Banh Mi Pork Meatball Sandwiches (GF)

These Banh Mi Pork Meatball Sandwiches are the perfect casual meal that is satisfying and absolutely delicious. They are stuffed with a variety of textures and flavors, making every bite pure delight!

The recipe looks long because it has several components but most of those can be made ahead and they are all simple. This makes it easier to get things ready in a few hours (mostly waiting time) or overnight reducing the stress and time to get the sandwiches made.

Banh Mi (bahn-mee) is perhaps Vietnam’s most celebrated street food. The French introduced breads to the Vietnamese people when Vietnam was one of their colonies. Banh Mi is the Vietnamese term for all forms of breads but has become synonymous with any of the seasoned meat-filled sandwiches made in Vietnamese bakeries, and these days, food trucks, around the world.

Banh mi sandwiches are traditionally made on torpedo-shaped rolls, more light and airy than traditional baguettes with a soft, thin crust similar to a hoagie roll (which would be a good substitute if you can eat gluten). A portion of the interior is scooped out to make room for the seasoned meats, pickled vegetables, and spicy spread.

In a true blending of cuisines, they can often be found with a combination of traditional French and Vietnamese ingredients. The French influences are seen in the use of bread, paté, and mayonnaise, and native Vietnamese ingredients such as cilantro, hot pepper sauce, and pickled vegetables as well as marinade and sauce seasonings add Asian flavors.

If you want a change of pace or are avoiding bread, you can serve the meatballs on their own with a drizzle of the mayo and pickled vegetables on the side. It makes a great light lunch or dinner.  

The flavors of banh mi are expanding beyond the traditional sandwich. The incomparable Andrea Nguyen, celebrated food writer and author of the blog Viet World Kitchen, grew up eating the wonderful foods of her parent’s homeland.

At one point Andrea was challenged to create a mayonnaise that replicated the flavors of the beloved sandwich. With her usual grace and enthusiasm, Andrea jumped at the chance and created this ethereal concoction, Elegant Banh Mi Mayonnaise. Make sure you check out Andrea’s website and if you want even more inspiration, here are a few of her award-winning cookbooks:

Asian Tofu: Discover the Best, Make Your Own, and Cook It at Home

Into the Vietnamese Kitchen: Treasured Foodways, Modern Flavors

Asian Dumplings: Mastering Gyoza, Spring Rolls, Samosas, and More

If you are gluten free, you can find gluten-free hot sauces on the Pepper Palace website. One that is similar to Sriracha is called Red Eye Rooster Hot Sauce. It contains fermented red chiles and is close to the Asian-style sauces. You will find it on page two. Kikkoman also makes a GF version of Sriracha and is a good alternative.

The other sauce ingredient you need to look out for is gluten-free fish sauce. In this article, you are given a list of GF fish sauce brands to choose from. Red Boat and Thai Kitchen are two options for you. You should be able to find them in your grocer’s international aisle or you can buy them online.

While banh mi can be made with any fillings you like, my personal favorite is Asian-flavored pork meatballs. I love this recipe adapted from Epicurious.com and am sure you will too. The condiments and meatballs can be made ahead and cooked later, giving you lots of flexibility. I like to keep some meatballs in the freezer for those days when I can’t get dinner on the table fast enough!

Enjoy this taste of Vietnam with these wonderful Banh Mi Pork Meatball Sandwiches and have a wonderful weekend!

If you try this recipe, let me know! Please leave a star rating in the recipe card, comment below, and don’t forget to snap a pic and tag it @theheritagecook on Instagram! Seeing your creations makes my day and I love hearing from you!

Ingredients needed for Banh Mi Pork Meatball Sandwiches:

• Pickled Vegetables: carrots, daikon radish, unseasoned rice vinegar, sugar, kosher salt
• Hot Chili Mayo: mayonnaise, hot chili sauce (GF if needed)
• Meatballs: ground pork, basil, garlic, green onions, fish sauce, chili sauce, sugar, cornstarch, black pepper, kosher salt, toasted sesame oil
• Sandwiches: bread rolls, green onions, jalapeno peppers, cilantro or parsley sprigs

PRO Tip:

When making sandwiches, they can get thick and hard to eat easily. One way to help control that is to remove some of the soft interior of the bread. This makes more room for your fillings. And when the filling is as bulky as today’s meatballs, it is especially helpful.

