Banh Mi Sandwich
We love a good sandwich. The Banh Mi (pronouced "bon me") sandwich takes it's influences from French and Vietnamese cuisine. A nice, crusty French baguette, fresh mayonnaise and lean pork tenderloin paired with pickled veggies, fresh cucumber, jalapenos and cilantro all come together in a delightful and tasty way in this fusion sandwich.
A traditional Banh Mi may also have pork pate or ham, but I opted for a lean pork tenderloin seasoned with our Vietnamese Pork Rub for a bit of sweet and warm, light citrusy notes and just a tiny bit of heat that hits the back of the throat. The pork tenderloin was cooked low and slow on the grill.
Our Vietnamese Pork Rub is hand blended from demerara sugar, ginger, coriander, clove, cinnamon, red pepper flakes, sesame, black pepper and lemongrass.
Making your own mayonnaise is easy, just check out this recipe, but a light mayonnaise will work just fine.
- 1 to 1/2 LB pork tenderloin
- 1 Tablespoon Vietnamese Pork Rub
- 1 Tablespoon low sodium soy sauce
- 1/2 cup white vinegar
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 3 medium carrots, peeled and coarsely shredded
- 4 small whole grain French baguettes or 2 larger ones, cut in half
- 4 Tablespoons light or homemade mayonnaise
- 1 large English cucumber, halved crosswise and sliced lengthwise into thin slices
- 1/2 cup fresh cilantro leaves
- 2 jalapenos, stems and seeds removed and sliced
- Place pork in a glass dish and pour the soy sauce over it.
- Sprinkle the Vietnamese Pork Rub over the pork tenderloin, cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and up to 2 hours.
- While pork is marinating, combine vinegar and sugar in a small saucepan or medium high heat.
- Once sugar has dissolved add carrots and radishes, remove from heat and let sit for at least 30 minutes, drain and refrigerate.
- Heat grill to medium high heat and set one side to indirect heat.
- Place pork tenderloin over the direct heat for about 2 minutes per side, then move to indirect heat.
- Cook pork over indirect heat for about 30-45 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees.
- Remove from grill, rest for 5-10 minutes and then thinly slice meat.
- Slice baguettes horizontally, remove some of the bread from the center of both the top and bottom pieces. (This helps keep the filling from sliding out.)
- Spread 1 Tablespoon of mayonnaise on the top and bottom of each baguette. (1 Tablespoon per baguette, divided)
- Layer, cucumbers, pork, pickled carrots and radishes, cilantro and jalapenos on bottom half of bread. Add top of bread to the sandwich and serve.
