Vietnamese Pork Meatball Banh Mi Fried Rice Recipes

Steps:

• For the pickled vegetables: Stir the vinegar, sugar, salt and 1/2 cup water together in a small bowl until the sugar and salt are dissolved. Add the carrots and daikon. Marinate until ready to serve.
• For the pork meatballs: Mix the pork, cilantro, soy sauce, cornstarch, sugar, salt, garlic and green onion together in a large bowl. Scoop the meatball mixture into 12 golf-sized balls and roll. Heat the oil in a pan over medium heat and add the meatballs. Cook for 4 minutes. Flip and cook until completely cooked through, another 4 minutes.
• For the bahn mi: Cut the pieces of baguette in half lengthwise and warm in a 375 degree F oven or on a skillet until slightly toasty. Spread hoisin on one side, sriracha and mayonnaise on the other. Add the cucumber slices, cilantro sprigs and jalapeno slices. Add 3 meatballs and the pickled vegetables. Serve.

Steps:

• To make the do chua:
• Combine the daikon and carrot on a colander set in the sink. Sprinkle with salt, and massage the vegetables until they're bendable and have expelled their liquid. In a medium bowl, combine the vinegar, water, and sugar. Stir until the sugar is dissolved. Add the carrot and daikon, pressing to make sure the vegetables are mostly submerged. Cover and refrigerate at least an hour before using, and up to several weeks.
• To make the meatballs:
• In a food processor, combine the lemongrass, garlic, and green onions. Pulse until finely chopped. Add the fish sauce, sriracha, salt, and pork; pulse until just combined. (Alternatively, you can very finely chop the lemongrass, garlic, and green onions by hand or use a mortar and pestle, then mix with the remaining ingredients. Filling can be made several days ahead and refrigerated.) Roll the meat mixture into heaping teaspoon-size meatballs (alternatively, you can roll just half into meatballs and use a combination of ground pork and meatballs in the fried rice).
• To make the fried rice:
• Heat the oil in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add the meatballs and brown on all sides, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a plate. (If you rolled only half the mixture into meatballs, now sauté the ground pork in the pan until cooked through, then transfer to the plate.) Add the green onions and sauté until browned, about 2 minutes. Add the rice and sauté until warmed through and softened, then continue sautéing until the rice seems firm again, about 3 minutes. Add the meatballs and cook until warmed through. In a small bowl, combine the soy sauce, fish sauce, and sriracha. Drizzle the mixture over the rice and stir until evenly coated.