Vietnamese Bun Cha (Pork with Rice Noodles)

Grocery finds: pork chops (on sale at Rainbow for $1.50/lb), fresh cilantro (49 cents a bunch), and cucumbers (3/$1.50)

(additional ingredients: rice noodles, carrots, iceberg lettuce, peanuts, rice vinegar, sugar, limes, fish sauce, garlic, chili flakes)

When people ask me what I miss the most about living in Hawai'i (I lived there for five years), I always tell them--other than the amazing people that I met--it's the FOOD.  Not the weather (which was glorious), or the beaches (which were transcendent), but the amazing diversity and overall deliciousness of the local foods, fresh seafood, and fusion restaurants.  It was in Hawai'i where I fell in love with Vietnamese food, but it has only been in the last couple of months where I have attempted to cook it at home.

Recently, I have been on a bun cha kick.  Bun cha is a noodle dish that is so absolutely delicious: it is the perfect balance of umami, acid, and fat, and has a ton of fresh veggies in it, so it is relatively healthy.  It's also a great summer dish, given that the only thing you need to cook is the pork!

What I did: first, I pickled my carrots and cucumbers with a simple rice vinegar, sugar, salt, and pepper combination.  I placed them in the fridge and let them pickle away while I prepared the other components of the dish.

Next, I pan-fried the porkchops.  I seasoned them simply with salt and pepper, but purists of this dish often marinate them (I was not motivated enough on this particular day!)

The next step was making the sauce that you pour over the finished product--it is called 'nuoc cham', and is used in a lot of Vietnamese dishes--and there is a good recipe for it here.  The only change I made was substituting chili flakes for fresh Thai chili, as I didn't have any around!

This is a horrible picture, but you get the idea.  Also, let me just say: for those of you Midwesterners out there who are of the 'meat and potatoes' variety (like 90% of my family are!) and are turned off by the idea of eating something with' fish sauce' mixed with lime juice (it sounds odd, I know)--have no fear!  It is seriously delicious (as long as you get the proportions correct), and a vital component to this dish.

Okay, so back to the bun cha.  It is now time to compile your ingredients in a big bowl.  Cilantro and shredded iceberg lettuce go on the bottom, followed by a healthy portion of cooked (and consequently chilled) rice noodles.  The bowl is topped off with the pickled carrots and cucumbers, crushed peanuts, and thinly sliced strips of crispy, fatty, delicious pork.  The nuoc cham sauce is then generously spooned on top (if you are serving this dish, the nuoc cham is typically served on the side).  Here is the finished product!

The Verdict

I can honestly say, this is one of my very favorite foods.  It is SO good, so delicious, and absolutely addicting.  And, let me just take a moment to clarify--by no means am I espousing my version of bun cha as absolute or 'authentic' here...this is definitely a white Midwestern girl's version of the Vietnamese classic!  :-)

Taste: 10

Appearance: 7

Creativity: 7

Improvements for next time: fresh Thai chilies in the nuoc cham would be wonderful!