How to make Banh Mi Pork Meatball Sandwiches:

1. Pickle the Vegetables: Toss vegetables with the rice vinegar, sugar, and salt in a bowl. Let stand at room temperature for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.
2. Make the Hot Chili Mayo: Make the hot chili mayo in a small bowl, cover and chill. Can be made a day ahead.
3. Make the Meatballs: Mix the meatball mixture and form into balls about 1 tbsp each. Arrange meatballs on a baking sheet, cover and chill. Can be made a day ahead.
4. Sauté the Meatballs: Heat sesame oil in a large skillet and add half the meatballs. Sauté until browned on all sides and cooked to 160°F (71°C) on an instant read thermometer. Transfer to a baking sheet and hold in a low oven. Repeat with remaining meatballs.
5. Bake the Meatballs: Alternately you can preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C). Place formed meatballs on a baking sheet and bake until the center registers about 160°F (71°C) on an instant read thermometer, 12 to 18 minutes. Drizzle with the sesame oil and toss to evenly coat.
6. Assemble the Sandwiches: Split bread rolls in half horizontally and remove some of the soft inside of the bread. Spread the insides of bread with the Chili Mayo. Arrange green onions, jalapenos, and cilantro on the bottom halves. Add 1/4 of the meatballs to each sandwich. Drain the pickled vegetables and scatter them over the tops of the sandwiches. Place the top halves on the sandwiches and serve immediately.

PRO Tip:

For this recipe you are doing a quick pickle of the carrots and daikon radish. You could throw in some cabbage too if you like. The vegetables will retain most of their texture while taking on acid from the vinegar brine. If you can’t find daikon, you can use regular radishes – just slice thinly then cut into mini sticks.

Recommended Tools (affiliate links; no extra cost to you):

• Kitchen scale
• Chef’s knife or paring knife
• Bread knife
• Box grater or vegetable peeler
• Mixing bowls
• Scoop for forming meatballs
• Large skillet
• Instant read thermometer

Gluten-Free Tips:

* You can find gluten-free hot sauces on the Pepper Palace website. One that is similar to Sriracha is called Red Eye Rooster Hot Sauce. It contains fermented red chiles and is close to the Asian-style sauces (it is on page 2). Kikkoman also makes a GF Sriracha hot sauce you may be able to find in stores.

** The other sauce ingredient you need to watch out for is gluten-free fish sauce. In this article, you are given a list of GF fish sauce brands to choose from. Red Boat and Thai Kitchen are two options for you. You should be able to find them in your grocer’s international aisle or you can buy them online.

My personal favorite pre-made gluten-free baguettes are from Schar and can be found at many grocery stores or online. If you prefer to make your own from scratch, this recipe from Authentic Foods is easy and delicious! It uses their Steve’s GF Bread Flour Blend which creates beautiful loaves.

Note that these meatballs do not have any gluten fillers in them, no breadcrumbs. They are pure meat with basil and onions and seasonings, no gluten in sight as long as you use GF seasonings like those listed above!

You will get the best and most consistent results by using a digital kitchen scale and weighing your ingredients, especially when you are baking. And use grams, they are much more accurate than pounds and ounces.

All recommended ingredients are gluten-free as of the writing of this article. Always check to be sure the products haven’t changed and are still safe to consume.

Continue to Content

Yield: 4 servings

Banh Mi Pork Meatball Sandwiches (GF)

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These Banh Mi Pork Meatball Sandwiches are the perfect casual meal that is satisfying and absolutely delicious. They are filled with a variety of textures and flavors, making every bite pure delight! You can either sauté or bake the meatballs, whichever is easiest for you.

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Additional Time 15 minutes

Total Time 1 hour 5 minutes

Ingredients

Pickled Vegetables

• 2 cups (198g) coarsely grated carrots or cut into batons
• 2 cups (198g) coarsely grated peeled daikon (Japanese white radish) * or cut into batons
• 2 thinly sliced red bell peppers, optional
• 1/3 cup (76g) unseasoned rice vinegar
• 1/3 cup (66g) sugar
• 2 tbsp water
• 1 tsp coarse kosher salt

Hot Chili Mayo

• 1/2 cup (113g) mayonnaise
• 2 to 3 tsp hot chili sauce, such as GF Sriracha or other hot sauce *

