Banh Mi Sandwiches

These sandwiches makes me think of my dad and our trips to San Jose. We would always stop and buy a ton of these! I love anything with lemongrass and garlic so I made a nice marinade for my chicken breast and pork loins, pickled some daikon and carrots and it came out great! I was so impressed that Safeway had everything I needed, including the rolls. I thought I'd have to go the Asian market. It was a lot easier than I thought, I hope you guys try it!

Ingredients:

2 lbs of Chicken Breast and Pork Tenderloins

1 4 oz. tube of Lemongrass Paste

8 Garlic Cloves

1 Shallots

1/2 tsp Salt

1/2 tbsp Sugar

1 tbsp Oyster Sauce

1 tbsp Fish Sauce

1 1/2 tbsp Soy Sauce (Golden Mountain is the best)

1/2 tbsp Black Pepper

1 tsp White Pepper

Pickled Daikon and Carrots

4 medium Carrots

1 large Daikon

1 and 1/2 tbsp Sugar (to release water)

1 and 1/2 tbsp Salt (to release water)

1/2 cup Sugar

1 cup warm Water

1 cup White Vinegar

Sauce and Garnish

1 cup mayonnaise

1 tablespoon Sriracha sauce

6-8 bolilo rolls, mini soft baguettes, or hero rolls

1 to 2 English cucumbers, sliced into rounds

2 jalapenos, optional, sliced into rounds

2 bunches cilantro

Instructions:

1. But the meat into a large bowl, add the lemongrass, salt, sugar, oyster sauce, fish sauce, soy sauce and peppers.

2. Add the garlic and shallots into a blender and make a paste out of it. Add to the large bowl, mix all the ingredients and let that marinate for at least 1 hour.

3. Make the picked veggies: Chop the carrots and daikon into matchsticks and add to a large bowl and sprinkle with 1 and 1/2 tbsp salt and 1 and 1/2 tbsp sugar. Use your hands to massage the sugar and salt into the veggies. After 15 minutes of sitting in the salt and sugar, you should be able to bend a carrot without it snapping. Pour the veggies into a colander and rinse them under water until all the salt and sugar is washed off.

4. Combine 1/2 cup of sugar and 1 cup warm water, and stir to dissolve. Add the vinegar and a few shakes of salt. Stir it all together. Add the rinsed carrots and daikon to the vinegar mixture, make sure all the veggies are covered, and stick it in the fridge for 45 minutes.

5. After the meat is done marinating, bbq then on the grill until they are full cooked and have a nice char on them. Slice them and set aside.

6. In a small bowl, combine 1 cup mayonnaise and 1 tablespoon Sriracha.

7. Slice a roll in half lengthwise. Place it in the toaster oven to get them nice a warm, spread both sides with Sriracha mayo. Top one side with your meat of choice, sliced cucumber, sliced jalapeno, lots of pickled carrots and daikon, and fistfuls of cilantro. Top with the other half of the roll and eat! Serve with more Sriracha mayo if you want.