• FQAM Online: Volume Two
• Variety
  • Differentiation: Where the Profits Are
  • Innovation with Latin Flavors
• Sustainability
  • What Can Food Service Do?
  • Conquering "Can't-Be-Done" Thinking
• Flavor
  • The Mechanics of Taste
  • Flavor Experiment
• Innovation
  • What's New? What's Next?
  • Sandwiches with a Vietnamese Accent
• Online Marketplace
• Resources and Recipes
  • Conference Resources
  • Moroccan Charmoula
  • Romesco Sauce and Romesco Vinaigrette
  • Harissa Vinaigrette and Mayonnaise
  • Vietnamese Sandwich
  • Vietnamese Braised Pork
  • Marinated Daikon and Carrots
  • Coriander Vinaigrette
• FQAM Online: Volume One

Sandwiches with a Vietnamese Accent

Baguette sandwiches? In Vietnam?

If you're a street-food aficionado, you won't want to miss the irresistible banh mi (baguette sandwich) sold from street carts throughout Vietnam. The French, who occupied this Southeast Asian country for almost a century, left behind a taste for baguettes and baguette sandwiches. A Vietnamese baguette looks just like it came from a Paris bakery, but the Vietnamese have put their own delicious stamp on the sandwiches.

A typical banh mi starts with a light, airy baguette split down the middle. The banh mi vendor will have several filling options on his or her cart and will make the sandwich to the customer's taste—a little more of this, a little less of that—but the foundation is almost always pork. You might have thin slices of roast pork topped with slices of an unusual pork pâté flavored with five-spice powder, and perhaps a slice or two of paper-thin ham.

Next come the vegetables: julienned and lightly pickled daikon and carrots, plus strips of refreshing cucumber. Fresh herbs go in next, probably leaves of whole cilantro. Some sliced fresh chilies or a chili-based condiment usually tops it off. The finished sandwich is full of contrasts: crunchy and smooth, sweet and tart, fiery and cool, spicy and herbal. It is easy to become addicted, but fortunately, a banh mi vendor is never far away.

Mai Pham, the Vietnamese chef-owner of Sacramento's Lemongrass restaurant, believes that banh mi could be a hit in a Western foodservice operation. She makes her delectable version with some touches that would appeal to an American palate: a mayonnaise flavored with roasted peanut oil and fried shallots; a highly-seasoned ground pork filling; and slices of slow-braised pork seasoned with five-spice and soy sauce. Take a look at the recipe for Pham's Vietnamese Sandwich.

And good news: The sandwiches can be batch prepared. "The busy stores in San Jose [California] premake them and wrap them with wax paper and a rubber band," says Pham. "Thirty to sixty minutes ahead is okay."

A small Vietnamese sandwich with a salad or cup of soup could energize your lunch menu. And because an authentic banh mi is light on the meat and heavy on the vegetables, the sandwich can be a profitable addition.