Chicken Asian

Choose-your-own-adventure loaded banh mi

Name: Loaded banh mi sandwich recipe
Yield: 4
Cuisine: /asian
Ingredients: 2 large carrots, peeled and cut into matchsticks; 100g caster sugar; 100ml rice wine vinegar or cider vinegar; 1 × quantity Quick cucumber, garlic & chilli pickle (see notesl); 4 long Vietnamese or ordinary baguettes, halved; or long, crusty bread rolls; 80.00 ml mayonnaise; 80.00 ml sriracha, sambal oelek or sambal bajak (from Asian grocers, see note; Drizzle of liquid seasoning (optional); 20 regular or 16 chunky fish fingers, cooked (4-5 per banh mi), or 1 × quantity sesame & soy-lacquered chicken (see notes, 100g per banh mi); 2 long green shallots, thinly sliced; 8 long, thin slices of cucumber; Leaves of little gem, romaine or cos lettuce, torn into large pieces; 1 long red chilli, sliced (deseeded if you prefer less heat); 8 coriander stems, stalks and leaves left whole; 40.00 ml salted roasted peanuts, roughly chopped; 40.00 ml shop-bought crispy fried shallots

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P101 Choose-your-own-adventure loaded banh mi

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by Lara Lee

CHEF, COOKBOOK AUTHOR

Jul 09, 2023

“My take on banh mi here encourages you to ‘choose your own adventure’, so to speak. In addition to the filling options below, you can also try lemongrass pork burgers, beef or shredded leftover roast chicken, such as the tom yum chicken recipe (see notes). A good banh mi should be loaded – by which I mean you must be generous with the fillings. Don’t be shy with meat, fish finger or chicken quantities, and stuff the sandwich with vegetables and herbs until it’s bursting at the seams. Finish off the sandwich with as many condiments as you can dream up: extra dollops of sambal or sriracha and more mayonnaise, always more mayonnaise.” – Lara Lee

2 large carrots, peeled and cut into matchsticks
100g caster sugar
100ml rice wine vinegar or cider vinegar
1 × quantity Quick cucumber, garlic & chilli pickle (see notesl)
4 long Vietnamese or ordinary baguettes, halved; or long, crusty bread rolls
4 tbs mayonnaise
4 tbs sriracha, sambal oelek or sambal bajak (from Asian grocers, see note
Drizzle of Maggi liquid seasoning (optional)

Your choice of hero filling

20 regular or 16 chunky fish fingers, cooked (4-5 per banh mi), or 1 × quantity sesame & soy-lacquered chicken (see notes, 100g per banh mi)

Your choice of vegetables and garnishes

2 long green shallots, thinly sliced
8 long, thin slices of cucumber
Leaves of little gem, romaine or cos lettuce, torn into large pieces
1 long red chilli, sliced (deseeded if you prefer less heat)
8 coriander stems, stalks and leaves left whole
2 tbs salted roasted peanuts, roughly chopped
2 tbs shop-bought crispy fried shallots

Method

1.

Place carrot, sugar, vinegar and a pinch of fine sea salt in a bowl and set aside for at least 15 minutes. Make a quick cucumber, garlic and chilli pickle (see notes), if using. Prepare your chosen hero filling.
2.

Spread one side of each baguette with 1 tbs mayonnaise. Spread the other side with 1 tbs sriracha or sambal.
3.

Layer each banh mi with the hot filling, top with 4 tbs drained pickled carrot and drained pickled cucumber, if using, then fill with your remaining chosen vegetables and garnishes.
4.

Drizzle with Maggi seasoning, if using. Close the banh mi and serve.