Caramel Pork Bánh Mì Bowl

📝 Ingredients

• 500 g pork mince
• 300 g jasmine rice (uncooked weight)
• 3 carrots (about 240 g)
• 150 g radishes
• 1 cucumber
• 100 ml rice vinegar
• 4 tbsp caster sugar (50 g)
• 2 tbsp fish sauce
• 3 garlic cloves
• 3 spring onions
• 20 g fresh coriander
• 3 tbsp mayonnaise + 1 tsp sriracha sauce (for the sauce)
• Salt, black pepper

🍴 Utensils

• Saucepan with lid
• Large non-stick frying pan
• Mixing bowl
• Fine sieve
• Peeler
• Wooden spatula

📖 Steps

1. Rinse the jasmine rice in the fine sieve until the water runs almost clear. Put it in the saucepan with 480 ml water and a pinch of salt, bring to the boil, cover and cook for 12 minutes over a low heat. Leave to stand for 10 minutes off the heat without lifting the lid.
2. Quick pickles: in the mixing bowl, stir together the rice vinegar, 100 ml water, 2 tbsp sugar and 1 tsp salt until dissolved. Peel the carrots and cut them into thin matchsticks, thinly slice the radishes, add them to the mixture and leave to marinate for at least 20 minutes.
3. Cut the cucumber into half-moons, chop the coriander, chop the garlic and slice the spring onions, keeping the white and green parts separate. Mix the mayonnaise and sriracha in a small bowl and keep in the fridge.
4. Caramel: put the remaining 2 tbsp sugar in the frying pan over a medium heat with 1 tbsp water. Heat for 3 to 4 minutes without stirring, gently tilting the pan, until you have a light golden caramel. Careful, it's scalding hot; any darker and it would turn bitter.
5. Immediately add the minced pork, garlic and white parts of the spring onions: the caramel will sizzle and harden in places, which is normal. Turn up to a medium-high heat and break up the meat with the spatula for 6 to 8 minutes, until the caramel melts again and the pork is browned with no trace of pink.
6. Pour in the fish sauce, season generously with pepper and cook for another 2 to 3 minutes, until the liquid has evaporated and the meat is glossy and slightly sticky. Don't add salt: the fish sauce provides all the salt you need.
7. Drain the pickles. Divide the rice between 4 bowls, then arrange the pork, pickled carrots and radishes and cucumber on top. Scatter over the coriander and spring onion greens, and serve the sriracha mayo on the side so everyone can add as much as they like.