Missing those Bánh mì? Make your own!

Yes you can, you can make your very own Bánh mì! You'll most likely need to visit an Asian grocery store for the daikon and red pork seasoning and if they happen to have sandwiches already made, then just eat those! I would.

Just FYI, this is a two day process. Day 1 will be make the pickles and marinate the pork. Day 2 you will cook the pork and make the sandwiches. Day 3 you will have leftovers and you will make sandwiches that can be put in the freezer and be pulled out on a later date. What, did I just let you in on a little secret? If you make the sandwich and omit the veggies, you can wrap it securely in parchment or plastic wrap, stick it in a ziplock and freeze that motherfucker! Hold up, you're now wondering "can I do this with the sandwiches from the restaurant or market?" Yes you can! Pull out the veggies from the extra sandwiches (make a noodle bowl or add to a salad) and wrap that sandwich up.

Ready?

I doubled the recipe

Day 1

The pickles traditionally uses daikon and carrots in a vinegar base. Visit your Asian market on your next grocery run for daikon and the pork seasoning and you'll also be able to grab a lot of tasty foods to shake up your days. If you can't find daikon, that's ok, use 2 lbs of carrots. It'll still be tasty. These pickles are tasty with many, many dishes.

Đồ Chua (Daikon and Carrot pickles)

• 1 lb daikon (washed, peeled, and cut in bite size pieces) 
• 1 lb carrots (washed, peeled, and cut in bite size pieces) 
• 2 tsp sugar
• 1 tsp salt

Toss all of this in a large bowl, stick your hands in and churn it about until the daikon (or carrots) become flexible enough to bend and not break. This will take about 5 mins or so. Once you get a bendy veggie rinse the sugar/salt mixture off and place back in another large bowl.

Next in a separate bowl, mix

• 1/2 c sugar
• 1 1/4 c vinegar
• 1 c warm water

Mix until dissolved.

Grab a few glass jars with lids or anything with a lid that can be stored in the fridge. Pack that container(s) with the daikon/carrot mixture. Next ladle the liquid over the veggies until they are just covered. You'll probably have some liquid left over, it's ok to discard.

Place these in the fridge, they'll be ready for eating the next day. I feel comfortable eating on these for about a couple months or so.

BBQ Red Pork

I'm using a simplified version of the recipe, just like any bbq you can get really elaborate and go many routes with this. My version uses a packet mix and pork tenderloin. If you don't want to make the pork or have chicken, use it. You can also just use deli ham in this sandwich, it's still tasty.

• 1 packet of Char Siu or Roast Red Pork seasoning mix
• 2 lbs of pork tenderloin (you can use the skinnier, prepackaged pork tenderloins that are unseasoned and it only has to be close to 2 lbs)

Grab a large flat bottomed dish that can hold the pork overnight and go into the oven or transferred to an oven safe dish. Rinse your pork off and if it's a large tenderloin then cut in half lengthwise (you want more surface for the marinade).

I also doubled this recipe

Now rub the marinade all over that pig! Your hands will get red from the seasoning and it'll wash off after awhile, but wear gloves if possible. I ignored the directions on the back of the package for adding water to the marinade and it worked out fine.

Cover the dish with plastic wrap and leave overnight in the fridge.



Day 2

Time to bake the pork! Preheat oven to 400 degrees, pop pork in for about 20 - 30 mins. Bake the pork until the top looks slightly charred. The goal is to get your pork to sorta look like the pork on the picture of the package.

Sorta looks like the package

Once it's done, pull out of the oven and transfer the pork to a cutting board and let it rest. Always let your meat rest, always. If you cut in to it too quickly, juices will flow out and the meat becomes dry. (Insert joke about dry nether regions.)

While the pork is resting, gather your toppings:

• French bread or ciabatta
• butter or mayonnaise
• lettuce
• cucumbers (sliced thin)
• daikon/carrot pickles
• jalapenos (sliced thin)
• cilantro
• soy sauce
• siracha

I had some little red peppers
that wanted to participate

Toast the bread in the oven or toaster. Slice the pork into thin slices. Generously spread the butter or mayonnaise on the inside of your toasted bread, add the sliced pork, your veggies, and that's it. (I really like a little sprinkle of soy sauce and siracha too.)


Day 3

Make more sandwiches and if you can, maybe send some $ to a local restaurant that's closed. 

Wonton soup and a hug

Comfort food take center stage. Please and thank you for your ability to make just a moment seem ok and feeding our feelings with something a bit tastier.

Here's another food memory, wonton soup, partially from my mom but more so from my sister. (Sis is still alive and it seems dire to even have to clarify but it's the reality these days.)

I've never made this or many of the other recipes I've been trying these last few weeks, but I need to be comforted and so does my House. My mom cooked to comfort, my sister cooks to comfort, and I cook to comfort. Now is the time to embrace these meals and gain a few pounds. It's ok.

When I chatted with my sister about this recipe, she, just like my mom does not write down her recipes. No actual measurements for anything, but I've got the gist and I remember the way it's suppose to taste. So I took what I remember from my mom, what my sister told me, and a little internet research and came up with this recipe.

It took a couple of hours to prepare but it was comforting, much like a hug from my mom and sis.

Pork Wonton Soup

Makes roughly 60 wontons and soup for 8 - 10 people

Pork Wontons

1 lb ground pork
4 green onions, thinly sliced
1 clove garlic, finely diced
1/2 inch of ginger, finely diced
1 TBL fish sauce
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp sesame oil
1 1/2 tsp black pepper
pinch of white pepper
2 tsp sugar
Wonton wrappers (sometimes called eggroll wrapper, needs to be about 4" x 4")

Mix all ingredients above (except wrappers) together in large bowl. Lay out a sheet pan and large plate to assemble wontons. Pre-separate about 10 wrappers and lay out individually. They are hard to separate on the fly while rolling.

Place a single wrapper on the plate, wet down the top half with a water dipped finger. Place about a rounded teaspoon of filling in the center of the wrapper, fold the bottom half over the top and seal. Press air out from the center around the filling to the edges. Leave like this or get fancy with your wonton folds.

Place on sheet pan, repeat until all wrappers or filling has been used.

Bring a large pot of water to boil. Place 10 - 12 wontons gently into water and stir after 2 mins. Wontons will rise to the surface, gently simmer wontons for 4-5 mins (or until filling is cooked). With a slotted spoon, remove wontons to a covered dish to keep warm.



Wonton Soup Base

2 boxes chicken broth (32 oz each)
1 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp white pepper
2 tsp fish sauce
1 tsp sugar
2 stalks green onions, thinly sliced

In a large pot, bring to a boil all soup base ingredients except green onions. Turn down and simmer for 15 minutes, add green onions and cook for another 10 mins.

Serve warm wontons in a bowl with a nice ladle of soup. If you've got fresh cucumbers or radishes, slice those up and serve on the side. Creates a nice fresh contrast.

Go make some soup! Or something comforting that gives you a nice warm hug.