One of the things I like to do is research breakfasts (and meals in general) from other countries, just to see what other cultures enjoy. Apparently the Vietnamese like a breakfast sandwich called Banh Mi, with many a recipe to choose from. I collected some ingredients for my weekend of solitude and created my own spread.
I don’t typically like raw carrots unless certain circumstances apply. Most of the sandwich recipes I saw had carrots cut up as match strips, which I could most likely get away with, but I went the extra mile and grated the carrot instead. I like shredded carrot because it releases the juices, and the texture is much less dry. I also decided to grate a bit of ginger to mix in with the carrot, cilantro, jalapeno, lime juice, sweet chile sauce, a tiny garlic clove and mayonnaise. Optionally you can also add some lime zest for the extra flavor factor.
I saw a combination of hot and cold Banh Mi recipes, and went for an easy cold version. I spread my mixture over both sliced halves of french bread and topped it with chicken and pastrami, then for the vegetables I used homemade fridge pickles (Banh Mi seems to call for fresh cucumber slices, but these are still pretty fresh from the garden), and slices of onion, red bell pepper and tomato. I had some yesterday and today, and if you let it sit in the fridge the taste gets even better in a similar way to pan bagna. It’s like a beautiful combination of French and Vietnamese inspiration, and the perfect balance of spice and flavor just spins around in my mouth. I have one more helping in the fridge, and I haven’t decided if I want to save it for work or eat it tonight with a little soup. Not that it matters… I have some extra spread leftover along with other sandwich stuffs. I could have a wrap after work tomorrow.
I would say a sandwich of this caliber would be pretty good at anytime, especially on hot summer nights.
