Bún Chả

Hanoi's great lunchtime dish: smoky char-grilled pork patties and belly resting in a warm sweet-sour fish-sauce broth, with cool rice vermicelli and a heaped plate of soft lettuce and herbs to dip and wrap

Origin: Hanoi, Vietnam

From the journey of Lettuce.

Bún chả is the dish of Hanoi, eaten above all at midday in the smoke-wreathed lanes of the old quarter, where charcoal grills set out on the pavement perfume whole streets with the smell of caramelising pork. It is built from four separate things brought together at the table: smoky grilled pork, both little patties of seasoned minced pork and slices of marinated belly, charred over coals; a warm bowl of nuoc cham, the Vietnamese dipping sauce of fish sauce, sugar, lime, and vinegar balanced sweet, sour, salty, and hot, into which floats a tangle of pickled green papaya or carrot; a basket of cool, plain rice vermicelli; and, crucially, a great overflowing plate of fresh leaves, soft lettuce torn into pieces alongside mint, perilla, coriander, and bean sprouts. The diner builds each bite to taste, dipping noodles and pork into the warm broth, wrapping a morsel in a cool lettuce leaf with the herbs, alternating hot and cold, rich and fresh, soft and crunchy. The lettuce and herb plate is not a garnish but a full quarter of the meal, the cool green counterweight without which the dish would be merely rich. Bún chả gained a sudden global fame in 2016 when a American president and a celebrated chef shared a plate of it at a plastic-stooled Hanoi diner, but it had been the soul of the Hanoi lunch hour for generations before.

Ingredients

The Pork

400 g pork belly, thinly sliced
400 g minced pork (not too lean), for the patties

Pork Marinade

3 tbsp fish sauce
2 tbsp caster sugar
3 shallots, finely minced
4 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 tbsp honey (or 1 tbsp thick caramel sauce, for colour)
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 tbsp neutral oil

Nuoc Cham Broth

80 ml fish sauce
80 g caster sugar
80 ml rice vinegar
2 limes, juiced
500 ml warm water
3 cloves garlic, finely minced
2 red bird's-eye chillies, thinly sliced
150 g green papaya or carrot, thinly sliced and lightly pickled

To Serve

400 g dried rice vermicelli (bún), cooked and cooled
1 large head soft lettuce (butterhead or oakleaf), leaves torn
1 large bunch mixed mint, perilla, and coriander
100 g bean sprouts

Method

Make the marinade: stir together the fish sauce, sugar, shallots, garlic, honey, pepper, and oil. Divide between the sliced pork belly and the minced pork in two bowls. Mix the minced pork well and form into small flattened patties. Marinate both for at least 30 minutes, or up to a few hours in the refrigerator.
Make the nuoc cham broth: warm the water and dissolve the sugar in it, then stir in the fish sauce, rice vinegar, and lime juice. Taste and balance until it is equally sweet, sour, and salty, with a gentle savoury depth. Stir in the garlic, chilli, and the pickled papaya or carrot. It should be served warm, not hot.
Cook the vermicelli according to the packet, rinse under cold water, drain well, and divide into loose nests. Arrange the torn lettuce, herbs, and bean sprouts on a large platter.
Grill the pork over hot charcoal, or under a very hot grill or on a ridged griddle, turning, until the patties and belly slices are caramelised, charred at the edges, and cooked through, about 3 to 4 minutes a side.
Slide the hot grilled pork into the bowls of warm nuoc cham broth. Serve each person a bowl of pork in broth, a nest of noodles, and a share of the lettuce and herb plate.

Notes

The lettuce and herb plate is not optional decoration but a structural part of the dish: torn soft lettuce, mint, perilla, coriander, and bean sprouts give the cool, fresh contrast to the rich grilled pork. Green papaya is traditional in the pickle, but thinly sliced carrot and kohlrabi or daikon work well. Chicken thigh or firm tofu can replace the pork. Make the broth and pickle ahead; grill the pork at the last minute.

The Gastrographer

Name: Bún Chả
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 50 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Vietnam
Ingredients: 400 g pork belly, thinly sliced; 400 g minced pork (not too lean), for the patties; 3 tbsp fish sauce; 2 tbsp caster sugar; 3 shallots, finely minced; 4 cloves garlic, finely minced; 1 tbsp honey (or 1 tbsp thick caramel sauce, for colour); 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper; 1 tbsp neutral oil; 80 ml fish sauce; 80 g caster sugar; 80 ml rice vinegar; 2 limes, juiced; 500 ml warm water; 3 cloves garlic, finely minced; 2 red bird's-eye chillies, thinly sliced; 150 g green papaya or carrot, thinly sliced and lightly pickled; 400 g dried rice vermicelli (bún), cooked and cooled; 1 large head soft lettuce (butterhead or oakleaf), leaves torn; 1 large bunch mixed mint, perilla, and coriander; 100 g bean sprouts

Mapping Culinary History

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Journey Point Map Key

Ingredient originTrade or transit route

Became a culinary stapleColonial / trade control