Turkey Bahn Mi Bowl

Recipe development is an exciting adventure for me. This recipe began with a delivery from one of those meal kit boxes. We enjoyed the meal. It was quick and tasty, but super simple. Plain rice, ground beef with onion, garlic, and ponzu sauce, quick pickled cucumber, shredded carrot, and sriracha mayo. What I liked best was the contrast of the hot rice and meat with the cold, crisp vegetables. I liked the sweet and tangy cucumber.

My next stop is typically Pinterest, and they did not disappoint. There are dozens of Bahn Mi recipes out there. They varied in base, protein, types of vegetables, and which vegetables were pickled. It seems like the only (almost) universal aspect is the sriracha mayo and a soy sauce base to the meat marinade.

What you will find here is part recipe, part guidelines. You will get the recipe for one of the go to combinations in my house and the one that we have served through our catering company, our Turkey tenderloin Bahn Mi Bowl over Cilantro Lime Rice. You will also get suggestions for alternative bases, proteins, and vegetables. You can mix and match however you like to make your perfect bowl.

Some purists will balk at the name of this dish. You see, Bahn Mi is actually a Vietnamese roll often used to make a sandwich filled with some of the ingredients in this dish.  Of course, those same people are likely upset by burrito bowl and most modern-day pot pies.

While confirming the origins of the term Bahn Mi I stumbled upon this fun nugget from the Google Doodles archives.

Variations

Base options

Here, we used cilantro lime rice, but the options are endless. You could really use any grain you like; quinoa, millet, farro, or a nice wild rice blend. For grain cooking instructions check out this post. Cutting carbs, try cauliflower rice or start off with some sautéed or grilled peppers and onions. If doing peppers and onions I would add in some chilis to turn up the heat a bit.

Proteins

As I mentioned, the first Bahn Mi Bowl I made used ground beef cooked with onions, garlic, and ponzu sauce, which is essentially a seasoned soy. I would recommend using the sauce in the recipe above to give more flavor to the meat.

Pork, ground or cut into strips like the turkey we used in this recipe, would be a tasty option and closer to an authentic Bahn Mi sandwich which often includes a pork product.

Shrimp, fish, or imitation crab would all be nice options for a change of pace. I’m going to tuck this idea away for Christmas Eve, we don’t do 7 fishes, but we do fish. I’m going to need to work on turning this into an appetizer.

For a vegetarian dish, try tofu or mushrooms. I have made this dish with tofu. I used firm tofu and pressed it for about 4 hours, sliced it into strips and marinated overnight. I coated in corn starch and pan fried, the same method used for the turkey strips in this recipe. For mushrooms, slice or cube then sauté and finish cooking in a bit of the Bahn Mi Sauce.

Vegetables

The list below starts with the most common Bahn Mi vegetables and works its way down to ones that I just think are good flavors for this dish. Cucumber and carrot were in every single recipe I looked at while developing this one. Most had either daikon or red radish. For each vegetable I will give my recommendation for how to cut it and whether to pickle or not, but it is really all up to your personal taste. I will say that I recommend you stick to three to five veg toppings and that you have a combination of pickled and not. It is easy to overdo on toppings and then the flavors just get muddled together. If you have just a few, you will be able to taste each vegetable and enjoy the way they blend.

• Cucumber: My choice is English cucumbers cut in half moons and pickled. Recipes I looked at were about half and half pickled and not.
• Carrot: I like this pickled and not pickled. If I’m using it not pickled, I shred it. For pickling I like long ribbons.
• Daikon: Cut in thin match sticks. Pickle or not are both good. I don’t typically pickle because it takes longer for the vinegar mixture to work its way into radishes.
• Radish: Thinly slice. I prefer not to pickle for the same reasons as daikon, but several recipes did call for pickling the radish.
• Jalapeno pepper: Thinly slice. I love a quick pickled jalapeno so that will always be my choice.
• Cabbage: Shredded and I don’t recommend pickling.
• Bell pepper: Thin strips, no pickle. I find that a bell pepper slightly pickled taste a lot like a bell pepper that is going bad.
• Edamame: As is.
• Snap peas: Cut in half or thirds (bite size) on an angle. No pickle.
• Snow peas: Either treat as snap peas above or cut into super thin strips. No pickle.
• Jicama: Cut in think match sticks. Like with the radishes, this is a dense vegetable so if you choose to pickle, it will take longer.
• Red onion: First, I definitely recommend red onion as opposed to white. The flavor is better suited to this dish. Slice thin and pickle. The pickling mellows the sharp onion flavor just enough so it doesn’t over power the other flavors.

power the other flavors.

