Mexican Spiced Bahn Mi (Vietnamese Sandwiches)

Photo: TheTomatoTart

Ingredients

FOR CARNE ASADA

3/4 pound skirt steak

1 tablespoon cumin

1/4 teaspoon sea salt

1 teaspoon moscado sugar

1/2 tablespoon aji amarillo chili (chipotle powder is a fine substitute, but use sweet

1 tablespoon smoked paprika

high temp oil for pan-frying (grapeseed or canola work well)

FOR AOLI

3 tablespoons mayonnaise

cilantro finely chopped (to taste)

1 zest of lime

1/2 juice of lime

1 clove of garlic finely minced

FOR SLAW

2 carrots

1 granny smith apple

1 red beet

handful of cilantro leaves roughly chopped

1/2 juice of lime

1 teaspoon agave nectar

salt to taste

fresh ground black pepper to taste

1 piece baguette cut into four

1 hot chile (aji, jalapeño, Serrano, etc.) sliced thin

Preparation

MAKE SLAW

Grate peeled carrot & apple into a bowl

Add lime juice, zest, agave, cilantro, salt, & pepper

Mix well

Grate peeled red beet into a separate bowl

Refrigerate both bowls

MAKE AOLI

Mix mayonnaise, lime juice, zest, cilantro, & garlic

CARNE ASADA

Leave unfolded skirt steak at room temp for 30-45 minutes

Prepare rub for steak by mixing cumin, salt, sugar, aji, & paprika together very well

Massage the rub into the steak

Pour enough oil (I like grapseed) into a well-seasoned cast iron skillet on high until shimmering

Cook the steak for a couple of minutes on each side to desired doneness. I use grass fed beef which cooks very quickly. Skirt steak is thin, so keep an eye on it.

Once steak is done, remove from heat and allow to rest for 10 minutes before slicing against the grain

ASSEMBLE SANDWICHES

Right before assembling, you can mix the beets with the rest of the slaw (this prevents color bleed)

Take your baguette and add a little mayo

Top with sliced carne asada

Top that with the slaw

And the crown jewels are the bright and beautiful chiles

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About

I am a real California Girl. Well, not in the blonde, surfery, tan sort of way that people in far-flung places imagine California girls. I am a California girl in that I’ve been lucky enough to grow up amongst the sights, smells, sounds, and tastes of a mish mash of cultures.

When you eat my food, you’ll always taste a hint of my French upbringing, I just can’t seem to help it. Whenever I think I’ve created something soooo authentically Mexican or Chinese, it comes out a little “Frenchxican” or Chinoise. Perhaps that’s why I adore Vietnamese sandwiches so much. They are traditional Vietnamese meats with shredded veggies, cilantro, & jalapeño, on French baguettes slathered with a good dose of mayo.

Here, I’ve taken my love of wild mixtures one step further with a Mexican Spiced Bahn Mi (Vietnamese Sandwich). I replace the regular shredded carrots with a mixture of carrots, apples, and beets. The meat is a spicy & sweet carne asada (of course) and we make a lovely lime & cilantro aioli for our baguettes. This is a quick and lovely meal for family and friends or a pretty and tasty sandwich just for you on a Saturday afternoon.