Broken rice with pork chop

Com tam is a common lunchtime offering and has everything you could want on one plate. The broken rice is piled high with aromatic grilled pork chop, eggs, meatloaf and a small token salad. I love it!

Credit: Chris Middleton

• serves

  4

• prep

  25 minutes

• cook

  1:20 hour

• difficulty

  Mid

Ingredients

• 4 pork chops
• 400 g (14 oz/2 cups) jasmine rice
• 1 tbsp vegetable oil
• 4 eggs
• 2 Lebanese (short) cucumbers, sliced on the angle
• 2 tomatoes, halved and sliced

Spring onion oil

• 3 spring onions, thinly sliced
• pinch salt
• 100 ml vegetable oil

Nuoc mam dipping sauce

• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 3 brid's eye chillies, finely chopped or sliced
• 150 ml fish sauce
• 100 ml white vinegar
• 140 g caster (superfine) sugar

Pickled carrot and daikon

• 150 ml (5 fl oz) white vinegar
• 100 g caster (superfine) sugar
• 1 kg carrots, cut into matchsticks
• 300 g daikon (white radish), cut into matchsticks

Marinade

• 3 tbsp vegetable oil
• pinch of ground white pepper
• 2 tbsp finely chopped lemongrass (white part only)
• 2 tbsp finely chopped garlic
• 2 tbsp honey
• 100 ml (3½ fl oz) fish sauce
• 1 tbsp caster (superfine) sugar
• 1 bird’s eye chilli, finely chopped

Pork loaf

• 2 eggs
• 500 g (1 lb 2 oz) minced (ground) pork
• 50 g (1 ¾ oz) wood ear mushrooms, roughly chopped
• 60 g (2 oz) glass (cellophane) noodles, rehydrated in cold water for 1 hour, drained and cut into short lengths
• 1 shallot, finely chopped
• 3 tbsp fish sauce
• 1 tbsp caster (superfine) sugar
• pinch of ground white pepper

This recipe needs to be started 2 days in advance if making the pickled carrot and daikon component.

Marinating time: 3 hours

Instructions

1. To make the pickled carrot and daikon, combine the vinegar and sugar in a bowl and add 100 ml water. Stir until the sugar has dissolved. Rinse the daikon and carrot under warm running water for 5 minutes, then drain thoroughly and pat dry with paper towel. Transfer to a large plastic container or non-reactive bowl. Pour the pickle liquid over the vegetables and set aside in the fridge for 2 days, after which time the pickles will be ready to use.

2. Next, marinate the pork chops. Combine the marinade ingredients in a large bowl. Tenderise the pork chops by lightly beating them with a meat mallet. Add to the marinade and mix well to coat the chops. Set aside for at least 3 hours or, preferably, overnight.

3. On the day of serving, to make the pork loaf, separate the eggs and set aside the yolks. Beat the egg whites in a large bowl until airy, then add the remaining ingredients, except the yolks, and mix well.

4. Place a large bamboo steamer over a saucepan of boiling water. Line a 25 cm × 12 cm (10 in × 4¾ in) loaf (bar) tin with foil and spoon in the pork loaf mixture. Transfer the tin to the steamer and steam, covered, for 30 minutes. Open the lid and brush the reserved egg yolks on top of the loaf, then steam with the lid off for a further 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside.

5. Meanwhile, make the dipping sauce by combining the ingredients and 200 ml water in a bowl and stiring through until the sugar has dissolved. Makes 600 ml, the remainder can be kept in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.

6. Rinse the rice under cold water, then drain and transfer to a saucepan. Add enough water to just cover the rice (a rule of thumb is to measure the water with your index finger from the top of the rice to your first knuckle). Place the pan over medium–low heat and simmer until the water is absorbed and the rice is tender. Alternatively, cook the rice in a rice cooker.

7. Prepare a charcoal grill or preheat a grill (broiler) to medium–high. When the charcoal grill is ready (the embers should be glowing red with a small flame on the charcoal) place the pork chops on the grill and cook, frequently turning and basting with the marinade, for 15 minutes or until cooked through.

8. Meanwhile, to make the spring onion oil, place the spring onion and salt in a metal bowl. Heat the oil in a small saucepan to 150ºC (300ºF) on a kitchen thermometer, then pour the oil over the spring onion. Stir and set aside to infuse until you are ready to use. Use on the same day it's made.

9. Heat the oil in a frying pan over medium–high heat. Crack the eggs into the pan and fry sunny side up. Allow the undersides of the eggs to get slightly crispy, then remove and rest on a plate lined with paper towel.

10. To assemble, spoon the rice onto serving plates and arrange the cucumber, tomato, pickles and a thick slice of pork loaf around the edge. Top with a pork chop and fried egg and drizzle a little spring onion oil over the pork chop. Serve with nuoc mam on the side.

Recipe from Street Food Vietnam by Jerry Mai, Smith Street Books, RRP $39.99

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.