Bún-Thịt-Nướng-Tôm Image Used Under Creative Commons License From pinterest.com
Citizens, the flavors of Vietnam are complex and utterly delicious – and this is one of my all-time favorite recipes from that country, one enjoyed many times over many decades. 🙂
Bún thịt nướng (rice noodles [with] grilled meat) is a popular Vietnamese cold rice-vermicelli noodle dish topped with grilled pork, fresh herbs such as basil and mint, fresh salad and giá (bean sprouts).
The dish is dressed with nước chấm fish sauce dip. Also, it is typically topped with roasted peanuts, Vietnamese pickled vegetables, nem nướng̣ [grilled garlic pork sausage] or grilled prawns. Bún thịt nướng is popular in all regions of Vietnam, except for in Hanoi, where a related dish known as bún chả is served.
There are several different varieties of this dish, including:
Bún thịt nướng chay (Vegetarian – using tofu in place of meat) Bún thịt nướng bò (rice noodles with grilled beef) Bún thịt nướng tôm (with grilled prawns) Bún thịt nướng chả giò (with spring rolls) Bún thịt nướng Đà Nẵng (Da Nang style)
Needless to say, we are going with the shrimp version in my recipe! FYI – the base for this recipe was from hungryhuy.com, but I have jazzed it up quite a bit. The ingredient list may look a little daunting, but fear not – it is not a difficult dish to make! Just use the best ingredients you can – I always do!
For example, my personal choice of fish sauce, which adds a needed umami funkiness to the dish in both the marinade and the nước chấm sauce, must be flavorful but not overwhelm. Made from wild-caught black anchovy and sea salt, single-press Red Boat 40°N is barrel-aged using a centuries-old fermentation tradition and is my choice. You can buy it here. I have gratefully cribbed the nước chấm sauce recipe from finecooking.com. I also like 3 Crabs brand of fish sauce, if you want a less pricey version.
The various Vietnamese herbs can easily be subbed out with more easily obtainable ones – and I am wholly confident in my TFD-hood to know unequivocally that you will love this delicious and healthful recipe, Citizens!
1pound pork shoulder, sliced against the grain about 1/8” thick – it helps to slightly freeze it
1/2pound medium-sized, peeled and deveined prawns, butterflied along the back
1 package rice vermicelli (small or medium thickness), cooked according to package instructions, drained, chilled and reserved
***
Marinade:
5 spring onions (white part only), finely sliced, and pounded in mortar and pestle to a paste (or just use a blender or food processor)
1 lemongrass stem, lower 1/3 only, remove outer leaves, slice very thinly and pounded in mortar and pestle to a paste (or just use a blender or food processor)
2 1/2 tablespoons garlic, finely minced
1/4cup sugar
1 tablespoon fish sauce – TFD strongly prefers Red Boat 40°N brand
1/2 tablespoon thick soy sauce – TFD prefers dark soy sauce flavored with mushrooms
1/2 tablespoon freshly-ground white pepper
3 tablespoons neutral cooking oil
***
Vegetables:
mint – (rau thơm)
Vietnamese perilla – tiá tô – if unavailable, try shiso leaves or just use more mint
Vietnamese balm – kinh giới – if unavailable, use Thai Holy Basil but it has a very different (but tasty) flavor!
cucumbers, peeled, cored and sliced into matchsticks
***
Garnish:
Pickled daikon and carrots – đồ chua, made from:
1 1/2cups peeled and finely grated carrots, about 2 carrots
1 1/2cups peeled and finely grated daikon, about 1 daikon
1 3/4cups white distilled vinegar
1/2 tablespoon salt
***
1 head red leaf lettuce, sliced into bite size pieces
Giá – Bean sprouts
4 tablespoons fried shallots – cook minced shallots in hot oil until crisp, then drain
4 tablespoons crushed roasted peanuts
Vietnamese Scallion & Oil Garnish (Mỡ Hành), made from 4 stalks scallion (green onion)
1/4cup oil (neutral one such as vegetable, canola oil)
***
Dipping Sauce – nước chấm:
1 clove garlic
2 to 3 Thai bird chiles (or 1 small jalapeño or serrano chile), cored, seeded, and minced; more or less to taste
1/2 tsp. ground chile paste; more or less to taste
2/3cup hot water
1/4cup granulated sugar
1/4cup fish sauce – TFD strongly prefers Red Boat 40°N brand
2 Tbs. fresh lime juice
2 Tbs. shredded carrots (optional)
Instructions
For the pickled carrots and daikon:
Place the carrots and daikon in a medium bowl. Add the salt and sugar. Pour in the vinegar, then stir to combine.
Cover with plastic wrap, then refrigerate for one hour (it will keep for at least one month).
For the nước chấm: in a mortar and pestle, pound the garlic and fresh chiles to a paste. In a small bowl, combine this garlic and chile mixture with the chile paste, hot water, and sugar. Stir well. Add the fish sauce and lime juice and combine. Float the carrots on top. Let sit for at least 15 minutes before using.
For scallion and oil garnish: wash and thinly slice scallions. Heat oil over medium heat. After 30 seconds, test heat by dropping in one piece. If it sizzles, it’s ready.
Add all the sliced scallions, mix scallions in the pan for about 30 seconds or until softened. Reserve.
Combine lemongrass purée, garlic and scallion paste. Mix them in a large bowl with sugar, fish sauce, thick soy sauce, pepper, and oil until sugar dissolves. Add in pork slices and prawns. Marinate for 1 hour, or overnight for better results.
Bake the pork at 375F for 10-15 minutes or until about 80% cooked. Finish cooking by broiling in the oven until a nice golden brown color develops, flipping the pieces midway. At the broil phase, you can add in the shrimp – watch them carefully so they don’t burn or overcook them!
Assemble your bowl with veggies, meats, noodles, and garnish. Pour in scallions and oil, then mix the whole bowl up and pour the nước chấm sauce on top. Eat immediately.
Prep Time:0 hours
Cook Time:0 hours
How useful was this post, Citizen?
Click to rate My Recipe, Citizen - 5 hearts are ALWAYS appreciated!
Average rating / 5. Vote count:
No votes so far! Be the first to rate this post.
As you found this post useful...
Follow us on social media, Citizen!
We are sorry that this post was not useful for you!
Be advised that as an enlightened Dictatorship here at TFD, we are indeed on the side of right when it comes to protecting the privacy of TFD Nation!
We do use technologies such as cookies to store and/or access device information, solely to improve your browsing experience and to show personalized ads.
Consenting to these technologies will allow us to process data such as browsing behavior or unique IDs on this site. Not consenting or withdrawing consent, may adversely affect certain features and functions - trust us, we really ARE on your side!
YOUR LOYALTY IS NOTED!
Functional Always active
The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
Preferences
The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
Statistics
The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes.The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
Marketing
The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
Leave a Reply