Hanoi Grilled Chicken from The Banh Mi Handbook

From the Vietnamese bread and fillings to tangy pickled vegetables, you can create your own restaurant-style sandwich at home with the help of The Banh Mi Handbook and this Hanoi Grilled Chicken.

I read about the Vietnamese Banh Mi long before I ever had the opportunity to take my first bite. I knew about the soft, but crusty bread, the numerous meat fillings, pickled veggies, hot peppers and the finishing touch of cilantro.

Often when you know this much about a food before you try it, you set yourself up for disappointment. Not so with this sandwich. I had built up in my head what the combination of those flavors would be, and it was better than I anticipated.

I’m not picky about my banh mi. I like the classic version I can grab for $3.50 when passing through Oakland’s Chinatown just as much as I like the fancy version for $10 filled with local, pastured lemongrass chicken that I get at food trucks.

There is an art to it though, don’t you think? It’s not something that I had considered making at home because, while it seems easy, man is it hard to get those flavors right.

Just when I’d deemed my favorite sandwich a creation that I would only buy from others, along comes Andrea Nguyen’s, The Banh Mi Handbook.

This is by far one of the most innovative ways to write and lay out a cookbook. It truly is a handbook. It starts with a breakdown of what the banh mi is and the flavor and texture components necessary to make it truly delicious (and authentic). Then the doors open and the pages become filled with the recipes you need to make it yourself. These instructions will give you full confidence in your Vietnamese sandwich making ability.

There is a recipe for the banh mi roll, numerous pickled condiments, spreads, and meat, seafood and vegetarian fillings from pates to grilled poultry. Despite its small size, it has probably educated me more than any cookbook I have on my shelf. I feel like me and the banh mi are now BFFs. I told my husband when we sat down to dinner — let’s make these every weekend. There really are enough versions to keep your banh mi craving satisfied for months.

I had a handful of recipes I could choose from for a review, and I picked the Hanoi Grilled Chicken. We grill a lot of boneless skinless chicken thighs, and while I completely agree with the author that often simple flavors are the best, balancing both simplicity and good flavor is a difficult thing to accomplish. So I was a bit skeptical when I saw that this recipe only had 6 ingredients.

There was no need for the skepticism. The combination of the black pepper, sugar and tangy fish sauce made the juicy chicken burst with flavor. Truly delicious.

We grilled up the chicken and followed the instructions in the book with some of the other recipes to put together our own banh mi. I have no doubt I will be turning to this book time and time again whether I make a full sandwich, some grilled meats or simply one of the pickled condiments. For a cookbook that first appears to be narrow in focus, it offers so many unexpected options.

Hanoi Grilled Chicken

Reprinted with permission from The Banh MI Handbook by Andrea Nguyen, copyright © 2014. Published by Ten Speed Press, an imprint of Random House LLC.

Makes enough for 6 banh mi

Takes 1 hour

From the book:
Brilliant foods are often simple foods. I had this tangy-salty grilled chicken at a Hanoi cafe in 2003 and was struck by its bright flavor. So much so that I replicated it upon returning to the States. It’s great with rice but is perfectly at home stuffed into baguette. When possible, grill it over an open flame for a nice charred flavor. The heavy dose of black pepper lends an edge to this chicken.

1½ pounds (675 g) boneless, skinless chicken thighs
¼ teaspoon sugar brimming ¼ teaspoon salt
1¼ teaspoons black pepper
1 tablespoon fish sauce
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
About 1½ tablespoons canola oil

Note
For a Hanoi grilled chicken banh mi use any of the accouterments. Keep leftovers for up to 3 days, warming the chicken in the microwave oven or skillet over medium heat, adding any cooking juices for depth.

Trim and discard big fat pads from the chicken thighs. If the thighs are large and/or super uneven in thickness, butterfly them. Set aside.

In a bowl, stir together the sugar, salt, pepper, fish sauce, and lime juice. If needed, tweak the flavor to get a slightly tart-sweet, salty finish. Add the oil, then the chicken, coating the pieces well. Cover with plastic wrap and marinate at room temperature for 30 minutes.

To grill the chicken, preheat a gas grill to medium or prepare a medium-hot fire, or use a stove-top grill pan heated over medium-high heat with a little oil brushed on. Cook the chicken for 6 to 10 minutes, turning several times, until clear juices flow out when you pierce the flesh with the tip of a knife. Cool for 10 minutes before cutting across the grain. Tumble in the cooking juices to include extra flavor in the sandwich.

When to flip the chicken
After putting a chicken thigh on a hot grill or pan let it sear undisturbed. When there is an opaque border of about ¼ inch (6 mm), flip the chicken. it should release easily and have nice browning on the underside. The second side will cook in less time, and you can turn it as you like.

Disclosure: This book was sent to me for review purposes. I was not required to write about it and (other than the book itself) I received no compensation for doing so. I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.

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