Bun Cha – Vietnamese Meatballs with Vermicelli Noodle Salad

What is Bun Cha?

Bun Cha is a Vietnamese dish consisting of grilled pork meatballs served with a vermicelli noodle salad and an abundance of fresh herbs. A Vietnamese dipping sauce, called a nuoc cham, is essential to dress the noodles and to add a salty and sour element – a flavour combination which is essential to many Vietnamese dishes. Bun Cha is a Vietnamese noodle salad which is bold, fresh and full of flavour.

Bun Cha in Vietnamese roughly translates to “noodles with grilled meat” or “noodles with meat patties”. Different versions exist between the north and south of Vietnam, and every Vietnamese family will also have their own take on this dish.

Vietnamese Meatballs

Bun Cha is a popular street food dish in Vietnam and it is easy to recognise the stands selling this dish by the mouthwatering smell of flame-grilled meat.

Street food vendors and restaurants will typically serve Bun Cha with a few fried spring rolls (egg rolls) for some additional texture (a variation of Bun Cha Gio).

This Bun Cha recipe is something which I love to make during the warm summer months when the weather is more suited to a light and refreshing salad. However, I often find myself making this even during the bleakest of winter when the bold colours and flavours of this dish are enough to warm the soul.

It also happens to be a dish which both my husband and son love to eat. In fact, my son happily eats these Vietnamese pork meatballs with plain steamed rice and fresh carrot sticks.

Bun Cha Recipe

My recipe for Bun Cha is similar to how my mother used to make this dish when I was growing up. Bun Cha recipes vary from family to family, and from region to region in Vietnam. Bun Cha in the north of Vietnam, such as in Hanoi, is served differently to in the south, where my family originate.

In my family, Bun Cha is comprised of round grilled pork meatballs, which is served on top of a vermicelli noodle salad, and the whole bowl is then dressed in a Vietnamese dipping sauce.

You may have seen recipes where the meatballs are flattened and served in a bowl of warmed dipping sauce, much like a bowl of soup. This way of serving Bun Cha is more common in the north of Vietnam, and is actually called Bun Cha Hanoi.

You can tweak the recipe below to transform this dish into a Bun Cha Hanoi by simply making flat meat patties instead of round meatballs, and warming the dipping sauce on the stove.

Why This Recipe Works

• These pork meatballs are packed with flavour from fresh herbs in every bite.
• The Vietnamese dipping sauce has the perfect balance of salty, sweet and sour.
• The vermicelli noodle salad is vibrant and full of fresh ingredients. You can use this vermicelli noodle salad recipe as the basis for any Vietnamese noodle bowl dish.

Vietnamese Noodles

I love this Bun Cha recipe, and making Vietnamese noodles in general, because it uses ingredients which I always have in the fridge and pantry, although a special trip to the Asian grocer is sometimes necessary for herbs such as perilla, coriander (cilantro) and mint.

In summer, though, I plant these herbs on our balcony so that I can make Vietnamese noodle salads like this one without too much effort.

But I always have a good supply of dry vermicelli noodles on hand so that I can always make Vietnamese noodles or a Vietnamese noodle salad at short notice.

How to Eat Bun Cha

Like many Vietnamese dishes, Bun Cha is one of those dishes where each person can customise the flavours to their liking.

At home, I set out everything separately on the dining table as follows:

• The salad and herbs should be washed and spun dry, and placed in a colander or large salad bowl.
• I cook the vermicelli noodles ahead of time (about 1 hour) so that it has had time to dry before eating. It will start to stick after some time, but you can separate them again with some tongs or chopsticks. Avoid placing the noodles in the fridge as this will harden the noodles.
• The Vietnamese meatballs should be grilled at the last minute so that they can be served hot. I place all of the cooked meatballs onto a large platter for people to help themselves.
• I place a big bowl of the Vietnamese dipping sauce (nuoc cham) on the table with a small ladle so that people can help themselves when pouring some sauce over their noodles.
• I also place small bowls for the Vietnamese dipping sauce as some people (including myself) like to dip the meatballs into the sauce for extra flavour.
• I also serve finely chopped chillies or some Pickled Chillies for those who want their food spicy. This can be added directly to the noodles and/or the dipping sauce.
• To assemble, place some salad leaves on the bottom of the plate, top with a handful of noodles, add some Vietnamese meatballs, garnish with herbs, and drizzle over some Vietnamese dipping sauce (nuoc cham). Use your chopsticks to bring everything together.

