Bun Thit Quay (Vietnamese Pork Belly with Noodles)

After our trip to Vietnam, I had not cooked anything vietnamese or anything from the cookbook i had bought.  So i decided to finally give it a try.

Recipe adapted from Taste Vietnam Morning Glory Cookbook

Serves: 4 as main

Sweet and Sour Sauce

  • 1 tbsp lime juice

  • 1 tbsp white sugar

  • 1 1/2 tsp fish sauce

  • 2 tsp water

  • 1 tsp mild red chilli and garlic, pounded

  1. Put lime juice and sugar in a bowl, stir to dissolve.  Add fish sauce, water and chilli and garlic mix.

 

Pork belly

  • 1 kg pork belly, 2 cm thick

  • 1/4 tsp sea salt

  • 1/4 coarse black pepper

  • 1/4 tsp five spice

  • 1/2 tsp sugar

  • 1/2 cup lemongrass, pounded

  • 1 tbsp shallots, pounded

  • 1 tbsp vegetable oil

  • 1/2 tsp sea salt extra

  • 400g rice vermicelli noodles

  • 1 small cucumber cut into sliced

  • 1 cup bean sprouts

  • 100g mixed herbs

  • 2 quantities of sweet and sour sauce

  • 4 mild red chili sauce

  • 1/4 cup spring onion curls

  • 1/4 cup coriander leaves

  • 100g mixed herbs (anise basil leaves, butter lettuce leaves, mint leaves, coriander leaves, mustard sprouts, chrysanthemum leaves, many of these will be hard to find)

Method:

1.  Preheat oven to 220C. Cut meat 1 cm deep in strips on the meat side.

2. Mix salt, pepper, five spice and sugar together. Sprinkle between the cuts of the pork.

3. Mix lemongrass and shallots together, rub into cuts of pork.  Place pork belly on a tray skin side up. Rub oil and extra salt into skin.  (i should have cross cut the skin to make it more crispy)

4. Cook in a 200C oven for 25-30 minutes until skin starts to colour and crackle.  Turn oven down to 180C and cook for a further 25 minutes.  Remove from oven, cool slightly, cut into strips from the meat side and then into cubes.  

5. In 4 bowls divide the noodles evenly, arrange the herbs to one side of bowl, bean sprouts to the other, then place the cucumber slices in between, pour on of 2 tbsp sweet and sour sauce.  Put roast pork on top of noodles.

6. Garnish with spring onion curls, chilli slices and coriander.  

yummy! this dish really reminded me of vietnam with its freshness and lightness, although having pork belly in it.  i maybe should have left the pork belly in the oven just a bit longer so that the skin would be a bit more crispy or next time to cross cut the skin which would help.  i served it with a simple cucumber and carrot pickle of rice vinegar, sugar, water, and CORIANDER.  the original recipe called for a garlic chive, carrot pickle and a SHREDDED papaya pickle, which i found might be quite difficult to obtain some of the ingredients needed, so that's why i just made a simple cucumber and carrot pickle.  the mixed herbs the recipe calls for also will be a struggle to find, so i just used the most common ones like mint, coriander, and regular basil leaves.  i would have maybe thinly sliced or chopped the herbs then sprinkled them over the noodles as from the recipe they seemed more like a garnish then part of THE dish.  as i wanted to have more vegetables in this dish i added some fresh and quickly blanched spinach but this is not necessary.  the sweet and sour sauce ALTHOUGH very simple was so tasty.  i will certainly be making this again soon, especially during the summer time as it is such a nice and refreshing dish and who doesn't like some pork belly.

cooking, dinner, vietnameseJackie Wongpork belly, sweet and sour, rice noodle, pickleComment