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Bun Cha (Grilled Pork with Vermicelli)

Name: Bun Cha (Grilled Pork with Vermicelli)
Prep time: 25 min
Total time: 1 h 30 min
Cuisine: Vietnamese
Ingredients: 1 lb ground pork patties; 1 lb pork belly slices; 3 tbsp fish sauce; 2 tbsp sugar; 3 shallots, minced; 3 cloves garlic, minced; 1/4 tsp black pepper; 1 stalk lemongrass, minced; 12 oz vermicelli noodles, cooked; 1 head lettuce; 1 cup mixed fresh herbs; 4 green onions; nuoc cham with pickled papaya and carrot

Bun Cha (Grilled Pork with Vermicelli) reads umami 8.7, richness 6.3 and funk & ferment 6.0 on Palate's 0–10 flavor X-ray — a Vietnamese main, about 1 hr 30 min. Measured from the recipe itself: ingredients and technique.

The flavor X-ray — six axes, 0–10

Umami & Savory — 10.0 / 10
Sweet & Fruity — 4.8 / 10
Sour & Bright — 3.2 / 10
Bitter & Earthy — 2.3 / 10
Rich & Fat — 6.4 / 10
Aromatic & Spice — 4.4 / 10

The measured notes (of 18)

Umami 8.7 · Richness 6.3 · Funk & Ferment 6.0 · Salinity 5.9 · Marine & Briny 4.8 · Sweetness 4.7 · Allium 3.9 · Herbaceous 3.5 · Citrus 3.0 · Smoke 2.1 · Warm Spice 1.4 · Floral 1.3 · Sourness 0.8 · Earthy 0.8 · Bitterness 0.7 · Heat 0.7

What's in it (13)

1 lb ground pork patties
1 lb pork belly slices
3 tbsp fish sauce
2 tbsp sugar
3 shallots, minced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 stalk lemongrass, minced
12 oz vermicelli noodles, cooked
1 head lettuce
1 cup mixed fresh herbs
4 green onions
nuoc cham with pickled papaya and carrot

Time & effort: about 1 hr 30 min (25 min active) · effort: medium

Nutrition (per 100 g, engine-estimated): 219.1 kcal, 5.1 g protein, 14.7 g fat, 16.3 g carbs

Dietary: Contains meat — engine-derived; double-check anything allergy-critical.

How it's cooked (3 steps)

Marinate ground pork patties and pork belly slices in fish sauce, sugar, shallots, and pepper, then grill over charcoal until caramelized.
Serve alongside a bowl of diluted nuoc cham containing the grilled meats, with a separate plate of cold vermicelli and fresh herbs.
Diners dip the noodles and herbs into the broth bowl.

Dishes with a similar flavor shape

Com Tam (Broken Rice with Grilled Pork) — Vietnamese
Anchoïade — French · Provence
Kai Yang (Grilled Chicken) — Thai
Thai Basil Ground Beef Stir-Fry (Pad Kra Pao Neua) — Thai
Thai Basil Shrimp (Pad Kra Pao Goong) — Thai

Keep reading: what umami, richness, funk & ferment mean in the flavor lexicon · the world's cuisines, by flavor.

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Every number above is Palate's engine-measured estimate, computed from this recipe's ingredients and techniques — not human-tasted ratings or reviews.