Grilled Pork Banh Mi with Quick-Pickled Carrots
Fish-sauce-marinated pork seared hard and piled onto a crackling baguette with pickled carrot, daikon, and jalapeño — no pâté required.
- Serves
- 4
- Prep
- 25 min
- Cook
- 10 min
- Written
Method
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Combine the carrot, daikon, rice vinegar, sugar, and salt in a bowl and let sit at least 20 minutes, or up to 3 days in the fridge, until the vegetables have gone translucent at the edges and taste sharp rather than raw.
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Whisk 2 tablespoons fish sauce, 1 tablespoon brown sugar, three-quarters of the garlic, and the five-spice powder in a bowl, add the pork, and turn to coat.
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Marinate the pork 15 minutes at room temperature.
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Whisk the remaining fish sauce, remaining brown sugar, and remaining garlic into a thin sauce and set aside.
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Heat the oil in a large skillet over high heat until shimmering, then sear the pork in a single layer, working in batches, until charred at the edges and cooked through, about 2 minutes per side.
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Toss the seared pork with the reserved fish sauce mixture off the heat.
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Toast the split baguette pieces cut-side down in the same skillet until crisp, about 1 minute.
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Spread mayonnaise on both cut sides, then layer in the pork, drained pickled carrot and daikon, cucumber, jalapeño, and cilantro.
Notes
The quick pickle is what makes this a banh mi and not just a pork sandwich — don’t shortcut the 20 minutes, since that’s what turns raw shredded carrot into something that can stand up to the fish sauce and mayo instead of just tasting like carrot. It keeps for days in the fridge, so double the batch and use the extra on other sandwiches.
Traditional versions tuck pork liver pâté under the mayo; skip it if it’s not around, since the marinated pork carries plenty of flavor on its own. A baguette with a thin, shattering crust matters more than a soft one — a spongy loaf collapses under the pickle juice halfway through the sandwich.