Gluten-free, Dairy-free, Paleo, Whole30 if modified

Vietnamese Charred-Pork Salad Bowls

Ask me what my favorite type of cuisine is, and the answer will always be Vietnamese. It’s light, fresh, and so flavorful. Making your own vermicelli bowls at home using fresh, good-quality ingredients is actually very easy and quite fun. I like to put together a platter with all the ingredients cut and ready and have my family assemble their own bowls.

Serves 2

• For the Pork
• 1 stalk lemongrass, finely chopped
• ¼ cup finely chopped red onion
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
• 2 tablespoons coconut aminos
• 2 tablespoons honey (see Note below)
• 2 tablespoons fish sauce
• ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
• ½ pound ground pork
• To Assemble
• 1 head butter lettuce, leaves separated
• 2 cups cooked rice noodles (see Note below)
• 1 small carrot, peeled and julienned
• 2 Persian cucumbers or ½ English cucumber, thinly sliced
• ¼ cup crushed raw cashews
• Fresh cilantro
• Fresh mint leaves
• Cashew Butter Dressing

In a small bowl, combine the lemongrass, red onion, garlic, ginger, coconut aminos, honey, fish sauce, and red pepper flakes.

Heat a cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat. Add the ground pork and cook, breaking it up with a wooden spoon, for 3 to 5 minutes. Add the lemongrass mixture, stir, and leave to cook for 2 minutes without disturbing. This will allow the pork juices to cook out and the pork to caramelize. After the 2 minutes are up, stir and cook until the pork has completely caramelized and browned, about 4 to 5 minutes more.

Arrange the lettuce and noodles in two bowls. Spoon the pork over the lettuce and noodles. Add the carrot, cucumber, cashews, cilantro, and mint. Drizzle with the cashew dressing and serve.

note: To modify for Whole30, omit the honey and substitute zucchini noodles for the rice noodles.