hearty M&S version has strips of beef in a lime, tamarind, soy and oyster sauce marinade, together with crunchy green beans and a lime and chilli dressing.