A Bahn-Mi is the classic French-Vietnamese fusion sandwich consisting of pork, pickled veggies, and a tad bit of mayo. I came up with this version by incorporating additional Asian cuisines into one delightfully spiced and creamy sandwich. The name comes from the titular road in my hometown of Fairfax, which has a wide variety of Asian restaurants.

Ingredients

• Sandwich
  • 1 bag sub rolls (or bread from your local Vietnamese place if they sell it)
  • 1 bottle pepper jelly
  • 1 bundle Thai basil, rinsed
  • 1 batch Cusabi Slaw
  • 1 jar Kimchi
  • 1 batch Chinese pork tenderloins (prepare the day beforehand)
• Chinese Pork Tenderloins
  • 4          pork tenderloins
  • 1 bottle soy sauce
  • ¼ cup   honey
  • 2 Tbs.   sesame oil
  • ¼ cup   garlic, chopped
  • ¼ cup   rice vinegar
  • 2          green onions, chopped
  • 2 Tbs.   chili oil
  • ½ tsp    chili flakes
  • 1 Tbs.   sesame seeds
  • 2 Tbs    minced ginger
  • ¼ cup   Mirin
• Cusabi Slaw
  • 2 bags coleslaw cabbage/carrot mix
  • ¼ cup rice vinegar
  • 1/2 batch of Cusabi dressing
• Cusabi Dressing
  • 1          large seedless cucumber, peeled/cubed
  • 2          cloves garlic, minced
  • 1          scallion, chopped
  • 4 Tbs.   fresh parsley
  • 2 cups   mayonnaise
  • 2 cups   plain Greek yogurt
  • Wasabi Powder, to taste
  • Salt and Pepper to taste

Instructions

1. The day before, whisk all the Chinese tenderloin marinade ingredients together, marinade tenderloins in it in large Ziploc bag.
2. The day of, toss the slaw mix with the rice vinegar, this will cause the cabbage and carrots to be tenderized slightly. Come back to toss this a couple more times while you make up everything else.
3. Combine all dressing ingredients in a blender. Coat slaw with about half of your dressing, save the remainder for salads!
4. Grease your grill and preheat on high. Once preheated, reduce the temperature to low, and grill the pork loins for about 30 minutes (10 on each side), until internal temp is 160º F. Cover and let sit for 10 minutes.
5. While the pork sets, lightly toast the sub rolls, WITHOUT cutting them open. This will give them that signature crunchy texture Bahn Mi are known for. Once they are toasted, cut them open so they are ready to receive the sammich filling.
6. Cut your pork loin into 1/8-inch slices. Cover back up and set aside.
7. Time to start assembling these sandwiches. Layout a large sheet of aluminum foil.
   • Lay a sandwich roll on the aluminum foil.
   • Smear a healthy amount of pepper jelly on the bottom slice of the roll.
   • Put a layer of Thai basil atop the jelly.
   • Put a layer of pork loin atop the Thai basil.
   • Top the pork with kimchi (make sure to drain it).
   • Top the kimchi with Cusabi Slaw.
   • Close the sandwich, then use aluminum foil to roll the sandwich together.

Yield: 8 servings