Char Siu Banh Mi

For the char siu:
Put all of the char siu ingredients (everything but the pork chops) into a small bowl, and mix well. Add the pork into a gallon sized Ziplock bag and add the sauce. Give the pork a nice massage, making sure you incorporate the sauce onto the pork. Seal the bag, removing as much air as possible, then tuck it away in the refrigerator for the night.

The following day when you are ready to make the pork, remove it from the refrigerator about 30 minutes before placing it on the grill. Heat your grill to medium heat. Once the grill is not add the pork and cook until the pork is cooked and no longer pink in the middle, about 12 minutes. Then remove the pork from the grill, put it on a plate and transfer it to your cutting board. Chop the pork while you preheat your oven to 350 F.

Take your whole baguette, or bolillo roll and warm it in the 350 F oven for 3 minutes. Then remove it from the oven and put it on your work surface.

Slice the roll in half (sandwich style), and smear the Braunschweiger on the cut side of the bottom roll. Top the Braunschweiger with the sliced cucumbers, then cilantro, the chopped char siu, fresh jalapeños, the pickled carrots and daikon. Then smear the mayonnaise on the cut side of the top roll and pop it onto your sandwich.

Dig in. Any bite into a Vietnamese banh mi is amazing. This one is just as amazing. You get great heat from the jalapeño. But the heat is mellowed with the pickled vegetables, the sweet Chinese char siu, and the freshness of the cilantro and cucumber. And that is only trumped by that wonderful Braunschweiger. As I continued to eat this sandwich, I thought, this is probably one of the best sandwiches out there. And yet so few have taken a chance and had a banh mi. Two words. Make this. This Char Siu Banh Mi is awesome!