Bún Chả Hà Nội: Vietnamese Grilled Pork with Rice Noodles
Classic Northern Vietnamese Street Food

Bún Chả is the defining culinary treasure of Vietnam's capital Hanoi. No Reise nach Vietnam is complete without sampling this comforting balance of smoky grilled pork, cold vermicelli, fresh herbs, and warm dipping broth.

Ingredients

For 2 servings · Prep 25 min · Cooking 15 min

• 200 gground pork (with a bit of fat)
• 150 gpork belly (thinly sliced)
• 150 gdried thin rice vermicelli (Bún, found in Asian grocery stores)
• 2 tbspVietnamese fish sauce (Nước mắm)
• 1 tbspoyster sauce
• 1 tbspcane sugar
• 2 clovesgarlic (finely minced)
• 2shallots (finely minced)
• 1/2 tspblack pepper (freshly ground)
• 60 gcarrot (thinly sliced into flowers or disks)
• 60 gkohlrabi or green papaya (thinly sliced)
• 300 mlwarm water
• 3 tbspfish sauce (for the broth)
• 2 tbspsugar (for the broth)
• 2 tbsprice vinegar or lime juice
• 1 handfulfresh herbs (cilantro, mint, Vietnamese perilla/tía tô)
• 4 leavesbutterhead or leaf lettuce

Method

1. Mix minced garlic, shallots, 2 tbsp fish sauce, 1 tbsp oyster sauce, 1 tbsp sugar, and black pepper. Combine half of this marinade with the ground pork and the other half with the pork belly slices.
   5 Min
2. Toss the sliced carrot and kohlrabi with 1 tsp vinegar and 1 tsp sugar in a small bowl to lightly pickle them.
   3 Min
3. For the dipping broth, stir warm water, 3 tbsp fish sauce, 2 tbsp sugar, and 2 tbsp rice vinegar together until sugar dissolves. Keep slightly warm.
   3 Min
4. Shape the ground pork mixture into small, slightly flattened patties about the size of a walnut (approx. 6 to 8 pieces).
   4 Min
5. Cook rice vermicelli in boiling water according to package instructions, drain in a colander, rinse thoroughly under cold water, and shake dry.
   4–5 Min
6. Heat an oiled grill pan or cast-iron skillet over high heat. Sear the patties and pork belly slices on both sides until nicely charred and fully cooked through.
   5–6 Min
7. Divide the warm dipping broth into two bowls, add the quick-pickled vegetables and hot grilled meat. Serve noodles, lettuce, and fresh herbs on separate side plates.
   2 Min

Tip

Traditional vendors cook meat over open charcoal; a dash of dark caramel syrup in the pan will help mimic that authentic charred street food flavor found in classic vietnamesischen Rezepten.

Ordering it on holiday

Street vendors serve this piping hot directly from small charcoal grills; you can also find it clearly labeled in southern spots like Saigon or coastal Da Nang. At local street stalls, a bowl typically costs between 40,000 and 60,000 VND.

Pair this dish with crispy fried spring rolls (Nem Rán). Discover more Southeast Asian dishes in our Übersicht aller Rezepte or plan your beach escape to Phu Quoc.