Bun Cha
by Dan Toombs
Bun cha is a hugely popular minced (ground) pork patty dish from Hanoi. It’s also really easy to make, though I have taken the liberty of simplifying the recipe even more in this case. Traditionally, these pork patties are prepared with homemade Vietnamese caramel. I learned to make it while there, but it isn’t an easy task and takes some time to get right. You could use shop-bought caramel or maple syrup, as I do in the recipe below.
Method
Based on 4 servings, adjust as needed.
Step 1
First, marinade the pork. Place the maple syrup, finely chopped lemongrass, finely chopped shallots half of the fish sauce, half of the grated garlic*, and all of the oyster sauce and black pepper. Add the minced pork and mix well with your hands. Set aside to marinate while you prepare the rest of the dish (or overnight).
Step 2
In another bowl, whisk the lime juice, sugar, remaining grated garlic and fish sauce, grated carrot** and green papaya or mango. Mix together and set aside.
Step 3
When ready to cook, place rice vermicelli in a bowl and cover with boiling water. They should become soft in about 10 minutes, but please refer to the instructions on the side of the packet.
Step 4
Heat a non-stick frying pan (skillet) over a medium–high heat and add a splash of oil. Fry the patties until cooked through. If you have golf ball-sized patties, as per the picture, these will take about 4 minutes per side to cook.
Step 5
Divide the pork into large or small patties – the choice is yours, as both are served in Vietnam.
Step 6
Divide the rice noodles between four bowls and serve topped with the pork patties, the grated carrot slaw. Scatter over the coriander and mint along with chillies (if using) and lettuce. Serve and dig in.
- Ingredients
- Based on 4 servings
-
3 stalks Lemongrass, white part only, finely chopped 1x Sainsbury's Fresh Packed Lemongrass Sticks x2 -
0.5 tsp Black Pepper 1x Sainsbury's Coarse Ground Black Pepper 45g -
0.5 Green Mango, or green papaya, grated 1x Sainsbury's Mango Single -
0.5 Carrot, peeled and grated 1x Sainsbury’s Carrots Loose -
700g Minced Pork 1x Sainsbury's British 10% Fat Pork Mince 750g -
2 heads Baby Gem, leaves seperated 1x Sainsbury's Little Gem Lettuce x2 -
1 tbsp Sugar, more or less to taste 1x Sainsbury's White Caster Sugar 500g -
10g Mint, or coriander, picked 1x Sainsbury's Fresh Packed Mint 30g -
1 Red Chillies, finely sliced 1x Sainsbury's Red Chillies 65g -
5 tbsp Fish Sauce, can also use a gf vaierty 1x Blue Dragon Fish Sauce 150ml -
3.5 tbsp Garlic, peeled and grated or finely chopped 1x Sainsbury's Garlic -
200g Dried Rice Vermicelli Noodles 1x Sainsbury's Rice Noodles 250g -
2 Banana Shallots, finely chopped 1x Sainsbury's Echalion Shallots 400g -
2 tbsp Oyster Sauce 1x Sainsbury's Oyster Sauce 150ml -
70ml Lime Juice 2x Sainsbury's Limes -
1 tbsp Maple Syrup, or Vietnamese caramel (see intro) 1x Clarks Original Maple Syrup with Carob Syrup 180ml -
Maldon Salt, to taste 1x Maldon Sea Salt Flakes 250g