Bun Cha Hanoi – Asian Street Food

Ingredients for 4 servings:

• 500 g pork belly with rind, approx. 5 cm wide piece
• 300 g minced pork
• 500 g rice noodles (Vietnamese rice vermicelli)
• 8 lettuce leaves
• ½ bunch mint
• 1 bunch of coriander
• ¼ bunch Thai basil
• n. B. herbs, alternatively watercress, bean sprouts, to taste
• 4 tsp oyster sauce
• some soy sauce
• 5 garlic cloves
• Spring onion(s), approx. 2 – 3
• Chili pepper(s), fresh, approx. 2 – 3
• 4 stalks of lemongrass
• 100 g papaya, green
• 1 carrot(s)
• 2 limes, cut into wedges
• e.g. lime juice
• 100 ml fish sauce
• n. B. sugar
• 100 ml rice vinegar
• 500 ml water
• salt and pepper

Instructions

Working time approx. 2 hours; Cooking/baking time approx. 45 minutes; Total time approx. 2 hours 45 minutes

Grilled pork belly, meatballs, rice noodles

Wash the lettuce leaves and herbs, shake dry, and sort them. Arrange them side by side on a large platter and set aside. Finely chop the following and set them aside separately: Wash 4 stalks of lemongrass, remove the tough core, and finely chop the white and light green parts (1 tbsp for the pork belly marinade; the rest goes into the meatballs), 5 cloves of garlic, 2-3 chilies, and 2-3 spring onions. Set aside for later use (different amounts will be needed for the marinade, the meatballs, and the seasoning sauce; the amount ultimately varies according to taste. So if you know you love garlic, add more, etc.). Cut the pork belly into very thin slices. Each piece should also have rind. In a mortar and pestle, grind 1 tbsp of chopped lemongrass and 1 tbsp of chopped spring onions with the chopped chili pepper and garlic, amount and spiciness to taste (about 1-2 each). Marinate the pork belly slices with the mortar mixture and 1 teaspoon each of salt, pepper, sugar, and 2 teaspoons of oyster sauce, and set aside until grilling. Combine the minced meat with 1-2 garlic cloves, 1 spring onion, and 2 lemongrass stalks (all finely chopped, see above). Mix well with salt, pepper, sugar, oyster sauce, and a little soy sauce. Form the meatballs into rather flat meatballs, approximately 5-6 cm in diameter and 1-2 cm high. Place them side by side on a plate and refrigerate until grilling. For the bun cha seasoning sauce, cut the green papaya and carrot into narrow, thin slices (approx. 2 mm thick and 2 x 2 cm in area). For the sauce, heat water, dissolve 100g of sugar in it, add the vinegar, fish sauce, and fresh lime juice, and season to taste until the salty, sour, and sweet flavors are balanced. Add the papaya and carrot pieces. Remove from the heat at the latest when you’ve finished. Grill the meat either in a BBQ basket or on a plancha grill over medium heat. The pork belly should be nice and crispy. Place the finished grilled food in a bowl and keep warm. Prepare the rice noodles according to the package instructions shortly before serving to prevent them from cooling down too much. After draining, form them into about 8-10 noodle nests with your hands and place them side by side on a platter, as they will stick together when cool and will be impossible to separate. Place the platter with the salad and herbs, the platter with the noodles, chopped garlic and chili in small bowls, lime wedges, and the bowl with the warm grilled food on the table. Preheat a large soup bowl (or cereal bowl or soup plate) for each person. Reheat the seasoning sauce shortly before serving and pour it into the bowl. The bowl should be about half full of sauce. Then add garlic, lime, and chili to each person’s taste. Then everyone takes a nest of noodles, lettuce, herbs, and meat to taste and submerges it in the seasoning sauce. Eat with chopsticks, fishing out the pieces coated in the sauce, as if eating an Asian noodle soup. If the solid pieces are too small or too small, add more. The seasoning sauce isn’t actually eaten up afterwards (like soup) – but here, too, it’s all up to your taste! Note: In Vietnam, the minced meat for the meatballs is finely chopped – ideally from the pork shoulder, or you can mix leaner and fattier cuts, mincing the meat together with all the herbs at the end. This creates a more authentic texture. For simplicity, you can also process everything together in a blender – or use ready-made minced meat.