Vietnamese Charcoal Pork

The Cen-Tex Smoker said:

Been working on this one for probably 10 years and I’m finally happy to share. The secret was moving it to the wok from the grill. If you prefer to grill, cut slices large enough so they can be grilled and chop thin once it’s grilled. This is what I have been doing but the wok is the secret for making it restaurant quality. 

The Meat: 1.5lbs pork shoulder sliced very thin. I buy the precut pork shoulder “country” ribs. Freeze until very firm and slice thin. They are the perfect shape and makes prep a snap. 

The marinade: 

¼ cup minced Lemongrass (xa bam). you can use lemongrass paste here as well. It’s easier to find and stores well for months in the fridge  it’s way cheaper too- 1/4 cup of fresh lemongrass is like $12-$15 for me here  the paste is under $10 for several servings  

¼ cup sugar

2 tablespoons fish sauce

1 tablespoon ground pepper

2-3 cloves garlic, minced (use more according to taste)

1/3 cup minced red onion.

3 tablespoons sesame oil

1 tablespoon dark soy sauce

Marinate the thin sliced pork for at least 2 hours and up to overnight. 

Cook pork in a wok on medium-high heat until browned nicely on all sides. I do this in 2 batches to keep from overloading the wok. 

To Serve:

Serve over rice vermicelli with matchstick carrot, julienned romaine lettuce, crushed peanuts. Bean sprouts are also a traditional topping but they only come in an industrial sized bag at my store so I usually skip them. 

Secret sauce: drizzle with fish sauce 

2Tbsp Good fish sauce 

1.5Tbsp lime juice

1.5Tbsp sugar

1/2 cup water

3 cloves minced garlic

Chopped Thai Chilis (I use fresnos as they are easier to find for me)

I serve with a little Sriracha as well. 

Pro Tip: I buy and prep 6lbs of shoulder at a time  I freeze in 1.5lb packs and we can easily make it any night we want with very little prep. Takes like 10 minutes to make the marinade  and prep the veggies (including clean up) and the cook is under 5 min  

Enjoy