Beef Banh Mi Bowl

Taking inspiration from the popular Vietnamese sandwich to create a satisfying beef banh mi bowl. Loaded with banh mi spiced beef, pickled carrots, fresh cucumbers, and a delicious jalapeno cilantro sauce, this bowl makes an incredibly satisfying meal.

Watch how to make this

Ingredients

• Ground beef: The main protein of the dish, providing substance and flavor.
• Spices: To mimic the spices of banh mi, I used a combination of star anise, coriander, clove, cinnamon, fennel, and cardamom.
• Sambal: A type of chili sauce with fiery heat and bold flavor. If you can't find sambal, use Sriracha or another type of chili sauce instead.
• Jalapeno: The chili pepper adds moderate spice to the spicy jalapeno cilantro sauce. If you prefer a milder version, omit the seeds.
• Fish sauce: The fermented fish sauce adds a deeply savory flavor to the beef. You can substitute it with soy sauce if you prefer but the flavor will be slightly different.
• Soy sauce: Used to season the beef, adding umami and salt to the dish.

Substitutions and variations

• Protein: You can use ground chicken, turkey, or pork instead of ground beef. For a vegetarian option, use tofu or tempeh.
• Gluten-free: Use gluten-free fish sauce and gluten-free tamari instead of soy sauce.

Step-by-step instructions

Step 1: Prepare the toppings

Let's start making the beef banh mi bowl by preparing the toppings. To pickle the carrots, combine rice vinegar, granulated sugar, and salt in a small saucepot and bring it to a boil. Let it simmer until the sugar and salt have dissolved. Pour the brine over thinly sliced carrots and allow them to sit for at least 30 minutes or even overnight for more flavor infusion. You can prepare the pickled carrots up to 1 week in advance.

Next, make the spicy jalapeno cilantro sauce. In a blender, combine cilantro, mayonnaise, jalapeno, garlic clove, and lime juice. If you want a spicier sauce, include the seeds, and feel free to increase the number of jalapenos. Blend the ingredients until you achieve a smooth consistency. Season the sauce with salt and pepper according to your taste preferences and set the sauce aside for later use. You can also make the sauce up to 3 days in advance.

Step 2: Cook beef

In a small saute pan, toast fennel seeds, coriander seeds, clove, star anise, and cinnamon stick over medium heat until they become aromatic, approximately 2-3 minutes. Remove the toasted spices from the heat and grind them into a fine powder using a spice grinder. Combine the ground spices with salt and ground cardamom. This mixture will serve as your banh mi spice mix. You will have extra seasoning mixture but that means it'll save you a step next time you make this bowl!

Although toasting whole spices yields the best results, you can use pre-ground spices. Pre-ground spices aren't as aromatic and can have a duller taste than grinding them fresh. But sometimes life gets too busy and we have to take a couple of shortcuts. No judgment on my part!

In a large saute pan, heat a tablespoon of oil over medium-high heat. Add ground beef and cook it until it's browned, breaking it apart with a wooden spoon into small crumbles. Add finely chopped shallots and minced garlic and saute them for 1-2 minutes until they become tender.

Season the beef with a tablespoon of the banh mi spice mix, soy sauce, sambal, fish sauce, brown sugar, black pepper, and lime juice. Stir everything together, allowing the flavors to blend, and simmer for another 1-2 minutes until the ground beef has absorbed all the delicious flavors. Remove the pan from heat and set the beef mixture aside.

Step 3: Assemble bowls

Portion cooked rice into individual serving bowls. Top the rice with the flavorful beef banh mi mixture and add sliced Persian cucumbers, pickled carrots, and fresh cilantro. Drizzle the spicy jalapeno cilantro sauce over the bowl as a finishing touch. Feel free to serve the beef banh mi bowls with lime wedges on the side for an extra burst of tanginess.

I loved that this beef banh mi bowl was reminiscent of the traditional banh mi sandwich and yet slightly different. The beef is full of flavor from the warm spices and seasonings while the pickled carrots add the necessary acid. And that spicy jalapeno cilantro sauce? Absolutely killer.

Make-ahead and storage

• Make-ahead: You can make the pickled carrots up to 1 week in advance and the spicy jalapeno cilantro sauce up to 3 days in advance. You can also prepare all of the components ahead of time and reheat them before assembling the bowls.
• Store: Store the leftovers in the fridge for up to 3 days.

Frequently asked questions

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Recipe

Print Recipe

Beef Banh Mi Bowl

Total Time45 minutes mins

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Vietnamese

Keyword: beef, rice

Servings: 4

Author: Christine Ma

Ingredients

Pickled carrots

• 2 carrots thinly sliced
• ½ cup rice vinegar
• ¼ cup granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt

Spicy jalapeno cilantro sauce

• ⅔ cup cilantro
• ½ cup mayonnaise
• 1 jalapeno seeds and stem removed
• 1 garlic clove
• juice of ½ lime
• salt and pepper

Banh mi spice mix

• 2 tablespoons fennel seeds
• 2 tablespoons coriander seeds
• 1 clove
• 1 star anise
• 1 ½- inch cinnamon stick
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cardamom

Beef banh mi

• 1 tablespoon oil
• 1 pound ground beef
• 2 shallots finely chopped
• 4 garlic cloves minced
• 1 tablespoon sambal
• 2 teaspoons brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon fish sauce
• juice of ½ lime
• black pepper
• 4 cups cooked rice
• 2 Persian cucumbers sliced
• ½ cup fresh cilantro
• lime wedges for serving

Instructions

• Pickle carrots. Combine rice vinegar, sugar, and salt in a small saucepot and bring to a boil over high heat. Heat until the sugar and salt have dissolved. Pour brine over sliced carrots and let sit for at least 30 minutes or overnight.
• Make spicy jalapeno cilantro sauce. In a blender, combine all of the ingredients including cilantro, mayonnaise, jalapeno, garlic, and lime juice. Puree until smooth and season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
• In a small saute pan, add fennel seeds, coriander seeds, clove, star anise, and cinnamon stick. Toast spices over medium heat until aromatic, about 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat and ground spices in a spice grinder. Combine with salt and ground cardamom and set aside.
• Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large saute pan over medium-high heat. Add ground beef and cook until browned, breaking apart meat with a wooden spoon into small crumbles. Add shallots and garlic and saute for 1-2 minutes or until tender.
• Season beef with 2 tablespoons of spice mix, soy sauce, sambal, fish sauce, and brown sugar, stirring to combine. Continue to simmer for 1-2 minutes or until ground beef has absorbed all of the flavors. Remove from heat and season with black pepper and lime juice.
• Assemble beef banh mi bowls. Portion rice into bowls and top with beef banh mi. Top with sliced cucumbers, pickled carrots, and cilantro. Drizzle spicy jalapeno cilantro sauce on top and serve with extra lime wedges on the side.

Notes

You can make the pickled carrots up to 1 week in advance and the spicy jalapeno cilantro sauce up to 3 days in advance. 

This recipe makes extra banh mi spice mix. Reserve remaining for another use.