Meatballs

• 1 lb (454g) ground pork (NOT sausage!)
• 1/4 cup (about 20g) finely chopped fresh basil, lightly packed
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 green onions, finely chopped
• 1 tbsp fish sauce (such as nam pla or nuoc nam), GF if needed **
• 1 tbsp hot chili sauce, such GF Sriracha or other hot sauce *
• 1 tsp granulated sugar
• 2 tsp cornstarch
• 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 1 tbsp Asian sesame oil

Sandwiches

• 4 gluten-free rolls/bread, hoagie rolls, torpedo rolls, or baguettes
• 2 green onions, finely chopped
• Thinly sliced jalapeño chiles
• 16 large fresh cilantro sprigs or parsley

Instructions

1. Pickled Vegetables: Stir together the vinegar, sugar, water, and salt in a medium bowl, until the sugar is dissolved. Toss the carrots, daikon, and in the bowl. Let stand at room temperature 60 to 90 minutes, tossing occasionally.

2. Hot Chili Mayonnaise: Stir ingredients in a small bowl. Season with salt. Cover and chill. Can be made 1 day ahead.

3. Season and Form the Meatballs: Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment or foil. Spread the ground pork into the bottom and up the sides of a bowl and add remaining ingredients, sprinkling them ingredients evenly over the meat. Gently mix all the meatball ingredients together. Using moistened hands or wearing latex gloves, and pinching off about a tablespoonful for each, roll the meat mixture into 1-inch meatballs. Arrange on the prepared baking sheet. Cover with plastic wrap and chill at least 30 minutes. Can be made 1 day ahead. There should be about 16 to 20 meatballs.

4. Preheat the oven to 300°F (149°C).

5. To Sauté the Meatballs: Heat the sesame oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add half of the meatballs. Sauté until brown on all sides and cooked through, turning meatballs often, and lowering heat if browning too quickly, about 15 minutes. Transfer meatballs to another rimmed baking sheet. Place in the oven. Repeat with the remaining meatballs, keeping them warm in the low oven.

6. To Bake the Meatballs. Alternately you can preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C). Place formed meatballs on a parchment-lined baking sheet, sprinkle each with a few drops of toasted sesame oil, and bake until the center registers about 160°F (71°C) on an instant read thermometer, 12 to 18 minutes. This is my preferred method of cooking these meatballs.

7. If they aren’t browned enough for your taste, you can put them under the broiler for a few minutes or lightly fry them just enough to brown them slightly.

8. Assemble the Sandwiches: Cut each roll or bread in half horizontally or slice along the length of the top of the bread. Pull out enough of the center of each half to leave 1/2-inch-thick (1.2cm) shell. Spread the hot chili mayo over each bread shell.

9. Arrange some green onions, jalapeños, then cilantro, on the bottom halves of the bread. Fill each with 1/4 of the meatballs. Drain the pickled vegetables and place the vegetables over and around the meatballs. Tuck a little more cilantro in the top. Press the top halves of the bread/rolls over the fillings. Serve immediately. Pass additional hot sauce at the table.

Recipe found at www.theheritagecook.com

Notes

GF stands for gluten free.

* Available in the Asian foods section or produce area of many supermarkets and at Asian markets. Sauces also available online. You can find gluten-free hot sauces on the Pepper Palace website. One that is similar to Sriracha is called Red Eye Rooster Hot Sauce. It contains fermented red chiles and is close to the Asian-style sauces (it is on page 2). Kikkoman also makes a GF Sriracha hot sauce you may be able to find in stores or online.

* * The other sauce ingredient you need to watch out for is gluten-free fish sauce. In this article, you are given a list of GF fish sauce brands to choose from. Red Boat and Thai Kitchen are two options for you. You should be able to find them in your grocer’s international aisle or you can buy them online.

You will get the best results by using a digital kitchen scale and weighing your ingredients, especially when you are baking. And use grams, they are much more accurate than pounds and ounces.

All recommended ingredients are gluten-free as of the writing of this article. Always check to be sure the products haven’t changed and are still safe to consume.

Adapted from an Epicurious recipe

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

4

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 619Total Fat: 17gSaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 11gCholesterol: 32mgSodium: 1980mgCarbohydrates: 92gFiber: 9gSugar: 15gProtein: 27g

The nutritional information for recipes on this site is calculated by online tools and is merely an estimate. If you need nutritional calculations for medical reasons, please use a source that you trust.

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