vietnamese meatball banh mi

By sanmo_babe

Ingredients

• Meatballs:
• • 1¼ pounds ground pork
• • 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• • 1 tablespoon minced sha&ot
• • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• • 2 teaspoons sugar, divided
• • 2 tablespoons fish sauce, divided
• • ⅓ cup coconut milk
• Sandwiches:
• • Four 8-inch baguette sections, split
• • ¼ cup unsalted butter, so+ened
• • Mayonnaise
• • Sriracha chile sauce
• • 16 Vietnamese Meatba&s, cut in half
• • 2 cups Pickled Carrot and Radish Salad (recipe follows)
• • 2 cups loosely packed cilantro sprigs, tough stems removed

Preparation

Step 1

1. Make the meatballs: Preheat the oven to 425°. Line a large, rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. In a medium bowl, combine the ground pork with the garlic, shallot, salt, 1 teaspoon of the sugar and 1 tablespoon of the fish sauce. Form the meat into 16 golf-ball-size meatballs.

2. In a small bowl, combine the coconut milk with the
remaining 1 teaspoon of sugar and the remaining 1
tablespoon fish sauce.

3. Lay the meatballs on the prepared baking sheet, transfer to the oven and bake for 15 minutes. Brush the meatballs with the coconut-milk mixture and return to the oven for another 20 minutes, until the meatballs are browned and the coconut milk is caramelized. Remove from the oven and brush the meatballs with the caramelized coconut milk that has pooled around them. If you are making the banh mi now, continue to the next step (leave the oven on). If not, wrap the meatballs in foil and refrigerate overnight; to reheat, place the foil-wrapped meatballs in a 425° oven for 15 minutes.

4.Assemble the banh mi: On a rimmed baking sheet, arrange the baguette halves cut side up, brush with the softened butter and toast until they begin to brown around the edges, about 7 minutes. Remove from the oven and let stand until cool enough to handle.

5. Spread mayonnaise on 4 of the baguette halves and top with Sriracha to taste. Arrange 8 meatball halves, cut side down, on the other 4 baguette halves and top the meatballs with ½ cup of the Pickled Carrot and Radish Salad, followed by a handful of the cilantro sprigs. Then place the mayonnaise-spread baguette half on top and cut each sandwich in half. Pack the banh mi in foil or wax paper.