Reinvent Your Pork Burgers With Banh Mi-Inspired Toppings

It's a shame pork burgers don't get the love they deserve as an alternative to the usual beef burger. Sure, the ground pork patties you find in the supermarket tend to have less fat in them than the ones made with ground beef, leading to burgers that don't have that juicy meatiness you've come to love. However, just adding bacon to pork burgers will give them more flavor. You can also look at an unexpected source of inspiration to give them a delicious twist.

Bánh mì is the Vietnamese sandwich that combines the Southeast Asian country's culture with French influences. Its use of cold cuts, fresh and pickled vegetables, pâté, spread, and condiments gives it a wonderful medley of flavors and textures that's refreshing to the palate. Use the same idea when constructing your pork burgers and use toppings that'll turn them into something you'll crave for again and again.

Start with the component that will take a couple of hours to prepare. Vietnamese pickles or đồ chua are key in giving bánh mì its refreshing tang and crunch, and they'll do the same for pork burger. Slice daikon and carrots into matchstick strips that are three inches long and about ⅛- to ¼-inch thick then salt them to draw out their moisture and make them crispy. After an hour, soak them in a pickling solution of water, vinegar, and sugar at room temperature. Within two hours, they'll be ready to be added to your pork burger.

Another bánh mì component worth using on pork burger is sriracha mayo sauce. Mix mayonnaise with sriracha and sprinkle some scallions on it to make a spread that'll give the pork a nice kick. For a cooling balance to the sauce, thinly slice some cucumbers to add to the burger later. 

A great thing about ground pork patties is they work really well with complex seasonings. Make your own by mixing ground pork with basil, garlic, green onions, fish sauce, sriracha, sugar, and cornstarch. The sriracha will function as a binder for the meat and keep the patties juicy while they cook. Take a page from our charred pork bánh mì recipe, too, and deglaze the skillet with red nuoc cham, a Vietnamese dipping sauce. You can use the meaty bits you scrape from the pan as additional toppings.

Once all these components are ready, it's time to construct your reinvented pork burger. Slather the sriracha mayo on both halves of your toasted buns then place the patty on the bottom bun, followed by the pickled veggies, cucumber slices, and fresh cilantro. If you feel like making your bánh mì-inspired burger extra decadent, follow our recipe for bánh mì burger and include slices of pâté de campagne or other rough-textured pork pâté as a topping. It'll add a savory, creamy layer that'll complement all that fresh, zesty crunch from the veggies.