Bun cha is a Vietnamese dish of grilled pork with vermicelli, heaps of fresh vegetables and herbs, and an exquisite dipping sauce. The contrast of crunchy salad, yielding noodles and bursts of flavour from the herbs and meat is completely captivating; I’ve recreated it here using prawn patties instead of pork. Skip over to Japan, meanwhile, and you’ll find that ginger, herbs, rice vinegar and fresh lime are used with similar dexterity to make rice bowls of amazing depth of flavour. In both today’s recipes, the bulk of each dish is made up of complex carbs and bundles of vegetables and herbs, with comparatively little protein, which, for me, is the epitome of modern, healthy eating. If you are vegetarian, substitute the fish or meat with fried or soaked tofu, or even toasted nuts.
Prawn bun cha
The dipping sauce should be sharp, sweet and savoury, with a fiery bite: as with all such south-east Asian sauces, it’s about getting the right balance. Serves four to six.
600g raw prawns
6 coriander stems (stalk and leaves), rinsed and roughly chopped
5cm piece fresh ginger, peeled and roughly chopped
2 garlic cloves, peeled, inner green shoot removed, roughly chopped
1 bird’s eye chilli, roughly chopped, seeds and all
2 lemongrass stalks, outer layer discarded, bruised and roughly chopped
4 tsp fish sauce
3 tsp rice vinegar
1½ tbsp vegetable oil
For the dipping sauce
3 tsp palm sugar or brown sugar
4 tbsp fish sauce
2 tbsp rice-wine vinegar
Juice of 2 fat limes, plus 1 lime cut into wedges, to serve
1 banana shallot, peeled and finely chopped
1 garlic clove, peeled, inner green shoot removed, finely chopped
1-2 bird’s eye chillies, finely chopped, seeds and all
For the salad
2 carrots, peeled and shredded
1 cucumber, cut in half and watery core removed, then shredded
½ head butter lettuce, leaves separated, washed and dried
1 large handful each mint, coriander and Thai basil leaves (or ordinary basil)
300g thin rice noodles
Put the prawns, coriander, ginger, garlic, chilli, lemongrass, fish sauce and vinegar in a food processor, and blitz. Add more fish sauce or vinegar to taste: it should be sharp and nicely rounded, with the individual ingredients all standing out. Shape into flattish, tablespoon-size patties and put in the fridge.
If you’re using palm sugar for the dressing (it has a deeper flavour than brown), melt it in a small saucepan, then whisk in the fish sauce, vinegar and lime juice; otherwise, just whisk normal sugar into the liquids. Add the remaining dressing ingredients and adjust the seasoning with fish sauce, lime or sugar, to balance the flavours.
Divide the salad ingredients between four bowls. Put the noodles in a large bowl, cover with boiling water, leave for three minutes (or according to the instructions), then rinse under cold water. Loosen with a teaspoon of vegetable oil, divvy up between the bowls, and spoon a teaspoon of dressing on each portion.
To finish, heat the oil in a frying pan on a medium-high heat and fry the patties for three to four minutes, until golden, then turn and repeat on the other side (cut into one to make sure it’s cooked through). Serve at once, or keep warm in the oven until you are ready. Serve with the rest of the sauce in a small bowl.
Japanese rice bowl with roast chicken, carrot and ginger
I can’t think of many better ways to use up leftovers in such a healthy and delicious manner. Serves two.
150-200g brown rice
1½ tbsp coconut oil
Salt
1½ tbsp rice vinegar
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp toasted sesame oil
1 tsp freshly grated ginger
Juice 1 lime, plus extra halves to serve
200g spring greens
200-300g leftover roast chicken, pulled apart (or tofu)
½ ripe mango, peeled and sliced
3 medium carrots, grated
2 spring onions, finely sliced (optional)
¼ tsp crushed chilli flakes
1 handful coriander leaves
1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds (ideally a mix of black and white)
Put the rice in a pan with double its volume in water. Add a tablespoon of coconut oil and half a teaspoon of salt, bring to a boil, then turn down to a simmer and cook until the water is absorbed. Turn off the heat, cover and leave the rice to finish cooking in its own steam.
Meanwhile, mix the vinegar, soy, sesame oil, ginger and lime juice, then pour half into each of two deep serving bowls.
Heat the remaining coconut oil in a large wok on a high heat, then stir-fry the greens; after a minute, add three to four tablespoons of water and a few pinches of salt, cover and steam for just two minutes, so they don’t lose that lovely green colour.
Spoon the rice over the dressing in the bowls, and top with the chicken, greens, mango, carrot, onion and chilli to taste. Scatter over the herbs and sesame seeds, and serve with extra dried chilli, lime wedges and, if you have them, chilli oil and pickled ginger.
And for the rest of the week…
Finely chop any leftover lemongrass and store it in the freezer: it will come in handy for a fast, impromptu Thai curry paste. (While you’re at it, do the same with any excess fresh chillies.) Make double the quantity of dipping sauce, but add the garlic only to what you will use straight away; the rest keeps well in the fridge, and can be used to liven up any salad or plate of grilled veg or chicken. You can use pretty much anything you have leftover in the fridge to make a comforting Japanese rice bowl: smoked fish, sliced steak, the odds and ends of herb packets, a tin of bamboo shoots or one of those half-bags of beansprouts that never seem to get finished – they’re all great.
