Sous Vide Pork Belly Banh Mi – A Vietnamese Street Food Sandwich
If you aren’t familiar with a Vietnamese Banh Mi sandwich, you should get to know them real quick. They may challenge the Reuben as being the best sandwich on earth. The crispy, yet tender pork belly with it’s sweet and savory glaze combined with the acidic punch from the pickled carrots and red onion make for a great bite to eat.
I was first introduced to the banh mi sandwich by a coworker and ever since, I have been hooked. I just loved how all the flavors and textures work together so seamlessly. I wanted to create my own version and using the sous vide cooking method for the pork belly was the best option for me. Obviously you can cook the pork belly in an oven or the grill and it will still turn out great.
I really enjoy the cooking the pork belly in a sous vide for a number of reasons. 1) It’s easy. Basically set and forget it 2) It’s always tender and juicy. There are a number of temperatures and cook times that will work but I’ve settled on 170 for 10 but feel free to use whatever works for you.
This recipe is a little involved but it’s very much worth it in the end. Sometime you have to work a little bit to get a great bite to eat.
Sous Vide Pork Belly Banh Mi
Equipment
- Sous Vide Immersion Circulator
Ingredients
Meat
- 2 pounds Pork Belly
Dry Rub
- 2 tablespoon ancho chili powder
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- ½ tablespoon Chinese 5 spice
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
Pickled Vegetables
- ½ red onion julienned
- 1 carrot julienned
- ½ cup red wine vinegar
- ½ cup water
- ⅓ cup white sugar
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt
Sriracha Mayo
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- ½ tablespoon sriracha or more depending on your heat desire
Glaze
- ½ cup soy sauce
- ½ cup sweet chili sauce
Additional Ingredients / Garnishes
- Neutral Oil (vegetable, canola, etc)
- Kosher Salt
- Cilantro
- Cucumber sliced
- Baguettes
Instructions
Prepare the Pork Belly
- Set sous vide circulator to 170°F/76.7°C
- Mix together all dry rub ingredients
- Liberally coat pork belly with oil, kosher salt and then dry rub
- Vacuum seal and place in sous vide bath for 10 hours
Pickled Vegetables
- Combine water, vinegar, sugar and sale in a small pot
- Bring to boil and reduce to simmer
- Simmer for 5 minutes
- Thinly slice (julienne) the red onion and carrots (alternatively buy matchstick carrots)
- Pour pickling liquid over vegetables and store in airtight container
Sriracha Mayo
- Combine mayo and sriracha (adjust sriracha level to your liking)
Finishing the Pork Belly
- After 10 hours remove the pork belly from bath
- Once cool enough to handle, slice into ¾ inch slices
- Heat a cast iron pan (or other high heat pan) over high heat. Add your favorite searing oil (butter, canola oil, vegetable oil) and sear the sliced pork belly on both sides until brown and crispy (1-2 minutes per side)
- For the glaze, combine the soy sauce and sweet chili sauce in a sauce pan over medium heat and bring to a simmer
- Toss the pork belly in the glaze and coat on both sides
Assemble
- Split the baguettes (optionally toast) and apply sriracha mayo on both sides
- Layer the pork belly with the pickled vegetables, sliced cucumber and cilantro and then enjoy
