Recipe: Bánh Mì Bì with Chà Bông (Pork Skin and Pork Floss Bánh Mì with Salted Duck Egg)
Moist and flavorful pâté and mayonnaise coat the inside of a soft baguette with a crisp exterior. Salted duck egg introduces a rich and salty bomb to the sandwich, while pork floss and pork skin salad have a pleasantly dry texture that works well with the more moist elements. Cucumber, green onion, jalapeño, and cilantro provide the freshness and crunch. A few dashes of nước chấm (sweetened fish sauce) adds a burst of savory flavor, while a bit of sriracha provides some spicy and sweet notes.
Vegan and vegetarian eaters should check out Helen’s Recipes for a good vegan bánh mi recipe.
Learn more about the inspiration for this dish and the story behind it: Crispy Pillows for Everything Under the Sun
Learn more about why and how this dish works: Notes on Bánh Mì.
Active time: 30 minutes
Total time: 30 minutes
Yield: Serves two
Ingredients:
Bread:
2 Vietnamese bánh mì (You can substitute with bolillos/pan francés or light french baguettes, but I wouldn’t recommend it. Try to find a Vietnamese bakery in your area/city.)
Fillings:
chà bông (pork floss)
bì (pork skin and roasted pork with roasted rice powder)
salted duck egg
pâté (pork liver spread, homemade is better, but you can buy it canned)
Sauces:
mayonnaise (either store-bought, or homemade)
nước chấm (sweetened fish sauce, optionally with garlic and chilis)
sriracha (optional)
chili jam (optional)
Condiments:
cilantro
1 green onion
1 cucumber
1 small carrot (around the same size as the daikon, if possible)
1 small daikon
1 tsp salt
1 Tbsp vinegar
1 Tbsp sugar
1 green chili pepper (optional, but not according to Vy Ưng’s mom)
Tools needed:
cutting board
serrated and non-serrated knife
a few bowls
Suggested directions:
Wash your hands and prepare your ingredients and tools.
Let’s start with the đồ chua (pickled carrot and daikon). Peel the daikon and carrot, and trim off the ends. I peel away from myself while rolling the vegetable around like so:
Slice the daikon and carrots into sheets. The width will determine how quickly the pickling will occur. I cut eighth inch sheets. To stabilize the cylindrical vegetables, slice off one side, then rotate it 90º, placing the flat side down on the cutting board.
Slice the sheets in half width-wise, then slice those half-sheets into matchsticks. The best way to do this in my experience is not to stack the sheets, but to spread them out onto the cutting board slightly layered.
Throw the daikon and carrot matchsticks into a bowl, and toss with around one teaspoon of salt. Set aside for 15 minutes.
Now, let’s prep the condiments. Wash your herbs and veggies.
Trim the stem from the green chili and slice it thinly lengthwise or at an angle to make long and thin chili slices.
Trim the ends of the cucumber, and slice lengthwise or at an angle, similar to the chili.
Remove the root of the green onion. If the outer layer is dry and/or slimy, remove that too. Chop up the green onion into quarters width-wise, then slice into quarters again length-wise.
Chop up the herbs into 1-2 inch long pieces. Use the cilantro stem! It’s flavorful and adds a nice crunch.
At this point, the daikon and carrots should have a pool of water at the bottom of the bowl (10-15 minutes after tossing in salt). Drain that water, and wash the daikon and carrots a couple of times with cold water.
Toss in some sugar and vinegar in equal parts, toss, then set aside.
At this point, you can make your own mayonnaise, or you can just use store-bought mayo. I chose to make some by mixing an egg and a pinch of salt, and whisking it for a long time. While whisking, slowly drip vegetable oil into the egg mixture. After a while, the egg and oil emulsion will start to form, becoming thiccer with more oil added. Make sure oil is added in slowly at the beginning, otherwise oil will not be dispersed properly throughout the egg.
Toast the bánh mì and cut it open leaving the corners intact. Organize the ingredients to create a little bánh mì factory with the bread, sauces, fillings, and condiments. I also like to rip out some bread crumb to leave more room for fillings. I eat it with some pâté or butter later on.
Layer the bánh mì however you’d like. I started with pâté, mayo, and sriracha. I cover one side of the bánh mì with mayo, and the other with pâté.
Now, stuff the condiments in there. Layer on some cucumber and chilis. I also threw in some cilantro stems at this point.
Layer on the fillings: salted duck egg, bì (pork skin), and chà bông (pork floss). I’d recommend only putting the yolk of the salted duck egg because the white is quite salty and might be overwhelming. Remember there is salt from the nước chấm (sweetened fish sauce) as well.
Finish it with green onions, cilantro, and đồ chua (pickled carrot and daikon). Sprinkle on some nước chấm (sweetened fish sauce.
To make it more compact and jaw-friendly, take a knife and press the ingredients into the sandwich, closing it. Dive into it, or cut it in half to see a beautiful cross-section.