• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
Cooking Therapy logo
  • About Me
    • Work With Me
    • Contact
    • Disclaimer
  • Subscribe
  • Recipes
    • Recipe Index
    • 30 Minute Meals
    • Appetizers
    • Breakfast
    • Drinks
    • Main Dishes
      • Beef
      • Chicken & Poultry
      • Fish & Seafood
      • Pork
      • Tofu
    • Noodle Bowls & Soups
    • Side Dishes
    • Salads
    • Dips & Sauces
    • Sweets & Desserts
      • Bars & Brownies
      • Cakes
      • Candy & Confectionary
      • Cookies
      • Curds & Custards
      • Donuts
      • Ice Cream
      • Mochi
      • Pies & Tarts
  • Restaurant Guides
  • Nav Social Menu

    • Instagram
    • Pinterest

Home » Recipes » 30 Minute Meals

Mar 22, 2022(updated May 23, 2022)

Lemongrass Pork Vermicelli Bowls (Bun Thit Xao Xa)

5 from 5 votes

Leave a comment

by Becca Du

Jump to Recipe Print Recipe
lemongrass pork vermicelli bowls

Spring is officially here which means transitioning my food into dishes that are lighter and a tad bit healthier. For me, that is always a vermicelli bowl like bun cha hanoi or bun bo xao. Right now, it is in the 80s where I live. (I know crazy right!). So that’s all I want to eat anyways. My mom made these easy lemongrass pork vermicelli bowls last week, and it tasted so good I knew I had to put them on the blog. It’s the perfect dish for spring because it has all these fresh vegetables paired with the most amazing lemongrass pork!

lemongrass pork ingredients
Vietnamese dipping sauce

Ingredients, Substitutions & Adjustments

Lemongrass pork

  • Pork shoulder – I used country style pork ribs for this lemongrass pork which is a cut of pork in the shoulder area, so using pork shoulder works! A good substitute is pork belly.
  • Lemongrass – Adds a slight lemon-y taste to the pork and helps balance out the rich and savory flavors. If you don’t have lemongrass, I would use a tablespoon of lime juice and the zest of 1 lime.
  • Pepper for seasoning
  • Corn starch – Helps make the pork tender and brown. You can also use tapioca starch as a substitute.
  • Dark brown sugar – Adds sweetness to the pork and helps make it a pretty brown color. If you don’t have dark brown sugar, use light brown sugar. The pork won’t be as brown if you use light brown sugar, but it should still taste good.
  • Fish sauce – Adds umami flavor to the pork.
  • Garlic – Adds extra flavor the pork!

Vermicelli bowl

The ingredients below are the ones I use in my vermicelli bowl, but you can use whatever vegetables you want.

  • Lettuce – You can use any type of lettuce for the vermicelli bowl. Romaine, green leaf, and red leaf lettuce are a few examples.
  • Pickled carrots and daikon – These are optional but they add a nice balance to the rich flavors. Get the recipe for my pickled vegetables here.
  • Cucumbers – Another refreshing vegetable to add to your vermicelli bowl! Personally, my favorite cucumbers are Persian cucumbers but use whatever you have available.
  • Mint – One of the traditional ingredients in a vermicelli bowl. I usually use green mint but sometimes, I use perilla leaves.
  • Vietnamese dipping sauce – This is the “dressing” for this vermicelli bowl. Get the recipe for my Vietnamese dipping sauce here!
marinating the pork

Making my lemongrass pork vermicelli bowls

First, marinade your pork! Add all the ingredients from pork through fish sauce to a bowl. Marinate for at least 3 hours, but for the best results, marinate overnight. Heat 1 tablespoon of oil over medium high heat. Saute the pork for 2-3 minutes until brown on all sides. Lower the heat to medium low. Cover and cook for 3-5 minutes until pork is cooked through.

Add the garlic and saute for 2-3 minutes until the garlic is cooked. Try the pork to make sure the texture is soft enough for you. If it is too chewy, add 1-2 tablespoons of water and cover and cook on medium low for another 3-5 minutes until the water becomes a thick sauce. Repeat this process until the pork is soft enough for your tastes. Once done, empty the pork onto a plate and set aside. Add lettuce, carrots, daikon, cucumbers, mint, and vermicelli noodles to a bowl. Top with a few pieces of pork. Drizzle with Vietnamese dipping sauce and serve.

sautéed pork

Tips on how to make the perfect lemongrass pork vermicelli bowls

Marinate the pork overnight for the best flavor

The longer the pork sits in the marinade, the better it will taste. I marinated mine for 24 hours, and it tasted AMAZING!

Cook pork over medium high heat

Cooking pork over medium high heat gets you that nice sear/brown color without all the water coming out of the pork. Cooking on a lower heat will cause the water to come out and produce a soggy sauce.

How do you store the lemongrass pork?

Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.

What if I don’t want to make a vermicelli bowl?

