Inspired by our trip to Melbourne in 2018, we stumbled onto a dank bahn mi joint while street-art perusing in Brunswick on a rainy March afternoon.  Though grilled pork may be more traditional,
nothing gets me going like some deep-fried, crispy pork belly. (Ed)

Deep Fried Pork Belly Bahn Mis

This recipe is straightforward & foolproof. Although, you may want to visit your local Vietnamese supermarket for maximum results. Particularly for the carrot & daikon slaw, which is a staple, but also for the magi sauce, pork belly, and generally good deals to be found there.

Ingredients

Dressing
1 green onion
2 fresh cayenne peppers
or 1 thai green chili
2 tbsp coconut water
1 tbps fish sauce
1 tbsp white sugar
3 cloves garlic
1 tsp ground black pepper

Pork belly
2 lbs pork belly
3 cups canola oil or other oil for deep-frying

Sandwich
2 French baguettes (preferable from a Vietnamese bakery, 24”)
3 Persian cucumbers
1 cup carrot daikon pickle
Mayonnaise
Sriracha sauce or sambal oelek
1 jalapeno
1 bunch cilantro
Crushed peanuts (optional, but recommended)
Magi sauce (optional, but recommended)
(Magi sauce is a sweet and savory seasoning common in bahn mis)

Method

Dressing
1. Finely chop green onion; dice garlic & chili.

2, Combine onion, garlic, chili, fish sauce, coconut water, sugar, and pepper in a bowl. Mix well.
The pork belly
3. Cut the pork belly into 1” strips, then cut the strips into ¾” to 1” pieces again.
4. Heat up the oil in a medium pot at medium heat. Do not overfill the pan – fill up to a third, tops. Add the pork belly in batches, about ½ to 1 lb at a time, to the hot oil.
5. Don’t put all the pork belly in at once – the oil wil start to bubble and rise in the pan. BE CAREFUL. Cook for 5-7 minutes or until light brown.
Note: I experimented with oven-crisping the pork belly, but found it too finicky. The double deep fry makes sure the pork belly is crispy yet tender, and the dressing moistens the meat to the perfect texture.
6. Increase the temperature to medium high.

7. Re-fry pork belly 3-5 minutes, or until golden brown. (Dark brown color means the meat is over-cooked.)

8. Let friend pork belly rest on a paper-towel covered plate 3-5 minutes.

9. Then, stir cooked pork into dressing.
Assemby
10. Peel & slice the cucumbers thinly.
Cut jalapenos in half and remove center vein & seeds. Cut julienne, then again lengthwise, to 1 ¼” matchsticks.
11. Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees; put bread on a baking sheet and warm 5 minutes, or until crispy & flaky.

12. Remove baguettes and cut in half , then lengthwise. After that, the assembly is up to you!
I prefer to start with mayo, sriarcha, and a dash or two of magi sauce on the bread (its strong, so ease up!), then add cucumbers, pickled carrot & daikon, jalapeno. I finish with the pork belly and top with the cilantro, and sprinkle some crushed peanuts on top.

Bahn appetite!