Banh Mi Thit Hoi An (Vietnamese Pork Sandwich) - cooking recipe

Ingredients

1 teaspoon five-spice powder
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1/4 cup shallot
1 garlic clove, minced
12 ounces ground lean pork
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
3 (8 ounce) French baguettes
2 tablespoons red chili paste
8 ounces pork loin or 8 ounces ham, thinly sliced
2 cups English cucumbers, thinly sliced
3 cups mixed salad greens, rinsed and crisped
1/2 cup Thai basil, rinsed and cut into 1 inch pieces
Fried Shallots (Hahn Phi)
1 cup shallot, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Preparation

In a frying pan over medium-high heat, stir five spice powder until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
Stir in oil, shallots and garlic. Add ground pork and stir often, breaking apart with spoon, until meat is crumbly and no longer pink, about 15 minute.
Fried Shallots: In another frying pan, stirfry 1 cup shallots and 2 tbsp vegetable oil until crisp and golden, 6-10 minute Remove from pan and rest on absorbent paper.
Add soy sauce, sugar and salt to ground pork. Stir well and cook for two minutes.
Cut baguettes in half crosswise, then split lengthwise almost all the way through the loaf, leaving halves attached at one side.
Spread 1 tsp chili paste on bottom cut side of each baguette.
Spoon about 1/6 of the warm ground pork mixture, including juices, over chili paste. Tuck 1/6 of the pork slices evenly into each sandwich. Cover with 1/2 cup salad greens and 1/6 of the basil leaves. Top with thin layer of cucumber slices.
Serve immediately or wrap in plastic wrap and chill for lunches, picnics, etc.