If you don’t want a vermicelli bowl, this lemongrass pork can also be eaten with rice or bread!

lemongrass pork vermicelli bowls
Lemongrass Pork Vermicelli Bowls

Did you make this dish?

If you made this dish, I would love to see!

Follow Cooking Therapy on Instagram, snap a photo, and tag and hashtag it with @cooking__therapy and #beccascookingtherapy.

Stay connected and follow along on Facebook, Pinterest, and Instagram for all my latest recipes.

Disclaimer: If you purchase anything through a link on this site, I may receive a small commission from the purchase at no extra cost to you. I only recommend products that I would personally use. Thank you so much for the support!

Lemongrass Pork Vermicelli Bowls

Lemongrass Pork Vermicelli Bowl (Bun Thit Xao Xa)

Becca Du
This yummy, simple recipe for lemongrass pork vermicelli bowls is the perfect dish for weeknight dinners. It includes pork shoulder marinated in lemongrass, fish sauce, and sugar served with vermicelli noodles, a variety of vegetables, and Vietnamese dipping sauce.
5 from 5 votes
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 10 mins
Cook Time 20 mins
Resting Time 8 hrs
Course Dinner, Main Course
Cuisine Vietnamese
Servings 4 people
Calories 319 kcal

Ingredients
 
 

Lemongrass Pork Shoulder

  • 1 ¼ lb pork shoulder cut into thin strips
  • ½ cup lemongrass minced
  • ½ tsp pepper
  • 1 tbsp corn starch
  • 2 tbsp dark brown sugar
  • 2 tbsp fish sauce
  • 4 cloves garlic minced

Vermicelli Bowl

  • 4 cups lettuce cut into 1 inch pieces
  • ¼ cup pickled daikon
  • ¼ cup pickled carrots
  • ½ cup cucumbers thinly sliced
  • ¼ cup mint
  • 16 oz vermicelli noodles boiled
  • ½ cup Vietnamese dipping sauce

Instructions
 

  • Add all the ingredients from pork through fish sauce to a bowl. Marinate for at least 3 hours, but for the best results, marinate overnight.
  • Heat 1 tablespoon of oil over medium high heat. Saute the pork for 2-3 minutes until brown on all sides.
  • Lower the heat to medium low. Cover and cook for 3-5 minutes until pork is cooked through.
  • Add the garlic and saute for 2-3 minutes until the garlic is cooked.
  • Try the pork to make sure the texture is soft enough for you. If it is too chewy, add 1-2 tablespoons of water and cover and cook on medium low for another 3-5 minutes until the water becomes a thick sauce. Repeat this process until the pork is soft enough for your tastes.
  • Once done, empty the pork onto a plate and set aside.
  • Add lettuce, carrots, daikon, cucumbers, mint, and vermicelli noodles to a bowl. Top with a few pieces of pork.
  • Drizzle with Vietnamese dipping sauce and serve.

Notes

  1. Marinate the pork overnight for the best flavor – The longer the pork sits in the marinade, the better it will taste. I marinated mine for 24 hours, and it tasted AMAZING!
  2. Cook pork over medium high heat – Cooking pork over medium high heat gets you that nice sear/brown color without all the water coming out of the pork. Cooking on a lower heat will cause the water to come out and produce a soggy sauce.
  3. How do you store the lemongrass pork? – Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
  4. What if I don’t want to make a vermicelli bowl? – If you don’t want a vermicelli bowl, this lemongrass pork can also be eaten with rice or bread!

Nutrition

Calories: 319kcalCarbohydrates: 44gProtein: 20gFat: 7gSaturated Fat: 2gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 58mgSodium: 814mgPotassium: 609mgFiber: 3gSugar: 9gVitamin A: 1838IUVitamin C: 9mgCalcium: 66mgIron: 3mg
Keyword lemongrass pork vermicelli bowl, pork vermicelli bowl
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
If you love this post, share it!
  289    
VietnameseSpringSummerFish Sauce, Lemongrass, Vermicelli Noodles

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

About Me


Hello I'm Becca! I believe any day can be made better with a bowl of noodle soup. Here you will find recipes from my Chinese/Vietnamese heritage and stories from my experience living here in beautiful LA. Grab a drink and stay awhile! Read More

Never Miss A Post!

Subscribe to get monthly doses of cooking inspiration and foodie goodness in our inbox.

Quick Dinners

Gochujang salmon served on a dark grey plate with boiled broccoli and white rice.

15-Minute Gochujang Salmon

vietnamese shaking beef

Traditional Vietnamese Shaking Beef (Bo Luc Lac)

Baked five spice salmon on a bed of white rice served with mini cucumbers.

Baked Five Spice Salmon (30 minute meal!)

Search

Footer

Privacy Policy · Terms & Conditions · All Rights Reserved

Copyright © 2023 · Cooking Therapy