banh-mi style vietnamese baguette

Ingredients

• Servings: 2
• 2 portobello mushroom caps, sliced
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 carrot, sliced into sticks
• 1 daikon (white) radish, sliced into sticks
• 1 cup rice vinegar
• 1/2 cup fresh lime juice
• 1/2 cup cold water
• 1/2 cup chilled lime juice
• 2 teaspoons soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon nuoc mam (vietnamese fish sauce)
• 1/2 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
• 2 tablespoons canola oil
• 2 teaspoons minced garlic
• 1/3 cup white sugar
• 1/3 cup cold water
• 1 jalapeno pepper, thinly sliced
• 8 sprigs fresh cilantro with stems
• 1 medium cucumber, sliced into thin strips
• 2 sprigs fresh thai basil
• 2 (7 inch) french bread baguettes, split lengthwise

Recipe

Preparation Time: 20 mins Cook Time: 25 mins Ready Time: 45 mins


• preheat the oven to 450 degrees f (230 degrees c). place the mushrooms on a baking sheet. drizzle with a little olive oil and season with salt and pepper. roast in the preheated oven for about 25 minutes. cool slightly, then slice into strips.
• while the mushrooms are roasting, bring a saucepan of water to a boil. plunge the carrot and radish sticks into the boiling water and after a few seconds, remove them and plunge them into a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking. in a separate bowl, stir together the rice vinegar, 1/2 cup of lime juice and 1/2 cup cold water. transfer the carrot and radish to the vinegar and lime marinade and let them soak for at least 15 minutes, longer if it's convenient.
• in a small bowl, stir together the remaining lime juice, soy sauce, fish sauce, sesame oil, canola oil, 1/3 cup sugar and 1/3 cup water. this is the sandwich sauce.
• to assemble sandwiches, sprinkle a little of the sandwich sauce each half of the french loaves. place the roasted mushrooms the bottom half of each roll and sprinkle with a little more sauce. top with a few slices of jalapeno, a few sticks of carrot and radish (minus the marinade), cucumber, basil and cilantro. close with the tops of the bread and serve.