Tuesday, September 8, 2009

Banh mi

And for a better taste in one's mouth:

I roasted pork belly over the weekend, on a bed of terrace herbs and lemon slices. There was a lot left over, and half of that went into last night's banh mi, eaten on the terrace under a cool sky. The usual treatment: finely chopped ginger and shallots cooked with tamarind paste, shrimp paste, chopped peanuts, palm sugar and fish sauce, cooked with the chopped pork till caramelized. Cooled. Quick-pickled carrots and cabbage, cilantro, white rolls heated till crusty.

6 comments:

  1. I'm impressed! Being Vietnamese myself, I can understand your love of this sandwich. Thanks for highlighting it!

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  2. I used to enjoy this (and a similar Thai version)before the shellfish intolerance hit me. I can make a modified version, but have to work around the shrimpy part. Even fish sauce usually has a prawn/oyster base. What to do! What to do!(A little shaving of smoked salmon for the fish taste ;-) )

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  3. Thomas - if I'd know I'd have tried to be more authentic!

    Dinahmow - what about anchovies/garlic combo for shrimp paste substitute? Can't help with the fish sauce - how very sad...:-( That stinky, delicious fish sauce is impossible to reproduce. Aren't the good ones just feesh? Thomas?

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  4. But that's the beauty of this sandwich - as long as you have the herbs and quick pickled veggies, you can't go wrong!

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  5. Jen, you take the train from the east and i'll take the train from the south and we'll meet at Marie's to eat!!!

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