Vietnamese Pork Sandwich (Banh Mi Thit)

This has become one of my favorite sandwiches. Keep in mind that you can alter the quantities of the items on the sandwich any way you want. I usually cook the pork tenderloin immediately before making the sandwiches, but it can be done with leftover pork. Adapted from recipe in "Sunset Magazine".

• Ready In: 25 mins
• Serves: 6

Ingredients

• 1  teaspoon five-spice powder
• 1  tablespoon  vegetable oil
• 1⁄4 cup shallot, chopped
• 1  garlic clove, minced
• 12  ounces  ground lean pork
• 3  tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 1⁄2 teaspoons sugar
• 2  tablespoons  red chili paste or 2  tablespoons  asian red chili sauce
• 12  ounces  pork tenderloin, cooked and thinly sliced
• 2  cups English cucumbers, thinly sliced
• 3  cups mesclun
• 1⁄2 cup  fresh Thai basil
• 1⁄2 cup  fried shallots (optional)
• 3  French baguettes, use light baguette with soft interior and thin crisp crust (8 oz ea.)

Directions

1. In an 8- 10 inch sauté pan over medium/high heat, stir five spice until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
2. Stir in oil, shallots and garlic.
3. Add ground pork and stir often until meat is crumbly and no longer pink.
4. Add soy sauce, sugar and salt and pepper to taste; set aside.
5. Cut baguettes in half crosswise then split almost all the way through, leaving halves attached on one side.
6. Spread 1 tsp of chile paste on one cut side of each baguette section.
7. Spoon 1/6 of the warm ground pork mixture (including juices) over the chile paste.
8. Tuck 1/6 of the pork tenderloin slices evenly into each sandwich.
9. Place sandwiches on a sheet pan and bake at 375°F for about 5 minutes or until filling is warm and crust is crisp.
10. Remove from oven and fill each with 1/6 of the cucumbers, mesclun, basil and fried shallots.