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Bun cha
Bún chả: Hanoi's charcoal-grilled pork patties and belly in sweet-sour fish sauce
Around 11 in the morning, the side streets of Hanoi's Old Quarter fill with smoke as cooks fan little charcoal braziers loaded with pork. Bun cha is the city's lunch: grilled patties and caramelised strips of pork belly served floating in a warm bowl of thin, sweet-sour fish sauce, with cold rice vermicelli and a basket of lettuce and herbs to dip in alongside. Each mouthful is a bit of noodle, a bit of meat and a leaf or two, all dunked together. A barbecue gives the real smoky edge, but a ridged grill pan works well indoors. Chef's tip: let the grilled meat sit in the warm sauce for a few minutes before eating, so the smoky fat seasons the sauce and the sauce soaks into the meat.
- Total time
- 50 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
For the pork
For the dipping sauce
To serve
Method
0/9 doneStep 1: Mix the 3 shallots, 4 cloves garlic, 3 tbsp fish sauce, 2 tbsp light brown sugar, 1 tbsp honey, 1 tsp black pepper and 1 tbsp vegetable oil in a bowl until the sugar dissolves. This is the marinade for both kinds of pork.
Step 2: Put the 14 oz pork mince in one bowl and the 14 oz skinless pork belly in another. Spoon half the marinade over each and mix well. Leave the belly to marinate for 20 minutes while you prepare everything else. Common mistake: using lean mince. Without enough fat the patties dry out on the grill and taste of very little.
20 minStep 3: For the sauce, warm the 2 cups water with the 4 tbsp caster sugar in a small pan until dissolved, then take off the heat. Stir in the 5 tbsp fish sauce, 3 tbsp rice vinegar, 2 tbsp lime juice, 2 cloves garlic and 1 red bird's eye chilli. Taste: it should be light, sweet, sour and salty all at once. Add the 1 carrot and 3 ½ oz kohlrabi or green papaya to soften slightly in the warm sauce.
5 minStep 4: Cook the 10 ½ oz dried rice vermicelli in boiling water following the packet, usually 4–5 minutes, until just soft. Rinse under cold water, drain very well and arrange in loose nests on a plate.
5 minStep 5: Wash and dry the 1 soft lettuce and 1 ⅜ oz mixed herbs (mint, perilla, coriander, Thai basil) and pile them in a basket or on a platter.
Step 6: With wet hands, shape the mince into 12 small, flattened patties about 1.5 cm thick.
Step 7: Heat a barbecue or ridged grill pan until very hot. Grill the belly slices for 3–4 minutes each side, until caramelised and charred at the edges and cooked through to 145°F/145 °F. Rest them on a plate for 3 minutes.
8 minStep 8: Grill the patties over a medium-high heat for 4–5 minutes each side, until well browned and cooked to 160°F/160 °F in the centre with no pink left. Turn them only once so they hold together.
10 minStep 9: Divide the warm sauce among four small bowls and add the patties and belly. Leave for 2–3 minutes, then serve with the noodles and herbs: pick up some noodles with chopsticks, dip them in the sauce and eat with the pork and a leaf or two.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 720 kcal
- Protein
- 36 g
- Carbs
- 78 g
- Fat
- 29 g
- Fibre
- 3 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does bun cha take?
- About 50 minutes in total: 25 minutes to prepare and 25 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- What can I use instead of shallots?
- Half an onion per 2 shallots.
- What can I use instead of garlic?
- ½ tsp garlic paste or ⅛ tsp garlic powder per clove.
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