Yeah, yeah , yeah, I know Bahn Mi is a sandwich. Actually, Bahn Mi is the Vietnamese term for bread. The Bahn Mi sandwich as we’ve come to know it is actually filled with all kinds of pork products from meatballs, to belly (my favorite), to pate. The whole thing started during the French colonization of Indo-china. (Damn Doc, you done dropped some knowledge). The French brought baguettes, which the natives called Bahn Mi. The word just eventually expanded to mean all bread. Anyway, this recipe was originally an appetizer in a little Vietnamese restaurant in the town I live in. The chef was a good friend of mine whom I met during my time as a menu consultant with a certain hippy grocery chain, who shall remain nameless. (Hey look man, those hippies will sue!!!!). The salad itself is very simple, and can be used with anything, so it’s another good one to keep in your back pocket. Here’s what you’ll need to do one whole pork tenderloin, or enough for 3-4 people (1 if you’re in my house).
1/2c. cilantro stems and leaves for the marinade:
1/4c. mint leaves
1/4 c. basil leaves
2 cloves garlic, peeled
1 inch knob of ginger, peeled.
2 tbsp. sesame oil
1 tbsp. unsweetend rice vinegar
2 tbsp. coconut milk
1 tbsp Sambal (Garlic chili paste)
1 tbsp fish sauce.
1. This is pretty easy. All you have to do is find a good blender or a small food processor and puree everything at once until it’s smooth.
2. Take half of this mixture and rub it on the pork tenderloin. I like to do this in a zip lock bag. (It’s a lot less messy) Just put your pork in, pour the marinade over it, and get rubbing.
3. Let the pork marinate at least 24 hours, and no longer than 36. The acid starts to break down the meat after this.
4. When you’re ready to cook the tenderloin, just fire up your grill and cook it until it’s 145 degrees inside. Let it carry off heat to 150 degrees. Slice when you’re ready to serve.
Now for the salad.
1 large carrot, julienne or shredded1 cucumber sliced thin
1 small daikon radish (optional, the can be hard to find), julienne or shredded
1/2. cup cilantro leaves
1. Combine all of your ingredients in a large bowl and add the rest of the marinade that you didn’t use from the pork. Add a few more sprinkles of fish sauce to taste. Let this sit for about 5 minutes before serving.
As if the flavor on this wasn’t out of this world enough, you want more? YOU GOT IT. I like to serve this with my spicy mayo, which is 1 tbsp of Sriracha to 1/2 c. mayo. (of course this is optional). You can replace the pork loin with ground pork or chicken if you want to do the same thing with meat patties. As always, if you got questions, let me know below.
Happy Eating,
-The Doctor