Pork meatball banh mi

This delicious sandwich is a popular street food from Hanoi. The bread used, a small crusty baguette, is a remnant of French colonial times.

Pork meatball banh mi Credit: Smith Street Books / Chris Middleton

• serves

  2

• prep

  15 minutes

• cook

  15 minutes

• difficulty

  Easy

The combination of French (bread and pâté) and Vietnamese (daikon, coriander and chilli) ingredients give this sandwich its unique flavour. It's often made with cold deli-style pork, but we’ve upped the game with hearty meatballs instead.

Ingredients

• 2 Vietnamese baguettes
• mayonnaise, for spreading
• pork pâté, for spreading
• 1 small cucumber, sliced lengthways
• ½ quantity Pickled daikon & carrot (see Note)
• a few coriander (cilantro) leaves
• 2 birdseye chillies, thinly sliced
• Sriracha hot sauce

Pork meatballs

• 250 g (9 oz) minced (ground) pork
• 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
• 1 tsp finely chopped ginger
• 45 g (1½ oz/½ cup) fresh breadcrumbs
• 1 small egg, lightly beaten
• 1 tsp white pepper
• 1 tbsp fish sauce
• 1 tbsp finely chopped coriander (cilantro) stalks
• 1 tbsp olive oil

Instructions

1. Start off by making the pork meatballs. Combine all of the ingredients except the olive oil in a bowl and mix well with your hands. Take 2 tablespoons of the mixture and roll it into a ball. Set aside and repeat with the remaining mixture – you should have 8 meatballs.

2. Heat the oil in a frying pan over medium heat and fry the meatballs, in batches if necessary, for 10–15 minutes, until browned all over and cooked through.

3. Slice open the baguettes, but do not cut all the way through. Spread mayonnaise on one side and pâtè on the other. Add the cucumber, pickled daikon and carrot and meatballs.

4. Finish each baguette with a few coriander leaves and as much fresh chilli and hot sauce as you can handle.

Note

•  For the daikon and carrot pickles, combine 115 g (4 oz/½ cup) caster (superfine) sugar, 125 ml (4 oz/½ cup) rice wine vinegar or white vinegar, ½ tsp salt and 170 ml (5½ oz/⅔ cup) water in a small saucepan and bring to the boil. Simmer for a few minutes, stirring occasionally, until the sugar dissolves. Place 100 g (3½ oz) daikon, and 100 g (3½ oz) carrot, sliced into batons, into a large sterilised glass jar and pour the hot pickling liquid over the top. Seal the jar and set aside in the fridge for at least 3 hours or preferably overnight. The pickles will keep for up to 2 weeks in the fridge. 

This recipe is from In Bread (Smith Street Books)

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.

The combination of French (bread and pâté) and Vietnamese (daikon, coriander and chilli) ingredients give this sandwich its unique flavour. It's often made with cold deli-style pork, but we’ve upped the game with hearty meatballs instead.