The Bánh Mi Sandwich
I have a lot of favorite sandwiches, however Bánh Mi has got to be up near the top of the list. If you have never had a Bánh Mi sandwich, you must seek one out. I will admit that while living in Dallas, Texas for a handful of years, I was blessed with great Vietnamese restaurants that served pho, as well as awesome bánh mi. I will also admit that Milwaukee, Wisconsin has nothing in terms of a bánh mi shop. Rumor has it that some Asian markets get them shipped to their shops on Friday, but I have yet to see one, and with that said, some times you just can’t wait for something this wonderful to arrive at your feet. You have to make it yourself.
Don’t get caught up with the name, or how to pronounce it, just remember the letters that make up this sandwich. If you see a sign for it, go get yourself one. You will be introduced with a sub sandwich, that is served on a great baguette, and loaded with the best flavors and textures out there. What I love about the bánh mi, is that it is very flexible in what you can load into it. My favorite has always been the traditional grilled meat, paté, and pickled vegetables, along with some great spicy peppers. All I can do when explaining this sandwich is that it is the perfect combination of flavors in every bite. Creaminess from the mayonnaise, freshness from cilantro, a bit of sweet and sour from the pickled vegetables, some coolness from the cucumbers, and a bit of salty heat from the grilled pork and peppers. Give this sandwich a shot next time you are in the mood for something wonderful.
Ingredients for Grilled Pork Bánh Mi Sandwich:
- Great French Baguette, should be soft, with a slight crust, split lengthwise, however not all the way through
- Grilled Asian Pork (here or here), thinly sliced
- English Cucumber, thinly sliced
- Mayonnaise
- Pork Paté, sliced
- Thinly sliced Serrano or Jalapeno Peppers, or whole Thai bird chilies
- Fresh cilantro sprigs
- Pickled Carrots and Daikon
Begin by making your pickling mixture. You can do this ahead of time.
Ingredients:
- 3 carrots, thinly sliced, about 3 inches long
- 1 large daikon, thinly sliced, about 3 inches long
- 1 1/2 cup of white vinegar
- 4 tbsp white sugar
- 2 tsp of salt
- 3 cloves of garlic, smashed
- 1/2 serrano chili
- 1 bay leaf
- pinch of dill
Begin by adding the vinegar, sugar, salt, and garlic to a sauce pan, and cook on medium-high heat until the sugar dissolves. Add the bay leaf, serrano pepper, and a pinch of the dill. Remove the pan from the heat and let this come to room temperature. Fill a mason jar, or Tupperware container full of the sliced daikon and carrots. Add the pickling liquid, and place in the refrigerator for at least a couple of hours, however the longer the better. Trust me, you can eat these alone, they are that great.
To make your sandwich, have everything ready. Spread the mayonnaise on the top part of the baguette. Layer the paté on the bottom of the baguette. Now you can begin to layer. Add the thinly sliced cucumbers, grilled pork, peppers, and stack in the pickled veggies and cilantro sprigs. Open wide, and begin to experience a whole new world of flavors.
Keep in mind that you can diversify this sandwich by adding beef, going all veggie and adding a nicely marinated tofu, or with grilled chicken. Whatever you decide, use the fillings noted above for something really delicious, but however you stack it, my bet is that it will begin to make it to the top of your sandwich list as well. Enjoy.
15 Comments
Camilla @ Foodrepublik
Yum, this looks great! My husband and I loved banh mi when we were in Vietnam, especially with pate, a fried egg, and loads of fresh cilantro. I’ll be sure to bookmark your recipe!
ravenouscouple
your banh mi looks great! nice use of bay leaf in the pickling
Myhuett
I’m Vietnamese. Very happy when u loves foods in Vietnam. Nice to see this post!
Myhuett
Exactly, “Bánh mỳ”. Now, I am not staying in my country, I miss it!
Bee Nguyen
wow,Ba’nh Mi` sandwich,yummy,u r good! I’m just happen to love eating this sandwich recently, since my friend make this very delicous banh’ mi`.SHe makes it different than your though,but still makes me crave for more.Now i can learn one more way to make Ba’nh mi`. Thanks !
Nancy
I would love to know the restaurant in which you enjoyed this sammy…I live in North Dallas and don’t know which restaurant you are referring to, but I would like to…
daxphillips
Nancy – I think it was out near Garland in a plaza. It was a small storefront. The Banh Mi was to die for.
medinalakegirl
Hi Dax,
Thanks for making your recipes print-friendly with pdf options. Definitely a time-savings on my end as you sure have a lot of recipes I want to try!
Jaime
Great recipe for pickling the daikon and carrots =) I recently just tried banh mi, and there are some really great shops in Chicago. My favorite so far is Bale, really, REALLY great baguette!
Katie
Whoah. This looks great!
Wallamercedes
Thanks for the information! Looks great! I just moved to Dallas and am curious what your favorite Banh Mi places were here…I am craving a good one! Where would you go and what would you order?
yaledelay
Pacific Produce (Milwaukee) over by the air port has GREAT bahn mi sandwiches.
Brenna
Woohoo! I just got two huge daikons in my food coop basket and I had no clue what to do with them. Since I’ve been on a baguette baking kick this is the perfect recipe. Veggies pickling in my fridge right now. Thanks for the inspiration.