Name: Bun Cha
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 30 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: vietnamese
Ingredients: 700g (1 ½ lbs) minced pork shoulder; 1 generous tbsp maple syrup or Vietnamese caramel; 2 tbsp minced garlic; 3 lemongrass stalks, white part only, finely chopped; 2 banana shallots, finely chopped; 1 ½ tbsp fish sauce; 2 tbsp oyster sauce; ½ tsp black pepper; FOR THE DIPPING SAUCE; 70ml (1/4 cup) lime juice; 1 tbsp sugar, more or less to taste; 1 cup water; 3 tbsp fish sauce; 1 ½ tbsp minced garlic; ½ carrot, grated; ½ green papaya, grated; TO FINISH; 200g Rice vermicelli noodles; Herbs such as coriander (cilantro) and mint; Green or red chillies, thinly sliced, optional; Soft lettuce

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Grilled over fire or fried… Bun Cha is awesome!

One of my favourite things to order in Vietnam was bun cha. Deliciously marinated pork mince that was grilled over fire and then served with a tasty sauce and vermicelli rice noodles. If you like to barbecue, that’s the way to cook the patties but you can also cook bun cha indoors in a pan as I’ve done here.

My wife and I tried this dish and a few places in Vietnam. Some were just alright where others were amazing. This is how we liked it.

So good! Give this bun cha a try.

The different ways that bun cha is served…

There didn’t appear to be a specific way that bun cha was served. Some places simply cooked up the meat and served it with cold rice noodles and salad.

Others put hot noodles in a bowl and topped them with the sauce, meat and herbs. Some place served huge pork patties where others served small patties as I’ve done here. It’s really up to you.

Special ingredient…

Most of the ingredients for bun cha can be picked up at your local supermarket

One however isn’t as easily sourced and that’s Vietnamese caramel. I have a great recipe for it that I will post soon. You can also source it a Vietnamese shops.

If you don’t have Vietnamese caramel, you can substitute maple syrup with great results.

Step by step photos…

Get all your ingredients together before starting.

Mix all the meat ingredients together and set aside. Then whisk all the sauce ingredients together in a another bowl.

Form the pork into large or small patties and cook over medium high heat.

Fry until cooked though and then serve immediately.

Dig in!

If you like this recipe, you might like to try some of these Vietnamese favourites too!

Shaking Beef
Vietnamese Rotisserie Chicken
Vietnamese Tofu with Pork Stuffing
Beef Congee
Vietnamese Grilled Scallops
Cha Ca – Fried fish with Dill
Bo Kho – Spicy beef soup
Vietnamese Chicken Wings
Chicken Pho
Beef Pho
Duck Pho
Pork on Lemongrass Skewers
Ban Xeo – Crispy Vietnamese Pancakes

Yield: 4

Bun Cha

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes

Total Time 30 minutes

Ingredients

700g (1 ½ lbs) minced pork shoulder
1 generous tbsp maple syrup or Vietnamese caramel
2 tbsp minced garlic
3 lemongrass stalks, white part only, finely chopped
2 banana shallots, finely chopped
1 ½ tbsp fish sauce
2 tbsp oyster sauce
½ tsp black pepper
FOR THE DIPPING SAUCE
70ml (1/4 cup) lime juice
1 tbsp sugar, more or less to taste
1 cup water
3 tbsp fish sauce
1 ½ tbsp minced garlic
½ carrot, grated
½ green papaya, grated
TO FINISH
200g Rice vermicelli noodles
Herbs such as coriander (cilantro) and mint
Green or red chillies, thinly sliced, optional
Soft lettuce

Instructions

Place all of the marinade ingredients in a mixing bowl and mix well with your hands. Set aside to marinate while you prepare the rest of the dish or overnight.
In another bowl, whisk all of the sauce ingredients together.
Bring some water to a boil and pour it over the dried rice vermicelli noodles. They need to soak for about 10 minutes or until cooked to your liking.
Heat a pan over medium high heat and dived the pork into large or small patties. You can decide as both are served in Vietnam.
Fry until cooked through. Divide the rice noodles between 4 bowls and serve topped with the pork patties, dipping sauce, herbs and lettuce.