4.91 stars (10 reviews)

Bun Cha – Vietnamese Meatballs with Vermicelli Noodle Salad

Thanh | Eat, Little Bird

Prep30 minutes mins

Cook45 minutes mins

RestChilling Time30 minutes mins

Total1 hour hr 45 minutes mins

Serves: 4

A tasty recipe for Bun Cha – grilled Vietnamese pork meatballs served with a vermicelli noodle salad and Vietnamese dipping sauce (nuoc cham). This recipe is a family favourite!

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Ingredients

For the Pork Meatballs

• 500 g (1 lb) minced fatty pork, (ground pork)
• 1 tablespoon fish sauce
• 1 tablespoon caster sugar, (superfine sugar)
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 teaspoon white pepper, freshly cracked
• 1 tablespoon runny honey
• 2-3 spring onions, (scallions) finely sliced
• 1-2 sprigs coriander, (cilantro) finely chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped

To Cook the Pork Meatballs

• 2-4 tablespoons vegetable oil

For the Vietnamese Dipping Sauce (Nuoc Cham)

• 2 tablespoons caster sugar, (superfine sugar)
• 1 lemon, juiced
• 2 tablespoons fish sauce
• 4-6 tablespoons water, to taste
• 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
• 1 red chilli, finely chopped (optional)

For the Vermicelli Noodle Salad

• 300 g (11 oz) dried vermicelli noodles, cooked according to packet instructions, rinsed in cold water, and served cold
• iceberg lettuce, or other salad leaves, roughly torn
• 1-2 small carrots, finely julienned
• cucumber, sliced into thin batons
• bean sprouts, optional
• mint
• coriander, (cilantro)
• Thai basil
• perilla leaves, (shiso)

Instructions 

To Make the Pork Meatballs

1. In a large mixing bowl, mix together all of the ingredients.
2. Set the mixture aside for 30-60 minutes in the fridge to let the flavours develop and to allow the mixture to firm.
3. Form the pork mixture into small meatballs about the size of a golf ball, and flatten the meatballs slightly.
4. Heat a large non-stick frying pan with some vegetable oil over medium-high heat. Alternatively, grill the meatballs on a charcoal BBQ.
5. Cook the meatballs until they are golden and caramelised.

To Make the Vietnamese Dipping Sauce (Nuoc Cham)

1. In a medium bowl, dissolve the sugar in the lemon juice.
2. Add the fish sauce, water, garlic and chilli (if using), and mix until well-combined.
3. Set the sauce aside for about 10-15 minutes before tasting.
4. You may need to add a bit more lemon juice, fish sauce, or even water, to get a good balance of sweet, sour and salty.

To Serve

1. Place some salad and vegetables on the bottom of each bowl or plate.
2. Place a good handful of noodles on top of the salad.
3. Top with however many meatballs you like.
4. Garnish with some herbs, roughly torn.
5. Generously drizzle some Vietnamese dipping sauce over the noodles and meatballs, and use chopsticks to mix everything together.
6. Provide each person with a bowl of dipping sauce to drizzle over the noodles and also to dip the meatballs into.

Kitchen Notes

• COOKING FOR CHILDREN
  If you are feeding young children, I tend to omit the chillies from the sauce and either serve chopped chillies or pickled chillies on the side.
• STORAGE TIPS
  The Vietnamese dipping sauce (nuoc cham) keeps well in the fridge in a sealed jar for several weeks. I often double or triple the recipe so that I always have a bottle handy in the fridge.
• CONVERSIONS
  To convert from cups to grams, and vice-versa, please see this handy Conversion Chart for Basic Ingredients.

Nutrition Information Nutrition Information

Serving: 4g, Calories: 486kcal, Carbohydrates: 52.3g, Protein: 48.5g, Fat: 9.2g, Cholesterol: 133.3mg, Sodium: 816.7mg, Fiber: 1.2g, Sugar: 4.8g

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Update

This recipes was first published on 9 April 2016. It has been updated with new photos and more comprehensive recipe notes.

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