Vietnamese Noodle Salad with Pork
Yield: 4 servings
A fresh and easy recipe featuring rice noodles, crunchy vegetables, herbs, and quick-seared pork with big, bold flavor. Serve with a light, bright rice vinegar dressing to bring it all together.
Equipment
Ingredients
for the pork:
- 1 lb. pork tenderloin
- 3 T. sugar
- 1 T. fish sauce
- 3 T. sesame oil divided
- 1 T. soy sauce
- 2 tsp. ground black pepper
- 1 tsp. kosher salt
- 1 large clove garlic minced
for the sauce:
- 1-1/2 c. water
- ¼ c. rice vinegar
- 1-1/2 T. fish sauce
- 3 T. sugar
- 1 medium garlic clove minced
- ½ tsp. kosher salt
- 1 pinch crushed red pepper
for the noodle salad:
- 12 oz. thin white rice noodles (use very thin vermicelli or ones that are a bit thicker
- 4 to 6 c. sliced romaine or iceberg lettuce
- 1 to 2 large carrots julienned (this julienne peeler works great)
- half of a large English cucumber sliced into thin rounds
- 1 c. bean sprouts
- 1 bunch fresh cilantro coursely chop or tear, if desired
- 1 bunch fresh mint coursely chop or tear, if desired
- fresh lime wedges
Instructions
- for the pork: Place pork tenderloin in freezer to chill for 30 minutes. Remove from freezer and cut crosswise into very thin slices, about 1/8" thick. Then cut each slice in half lengthwise. Place pork pieces in a wide shallow bowl or large zip-top baggie.
- In a small bowl, stir together sugar, fish sauce, 1 tablespoon of the sesame oil, soy sauce, black pepper, salt, and garlic. Pour mixture over pork pieces and fold several times to ensure the marinade is thoroughly mixed in with the pork. Cover bowl and place in refrigerator to marinate for 1 hour. Meanwhile, prepare the sauce and noodles.
- for the sauce: In a small saucepan over medium to medium-high heat, stir together all sauce ingredients. Once sugar and salt have dissolved, remove from heat to cool to room temperature.
- for the noodle salad: Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil. Add rice noodles, stir, and turn off heat. Let noodles soften according to the package directions, then drain and rinse in cold water in a colander. Shake very well to remove water and leave sit in colander at room temperature.
- Divide noodles amongst four low wide bowls or plates. Top each with lettuce, carrots, cucumber, bean sprouts, cilantro, mint, and lime.
- Remove pork from refrigerator. Heat a large cast iron skillet over medium-high to high heat. When hot, add remaining 2 tablespoons of the sesame oil and swirl around the bottom of the skillet. When oil is shimmering, carefully add pork. Separate pork pieces to cover bottom of skillet. Let pork sit without stirring for about 1 minute, to caramelize. Fold and repeat until pork is cooked through, about 5 minutes. Total cook time will depend on how thin the pork is cut, etc.
- Divide hot pork amongst each of the four bowls. Serve with sauce to pour over individual bowls.
Notes
Inspired by the Vietnamese noodle salad at Thanh Truc Restaurant.
Nutrition Information:
Serving: 1 Calories: 470kcal Carbohydrates: 68g Protein: 38g Fat: 6g Saturated Fat: 2g Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g Cholesterol: 83mg Sodium: 1005mg Fiber: 10g Sugar: 25g
Nutrition information is automatically calculated by Spoonacular. I am not a nutritionist and cannot guarantee accuracy. If your health depends on nutrition information, please calculate again with your own favorite calculator.