Have you ever eaten something and thought...why did I NOT know about this before?? That sandwich did this for me. If you have never had a well made bahn mi, you've been missing out! This amazing sandwich has won my heart and is in my Top 5 favorites sandwiches ever. Succulent pork, pickled vegetables, fresh cilantro & a spicy siracha mayo make this packed full of umami. I'm completely in love and unlike any sandwich you've probably ever had before.
The beauty about my recipe, is I have found a great shortcut in making delicious pork filling. I buy already cooked carnitas meat, which is incredibly tender. They sell it at Trader Joe's and it's perfect for making this sandwich. I make my Vietnamese style sauce to toss it in and it's heavenly with all the other players in the sandwich.
Lets start with the pickled veggies. These are nothing like a deli pickle. I don't know what it is about mixing rice vinegar, sugar & sesame oil together but it's magical to me. I like to make extra veggies because they are a delicious snack on their own!
Pickled Veggies:
1 cucumber, sliced thinly length-wise
1-2 carrots, shaved in ribbons
1-2 jalapenos, sliced thinly
¾ cup rice vinegar
¾ cup water
1 ½ Tbs salt
½ cup sugar
1 Tbs sesame oil
Start by mixing the vinegar, salt, sugar, water & sesame oil in a medium bowl. Then I like to use a vegetable peeler (like the fancy 3-style peeler my hubby got me? I love it) to slice the carrot & cucumber in beautiful, wide ribbons.
I slice the jalapenos (seeds and all) and keep it in a separate bowl. Unless you want all of your vegetables pretty spicy, I recommend doing the same. This way you can control the spice by adding as many jalapenos you want to your sandwich later. Soooooooo good.
Pour some of the pickling liquid over the jalapenos to just cover and toss the remaining over the carrots & cucumber. Wrap both bowls and set in the fridge to do it's magic work. (let sit at least 1 hour)
Next up! The chile aioli. This is so simple but so necessary in this sandwich. This layer of heat and flavor marry so perfectly with the other ingredients. (It would be good on just about any sandwich you want to add a little spice to, so keep the leftovers!)
Chile Mayo:
1 Tbs Siracha
1/2 cup mayo
1 Tbs minced shallot
Salt & Pepper
Couldn't get simpler- Add the ingredients into a food processor (mini food pro works perfect) or a blender and blend! Ta daaaa! Feel free to add more or less Siracha depending on your taste.
Transfer the creamy mixture to a bowl (I like a squeeze bottle for easy use). Set in the fridge to chill until ready to use.
Finally the pork!
Pork:
1 (12oz) pkg cooked carnitas meat
2 cloves
crushed garlic
2-3 table spoons
of fish sauce
1 Tbs sugar (or to taste)
1/2 tsp fresh ground black pepper. If you like the spice and flavor, add more!
1 tablespoons
of finely chopped shallots or onion
2 teaspoons of
sesame seed oil
1 lime, halved
Olive Oil
Fresh Cilantro
2 French Baguettes (split, warmed, steamed)
Fresh Cilantro
2 French Baguettes (split, warmed, steamed)
Preheat your oven to 200 degrees (for bread we will warm up later) In a large saute pan, heat a bit of olive oil and saute the shallots & garlic until fragrant (about 1 minute). Add the fish sauce, sesame oil & sugar. (You can find fish sauce in the Asian section of your grocery store, any Asian market, or online) Yes, fish sauce smells less than pleasant but it adds that amazing savory flavor to Asian sauces that no other condiment can do. Adding sugar helps balance out the fish sauce. I have to be honest, the amounts in my recipe are "guidelines". Please taste the sauce and adjust to suit your taste buds! Should be sweet, sour, savory. Probably unlike anything you've had before. :)
Next, shred the pork with your fingers (it's already super tender, all we need to do is flavor it and heat it up.)
Toss the pork in the pan and coat in the light sauce. Squeeze in some lime juice and taste. Adjust seasonings as needed. Keep warm while we heat the bread.
It is very important to warm the rolls for this sandwich as well. It just softens them up on the inside and gets them a light crisp on the outside. I buy the 6 inch rolls from the grocery store. Put them directly on a rack in the oven and let warm up about 5 minutes.
To finish:
Split the rolls but leave one side connected so you can stuff the ingredients in. Slather the chile aioli on both insides of the roll. Stuff with as much pork as desired. Top with pickled veggies & jalapenos. Garnish with some sprigs of fresh cilantro.
It's a thing of beauty, isn't it? So delicious.
Enjoy!!
Pickled Veggies:
1 cucumber, sliced thinly length-wise
1-2 carrots, shaved in ribbons
1-2 jalapenos, sliced thinly
¾ cup rice vinegar
¾ cup water
1 ½ Tbs salt
½ cup sugar
1 Tbs sesame oil
Pour some of the pickling liquid over the jalapenos to just cover and toss the remaining over the carrots & cucumber. Wrap both bowls and set in the fridge to do it's magic work. (let sit at least 1 hour)
Start by mixing the vinegar, salt, sugar, water & sesame oil in a medium bowl. Then I like to use a vegetable peeler to slice the carrot & cucumber in beautiful, wide ribbons. Slice the jalapenos (seeds and all) and keep it in a separate bowl. Unless you want all of your vegetables pretty spicy, I recommend doing the same. This way you can control the spice by adding as many jalapenos you want to your sandwich later.
Chile Mayo:
1 Tbs Siracha
1/2 cup mayo
1 Tbs minced shallot
Salt & Pepper
Pork:
1 (12oz) pkg cooked carnitas meat
2 cloves crushed garlic
2-3 table spoons of fish sauce
1 Tbs sugar (or to taste)
2 tablespoons fresh ground black pepper. If you like the spice and flavor, add more!
1 tablespoons of finely chopped shallots or onion
2 teaspoons of sesame seed oil
1 lime, halved
Olive Oil
Fresh Cilantro
2 French Baguettes (split, warmed, steamed)
Preheat your oven to 200 degrees (for bread we will warm up later) In a large saute pan, heat a bit of olive oil and saute the shallots & garlic until fragrant (about 1 minute). Add the fish sauce, sesame oil & sugar. (You can find fish sauce in the Asian section of your grocery store, any Asian market, or online) Adding sugar helps balance out the fish sauce. I have to be honest, the amounts in my recipe are "guidelines". Please taste the sauce and adjust to suit your taste buds! Should be sweet, sour, savory.
Next, shred the pork with your fingers (it's already super tender, all we need to do is flavor it and heat it up.) Toss the pork in the pan and coat in the light sauce. Squeeze in some lime juice and taste. Adjust seasonings as needed. Keep warm while we heat the bread.
Place the rolls directly on a rack in the oven and let warm up about 5 minutes.
To finish:
Split the rolls but leave one side connected so you can stuff the ingredients in. Slather the chile aioli on both insides of the roll. Stuff with as much pork as desired. top with pickled veggies & jalapenos. Garnish with some sprigs of fresh cilantro.
Enjoy!!!
