Love meatballs? Why not give my Greek Keftedes or my Swedish Meatballs a try?
Bun Cha (Vietnamese rice noodle salad with grilled or BBQ pork meatballs) is a popular Vietnamese street food – grilled or barbecued pork served with rice noodles, lots of fresh herbs and an addictive dipping sauce.
Sadly I have never actually experienced this dish in Vietnam, but have had versions of it in London.
I would not have a clue whether these versions were authentic, but they were delicious enough for me to want to recreate the dish at home.
Frankly anything containing meatballs always gets my vote, and these little pork meatballs are super easy.
I love layering all the beautiful fresh herbs and salad ingredients in the bowls, a real feast for the eyes as well as the tastebuds.
Baxters Red Slaw – my favourite of their deli toppers – works so well here, adding a pop of vibrant colour and punchy flavour.
You could replace the rice noodles with spiralized courgettes (zoodles) if you like, or simply add a variety of spiralized vegetables for added crunch.
Vietnamese Pork Meatballs with Rice Noodle Salad (Bun Cha)
Ingredients
- For the meatballs
- 1 1/2 tbsp soft light brown sugar or palm sugar
- 2 tbsp Vietnamese fish sauce
- 2 shallots peeled and very finely diced
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 2 tbsp very finely chopped fresh mint leaves
- 500 g | 1lb minced pork
- For the salad
- 300 g | 10.5oz rice noodles cooked
- 1 medium gem lettuce very thinly sliced
- 1 small cucumber deseeded and sliced
- 4 spring onions scallions sliced thinly on the diagonal
- large handful fresh mint coriander (cilantro) and basil leaves
- 2 tbsp fresh chives very finely chopped
- 4 heaping tbsp Baxters Red Slaw
- For the dipping sauce
- half small cucumber deseeded and grated
- juice of two small limes
- 4 tbsp cold water
- 2 tbsp Vietnamese fish sauce
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 tsp rice vinegar
- 1 red chilli deseeded and finely chopped
- 1 garlic clove minced
Instructions
- Prepare the rice noodles according to pack instructions. Rinse with cold water, drain thoroughly and set aside.
- Finely grate the cucumber and use your hands to squeeze its juice into a small bowl. Add the grated cucumber and all remaining dipping sauce ingredients and stir together. Set aside.
- Put the sugar and fish sauce in a small saucepan and cook over medium-low heat until the sugar dissolves. Set aside to cool.
- Put the shallot, garlic, chopped mint and pork in a bowl. Add the sugar/fish sauce and use your hands to thoroughly mix everything together. Cover with cling film and chill for at least an hour.
- Shape the mince into small meatballs (around 20) and cook under a hot grill (broiler) for 3-4 minutes on each side. Alternatively pan fry with a little vegetable oil until golden.
- Divide the cold noodles, lettuce, cucumber, spring onions and herbs between four bowls.
- Divide the meatballs between the bowls and add a tablespoon of Baxters Red Slaw on each salad. Spoon some of the dipping sauce over each bowl (or serve on the side), sprinkle with the chopped chives and serve.
Charlie @ The Kitchen Shed says
I absolutely love the sound of those meatballs. Looks like a beautiful flavour packed bowl of food!
Anonymous says
what else is sprinkled on the dish besides chives? What's the red stuff?
Lucy Parissi says
Just the chives – the other stuff you see is part of the dipping sauce which is spooned over the dish
Aiming4Simple says
Bun cha was my favorite food in northern Vietnam! I will have to try this and let you know how it tastes to me. 🙂
zerrin says
Mmmmm that looks delish! Can’t wait to try it!
Kavey says
I absolutely love bun cha, really clever use of that topper, Lucy! Great idea!
Camilla Hawkins says
We're loving the Baxters Deli Toppers range! Your meatballs sound totally lush and love all the veggies with them:-)