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Lemongrass-Barbecued Pork with Rice-Vermicelli Salad

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Lemongrass-Barbecued Pork with Rice-Vermicelli Salad

  • healthy HEALTHY
ACTIVE TIME: 1 HR
TOTAL TIME: 3 HRS including marinating
SERVES: 6
Mai My Lin, one of the chefs Kiesel met at the Nha Trang night market, prepares an aromatic and pungent marinade for grilled pork with two quintessential Vietnamese ingredients—lemongrass and fish sauce. The real surprise here is Mai's zesty Carrot and Daikon Pickles, which are amazing with the smoky grilled meat.
ingredients

BARBECUED PORK

  • 4 large garlic cloves, thickly sliced
  • 3 large stalks of fresh lemongrass, tender inner white bulb only, sliced crosswise
  • 2 large shallots, thickly sliced
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
  • 3 tablespoons Asian fish sauce
  • 3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
  • 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 2 tablespoons soy sauce
  • 1 1/2 pounds boneless pork loin, sliced 1/4 inch thick

RICE-VERMICELLI SALAD

  • 1/2 pound rice vermicelli
  • 4 medium garlic cloves, quartered
  • 3 Thai chiles or 1 large jalapeño, thickly sliced
  • 3 tablespoons sugar
  • 1/4 cup Asian fish sauce
  • 1/2 cup finely chopped cilantro
  • 1/2 cup finely chopped mint
  • 1/4 cup fresh lime juice
  • 1/3 cup water
  • 2 large cucumbers—peeled, halved lengthwise, seeded and thinly sliced crosswise
  • Carrot and Daikon Pickles, for serving
directions
  1. PREPARE THE PORK: In a food processor, finely chop the garlic, lemongrass and shallots. Add the sugar, fish sauce, lime juice, vegetable oil and soy sauce and process to a paste. In a large shallow dish, coat the pork with the marinade. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour and up to 11/2 hours.
  2. MAKE THE RICE-VERMICELLI SALAD: In a large bowl, cover the rice vermicelli with cold water and let soak until pliable, about 20 minutes.
  3. In a large mortar, using a pestle, pound the garlic cloves to a paste with the chiles and sugar. Stir in the fish sauce, cilantro, mint, lime juice and water.
  4. Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil over high heat. Drain the rice vermicelli. Add it to the boiling water and cook, stirring, until barely tender, about 1 minute. Drain the vermicelli. Rinse the vermicelli in cold water and drain them thoroughly. Transfer the vermicelli to a large bowl, add the cilantro-and-mint dressing and toss well. Scatter the sliced cucumbers over the rice-vermicelli salad.
  5. Light a grill. Lift the pork slices from the marinade, leaving on some of the flavorings. Grill the pork over a hot fire until nicely charred, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer the pork to plates and serve with the rice-vermicelli salad. Pass the Carrot and Daikon Pickles at the table.

MAKE AHEAD The marinated pork and the dressing for the rice-vermicelli salad can be refrigerated overnight.

wine recommendation This dish is sweet, tangy, fragrant and spicy all at once—a tough combination for most grape varieties, but ideal for an aromatic, off-dry (i.e., slightly sweet) Riesling. Though New Zealand is primarily known for Sauvignon Blanc, it's also an up-and-coming Riesling producer. Try the 2005 Felton Road, which smells appropriately enough of kiwis, or the slightly sweeter 2005 Grove Mill.

Search for easy-to-find soft, off-dry riesling
Recipe by Marcia Kiesel
From A Cook's Vietnam Journal, Game Day
This recipe originally appeared in May, 2006.