Bun Cha (grilled pork with rice vermicelli) is northern Vietnam’s specialty, it’s one of Hanoi’s most famous street dishes. A large bowl of dipping sauce highlighted with grilled pork coming along side with rice vermicelli and fresh herbs. The grilled pork sits in the sauces as an extra marinating step. The noodles are then dunked in the dipping sauce with Vietnamese herbs. Everything gets tossed together before eating. Flavors explodes!
On our Day in the life of Hanoian tour, we often see smoke coming up from many streets. It’s where they are grilling Bun cha. Here we’re teaching you how to cook Hanoi-style Bun cha, so that you can do yours at home.
INGREDIENTS FOR FOUR
Meat Marinade
- 1 ½ lb (0,7kg) grounded fatty pork shoulder
- 1 ½ lb (0,7kg) fatty pork shoulder
- 1 tbsp roasted rice powder
- 5 tbsp of water
- 3 tbsp of sugar
- ¼ cup of fish sauce
- 4 garlic cloves
- 1 large shallot
Noodle & Garnish
- Lettuce
- Perilla leaves
- Bean sprouts
- Mint
- Cilantro
- Cucumber
- 2 bags of rice vermicelli (if you can’t buy fresh noodle)
- 1 tbsp of salt
Dipping Sauce
- 1 cup of hot water
- ¾ cup of sugar
- 3 tbsp of lime juice
- 2 cups of coconut soda
- ¾ cup of fish sauce
- 6 garlic cloves
- 1 quarter of lime
- 1 tbsp of rice vinegar
- Minced fresh chili
STEPS
- Preheat the oven to 400°F (205°C). Thinly slice the 1½ lb of fatty pork shoulder. Slice against the grain. Set aside in a large bowl. In a separate bow, add the 1½ lb of grounded fatty pork shoulder.
- Mince 4 cloves of garlic and 1 large shallot. In a small bowl, add 5 tbsp of water, 3 tbsp of sugar, ¼ cup of fish sauce, minced garlic, and minced shallot. Add half of the marinade to the ground pork and the other half in the sliced pork shoulder.
- In the ground pork bowl, add 1 tbsp of roasted rice powder. Using your hands or an ice cream scroop, roll the ground pork into golf-ball sized balls. Fatten each ball out to the thickness of a slider burger. Let the pork sit in the marinade for 30 minutes.
- On a baking sheet, add foil. Add a light layer of cooking oil on the baking sheet. Add the slices of pork shoulder and patties. Bake them in the oven at 400°F for 40 minutes. Flip the meat after 5 minutes for even cooking.
- Boil the noodles based on package instructions. Rinse with cold water. Wash the lettuce, cilantro, bean sprouts, mint, perilla and cucumber. Thinly slice the cucumber. Arrange on a platter.
- Dipping sauce: mince 6 cloves of garlic. Add minced fresh chili to a bowl with the garlic. Add 1 cup of hot water, ¾ cup of sugar, 3 tbsp of lime juice, 2 cups of coconut soda, 1 tbsp of vinegar, and ¾ cup of fish sauce. Mix until dissolved.
There you go, put the grilled pork into 4 large bowls and pour the dipping sauce to cover the meat. Add some pickles (carrot, kohlrabi or green papaya) to make more flavors. Add a bit of all kinds of herbs on top of the bowl when eating with noodle, the more herbs the more flavors.
Alright, we hope you enjoy cooking Bun cha at home, and please contact us if there is anything we can help.
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