The allium family (including garlic, onions, leeks, shallots, and chives) is well known to even the most basic chef. After all, what pantry is complete without onions and garlic? But these tasty plants are also nutrition powerhouses, packed with antioxidants that have shown potential in the fight against cancer, and heart disease.
This week’s recipe for Bahn Mi uses fresh garlic and shallot to bring out the exotic flavors of this beloved Vietnamese sandwich.
“The only thing I like better than talking about food is eating.”
– John Walters
Notes
French colonists introduced Vietnam to the baguette, along with other baked goods such as pâté chaud, in the 1860s, when Vietnam was part of French Indochina. The Vietnamese word bánh mì means “bread” or “wheat cake.” The claim is that Le Vo invented the sandwich in the early 1950s in Saigon (now Ho Chi Minh City) and then moved to San Jose in 1972 to escape the war, where he opened the first Ba Le Bakery in 1982. Ba Le’s headquarters are now in Chicago. The traditional sandwich has paté, ham, and pork roll as the meat component.
Ingredients
- Grilled Lemongrass Pork
- 1½ pounds boneless pork shoulder (boneless skinless chicken thighs can be substituted. Use the same marinade, but follow the cooking instructions below under Grilled Lemongrass Chicken)
- 3 cloves garlic, chopped
- ¼ cup shallot, coarsely chopped
- 1 fat stalk lemongrass, trimmed and coarsely chopped (⅓ cup)
- ¼ cup + 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 Tbsp granulated sugar or 2½ Tbsp firmly packed light brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons dark soy sauce or 1½ teaspoons regular soy sauce + ½ teaspoon molasses
- 2 Tbsp fish sauce
- 1 Tbsp canola oil, plus more for grilling
- Daikon and Carrot Pickle
- 1 medium daikon, about 1 pound (daikon is a mild-flavored winter radish with a long white root native to continental East Asia. If daikon is unavailable, purple top turnip [8 ounces each], red radish [1-inch wide], or watermelon radish [8 ounces each] can be substituted. Watermelon radish is actually a Chinese variety of daikon)
- 1 large carrot, about 6 ounces
- 1 teaspoon salt, preferably fine sea salt
- 2 teaspoons + ½ cup sugar
- 1¼ cups distilled white vinegar
- 1 cup lukewarm water
- Banh Mi Sandwich
- Petite baguette or section of full baguette
- 3 to 4 thin slices medium-hot fresh chile (jalapeño or Fresno are good choices)
- 4 to 6 cucumber strips or rounds, cut to ⅛ to ¼ inch thick
- 1 to 2 Tbsp coarsely chopped fresh cilantro
- Mayonnaise
- Maggi seasoning sauce
- Citrusy Red Cabbage Pickle (Optional)
- 3½ cup packed shredded red cabbage
- 1¼ teaspoons salt, preferably fine sea salt
- ¼ cup firmly packed light or dark brown sugar
- ⅔ cup water
- ¾ cup distilled white vinegar
- 2 strips lemon or lime peel, each about the length and width of your baby finger
Instructions
- Grilled Lemongrass Pork
- Cut the pork across the grain in strips, each about 4 to 5 inches long, ¼ inch thick and 1 inch wide. Set aside in a bowl.
- Put the remaining ingredients in a mini or full-sized food processor and whirl into a semi coarse purée. Pour over the pork, then use your hands to massage and coat the meat. Thread into skewers, covering most of each skewer. If 10-inch bamboo skewers are used, you will 4 to 5 skewers. Set on a plate, cover, and marinate at room temperature for at least 1 hour. For best flavor, refrigerate skewers overnight or up to 24 hours. Let sit out at room temperature for 45 minutes before grilling. Prepare a medium-hot charcoal fire, medium-high gas grill, or stove-top grill pan heated to medium high and brushed with oil. Right before grilling, brush oil on skewers. Cook about 12 minutes, turning frequently and basting with oil, until meat is slightly charred.
- Grilled Lemongrass Chicken
- If thighs are large or very uneven in thickness, butterfly them. To do this, lay the thigh with the smooth side down, and cut through the thick area horizontally to create a flap of meat without cutting all the way through. Fold back the flap of meat so the thigh is one piece of meat that is relatively even in thickness. Marinate the meat in the lemongrass mixture for 30 minutes at room temperature. Cook the chicken over medium-high heat on a grill and or stove-top grill pan for 8 to 10 minutes, flipping midway. Chicken is done when juices flow clear when the flesh is pricked with the tip of a knife. Cool for 10 minutes before cutting across the grain.
- Daikon and Carrot Pickle
- Peel and cut the daikon into sticks about 3 inches long and ¼ inch thick, the width of an average chopstick. Peel and cut the carrot to match the size of the daikon sticks but slightly skinnier. (Note: I use a mandoline slicer with the julienne blade attachment. Julienne, or French cut, means cut into long thin strips, similar to matchsticks.) Put the vegetables into a bowl. Toss with the salt and 2 teaspoons sugar. Massage and knead the vegetables for 3 minutes or until you can bend a piece of daikon and the tips touch without breaking. They should have lost about a quarter of their original volume. Flush with running water, then drain in a mesh strainer or colander. Press or shake to expel excess water. Transfer to a 4-cup jar.
- For the brine, stir together the remaining ½ cup sugar with the vinegar and water until dissolved. Pour into the jar, cover vegetables well. Use pickles after 1 hour or refrigerate for up to a month.
- Citrusy Red Cabbage Pickle
- Put the cabbage into a 4-cup jar, packing it as needed. In a saucepan, bring the salt, sugar, water, and vinegar to a boil, stirring to dissolve the solids. Remove from the heat, wait for the bubbling to subside, then pour over the jarred cabbage. Tuck in the citrus peel. As the cabbage softens, use a spoon to push down and fully immerse in the brine. Leave at room temperature uncovered until cool. It is ready to use once cooled but will develop more of a citrus edge if capped and refrigerated overnight. Store refrigerated for up to 2 months.
- Banh Mi Sandwich
- If the bread is very soft, lightly moisten the crust with water and bake in preheated oven (350°F) for about 7 minutes, until hot and crispy. Using a serrated knife, slit the bread lengthwise, leaving it attached on the back side to hold the sandwich together. Using your fingers, remove some of the insides from one or both halves. Spread the mayonnaise on the 2 cut sides of bread, covering all the way to the edge. Season by drizzling with Maggi sauce.
- Working from the bottom up, layer the meat, pickles, chile, and cucumber. Close the sandwich and cut in half crosswise using a serrated knife.
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