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Bánh mì xíu mại with Vietnamese pork meatballs in tomato sauce, pickled daikon carrot, cucumber, cilantro and jalapeño on glass crust baguette
L. Nguyen

Bánh Mì Xíu Mại (Vietnamese Pork Meatball Bánh Mì)

Steamed pork and jicama meatballs braised in a light tomato and fish sauce, served warm inside a Glass Crust baguette with Vietnamese mayonnaise, pickled daikon and carrot, fresh cucumber, cilantro, and jalapeño. Southern Vietnamese comfort food built into a sandwich. [ INTERMEDIATE ]
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Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Chill Time 30 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 25 minutes
Servings: 4 bánh mì
Course: Sandwich
Cuisine: Vietnamese
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

The Meatballs
  • 500 g ground pork, 80/20 fat ratio
  • 150 g jicama, finely diced
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 shallots, finely minced
  • 2 tbsp fish sauce
  • 1 tbsp oyster sauce
  • 1 tsp sugar
  • ½ tsp white pepper
  • 2 tbsp panko breadcrumbs
The Sauce
  • 1 tbsp neutral oil
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 shallot, finely minced
  • 400 g canned crushed tomatoes
  • 2 tbsp fish sauce
  • 1 tsp sugar
  • ½ tsp white pepper
  • 120 ml water
The Pickles
  • 200 g daikon radish, julienned 3mm wide
  • 200 g carrot, julienned 3mm wide
  • 120 ml unseasoned rice vinegar
  • 120 ml water
  • 30 g sugar
  • 8 g kosher salt
The Assembly
  • 4 Vietnamese bánh mì baguettes (Glass Crust standard)
  • 4 tbsp Vietnamese mayonnaise
  • 1 small cucumber, sliced lengthwise into thin strips
  • 1 bunch fresh cilantro, stems trimmed
  • 2 jalapeños, sliced thin on a bias
  • Maggi Seasoning Sauce, for finishing

Equipment

  • Steamer basket
  • Wide pan
  • Mandoline slicer
  • Bread knife

Method
 

Make the Pickles
  1. Combine rice vinegar, water, sugar, and salt in a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir until sugar and salt dissolve completely, 2 to 3 minutes. Do not boil. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature, 15 minutes.
  2. Pack daikon and carrot into a clean jar. Pour brine over vegetables. The brine should cover the vegetables completely. Seal and refrigerate for a minimum of 1 hour. Two hours produces a better result. The pickles will keep for 2 weeks refrigerated.
Make the Meatballs
  1. Combine ground pork, jicama, garlic, shallots, fish sauce, oyster sauce, sugar, white pepper, and panko breadcrumbs in a large bowl. Mix thoroughly for 2 minutes until the mixture is well combined and slightly sticky. Do not undermix. The meatballs will fall apart during steaming if the mixture is loose.
  2. Refrigerate the mixture for 30 minutes. Cold mixture holds its shape better when rolling.
  3. Roll the mixture into balls using approximately 2 tablespoons per meatball. Each ball should be around 4cm in diameter. You should get 16 to 20 meatballs.
  4. Place meatballs on a heatproof plate in a single layer. Steam over boiling water for 8 minutes. The meatballs will be just cooked through. They will finish cooking in the sauce.
Make the Sauce
  1. Heat oil in a wide pan over medium heat. Add garlic and shallot. Cook until softened and fragrant, 2 minutes. Do not let them brown.
  2. Add crushed tomatoes, fish sauce, sugar, white pepper, and water. Stir to combine. Bring to a gentle simmer.
  3. Add the steamed meatballs to the sauce. Simmer uncovered for 10 minutes, turning the meatballs once halfway through. The sauce will thicken slightly and coat the meatballs. The meatballs are done when they are firm all the way through.
  4. Taste the sauce. It should be savory, lightly tangy, and balanced. Adjust fish sauce for salt, sugar for sweetness.
Assemble
  1. Split each baguette lengthwise, cutting three-quarters through. Do not cut completely. The hinge holds the sandwich together.
  2. Open the bread. Apply Vietnamese mayonnaise to both cut surfaces. This is the fat barrier. It seals the bread against moisture from the sauce.
  3. Spoon 4 to 5 meatballs into each baguette. Add a spoonful of sauce over the meatballs. Do not overfill. The sauce will soak into the crumb. One spoonful is enough.
  4. Add cucumber strips across the meatballs.
  5. Add pickled daikon and carrot. Drain them first. Excess brine combined with the tomato sauce will oversaturate the bread.
  6. Add cilantro in whole sprigs. Do not chop it.
  7. Finish with jalapeño slices. Two to three per sandwich is the correct amount.
  8. Three drops of Maggi Seasoning Sauce across the top. No more. Close the sandwich. Press down firmly with your palm. Serve immediately.

Notes

On the jicama: Jicama is available at most Asian grocery stores and many larger supermarkets. It adds a mild sweetness and crunch that holds up inside the meatball during steaming and braising. If you cannot find jicama, water chestnuts are the correct substitute. Dice them to the same size. Do not substitute with any soft vegetable. The texture will be lost.
On the meatball mixture: The 80/20 fat ratio in the ground pork is not optional. Leaner pork produces dry meatballs that tighten up during steaming. The fat keeps them tender. Ask the butcher for ground pork shoulder if the fat content is not labeled.
On the sauce: The tomato sauce should be light and savory, not thick or sweet. If it reduces too much during simmering, add water two tablespoons at a time. The sauce should coat the meatballs but still be loose enough to spoon easily.
On the bread: The tomato sauce will soften the Glass Crust within a few minutes of assembly. Assemble and serve immediately. Do not let the sandwich sit. This is not a make-ahead sandwich.
On make-ahead: The meatballs and sauce can be made up to 2 days ahead and refrigerated together. Reheat gently over low heat before assembling. The pickles can be made up to 2 weeks ahead.