Scallions: There are two ways to use scallions here. You could slice them thin and use as a garnish in addition to or in place of the cilantro. If you are not frying your protein, for example if you are using ground meat or mushrooms, adding long sections of scallion in with the sauced topping at the end of cooking will let it wilt without getting overly chewy.

Well, that’s it for Bahn Mi Bowls. Thanks for reading. If you make my recipe, please let me know what you thought. I’d love to hear what you put in your bowl and how it turned out.

Print Recipe

Turkey Bahn Mi Bowl

Author: lesleyplangdon Cuisine: Asian Courses: Dinner, Lunch Recipe Keys: Gluten Free

Difficulty: Intermediate Servings: 2

Description

Crispy pan fried turkey and fresh vegetables over a bed of cilantro lime rice toped with two sauces.

Ingredients

Servings

• 12 ounces Turkey Tenderloin
• 1/4 cup Hoisin Sauce
• 1/4 cup Soy Sauce
• 2 tablespoons Thai Chili Sauce
• 1 stick Lemongrass
• 3/4 cups Jasmine Rice
• 1 1/4 cup Water
• 1 tablespoon Cilantro
• 1/2 Lime
• 1/4 cup Mayonnaise
• 1 tablespoon Sriracha Sauce
• 1 teaspoon Thai Chili Sauce
• 1 Small Carrot
• 2 Radish
• 1/3 English Cucumber
• 2 tablespoons Rice Wine Vinegar
• 1 teaspoon Sugar
• 1/2 Lime
• 1 cup Corn Starch
• 1/8 cup Cooking Oil

Instructions

1. Bahn Mi Sauce

   1. Use something heavy like a meat tenderizing mallet or rolling pin to crush a 2 in piece of lemongrass.
   2. Combine soy sauce, hoisin sauce, 2 Table spoons of Thai chili sauce.
   3. Add lemongrass piece and stir gently.
   4. Set aside for later use.

2. Cut and Marinade Turkey

   1. Cut turkey into thin strips 1/4 to 1/2 inch wide and about 2 inches long.
   2. Place in a zipper bag with 1/4 cup of Bahn Mi Sauce.
   3. Refrigerate until ready to use, at least one hour is best, or up to 24 hours.

3. Rice

   1. Cook rice according to package instructions.
   2. Chop 1/2 bunch of cilantro.
   3. Zest 1 lime and cut in half.
   4. When rice is done cooking, add a large pinch of chopped fresh cilantro, half the zest and the juice from half the lime.

4. Sriracha Mayonnaise

   1. Combine mayonnaise, sriracha sauce, and 1 teaspoon Thai chili sauce. Mix well.

5. Vegetables

   1. Wash all produce.
   2. Cut cucumber in half long ways, remove seeds, slice into half moons about 1/4 inch thick. Place in zipper bag.
   3. Combine rice wine vinegar, sugar, and the juice of half a lime. Add to cucumbers.
   4. Refrigerate until ready to use.
   5. Peel carrot and shred on large side of box grater. Set aside.
   6. Slice radishes as thin as you can. Set aside.

6. Cook Turkey

   1. Heat about 1/4 inch of oil in a non stick pan.
   2. Drain excess marinade from turkey.
   3. Toss turkey in corn starch to coat completely.
   4. Place a single layer of turkey strips into the hot pan, do not over crowd.
   5. Cook for 3-5 minutes until golden brown on the bottom, flip each piece, and continue cooking until cooked through, about another 2-4 minutes.
   6. Drain on paper towel.
   7. Repeat 4-6 as needed to cook all turkey.

7. Assembly

   1. Divide cooked rice between two bowls.
   2. Place turkey on top of rice on one half of the bowl.
   3. Add cucumbers, radishes, and carrots to the other half.
   4. Drizzle Bahn Mi Sauce over the turkey.
   5. Drizzle Sriracha Mayo over the vegetables.
   6. Garnish with chopped cilantro.
   7. ENJOY!!

Keywords: Bahn Mi, Turkey, Spicy, Vietnamese