I had the pleasure of spending my birthday this year at the beautiful Oregon Coast. And for my dinner, I ordered this Vegan Banh Mi Sandwich from a local brewpub. It was so good I decided to recreate it myself!
When I first saw it on the Menu, I was like, "What the heck is a Banh Mi"?
Wow, was I pleasantly surprised! My sandwich was a crusty baguette, piled high with tasty mushrooms, and a pickled jicama and carrot slaw. They also used some kind of a spicy vegan mayo and added cilantro and jalapeno slices.
No, it wasn't hot and spicy, but it did have a nice zing to it. In fact, the whole time I was enjoying it I was already thinking about how I could make it at home.
So first of all, this is a Vietnamese Sandwich. In fact, Banh Mi (pronounced
For my Vegan version, I decided to copy my brewpub buddies from Pelican Brewing in Cannon Beach, OR and use Portabello Mushrooms.
Since the bread is important I went with an oil-free French Baguette I found at Whole Foods. I then julienned some Daikon Radish (available now in many grocery stores) and carrots and soaked them in Rice Vinegar to quickly 'pickle' them.
At first, I thought the sauce was an aioli but then realized an aioli is usually made with oil so I went with a homemade mayo instead. I used silken Tofu and a little seasoning to make it into a mayo, then added some oil-free Hoisin Sauce and a heaping tablespoon of Sriracha to get those Asian flavors I really wanted.
Perfect! All the different textures and flavors work very well together to make this a REALLY GOOD sandwich!
I hope you like it!
So we'll tackle this one step at a time.
- First, we'll make the pickled slaw
- Then the remoulade (spicy mayo sauce)
- And finally, we'll prepare the mushrooms
- All that's left is assembling this bad boy and enjoying that very first bite!
Here we go.
Vegan Banh Mi Sandwich
The Slaw
I used my ever-intimidating Mandolin Slicer to julienne 2 carrots and a maybe a 4" piece of Daikon Radish. Peel both the carrots and the radish first, and then carefully......push them through the mandolin to shred them.
Daikon Radish is available in a LOT of grocery stores now, but maybe it's just a west coast thing? If you can't find them in your produce section, look for Jicama instead. Jicama is another white crunchy vegetable that is now in many produce sections. They're kind of like Mexican Turnips.
And if you can't find either, regular radish will work fine.
You'll want about 1 cup each of shredded carrot and daikon. Place the shreds into a glass bowl and add ⅔ cup Rice Vinegar (Apple Cider Vinegar will work too) and ⅓ cup hot water. Mix and set aside.
Note: Be sure and drain before using.
Tofu Remoulade
While the veggies are pickling, let's make the mayo.
You're going to need some Silken Tofu as it makes the best, creamy mayo. You will NOT need an entire 12oz or 16oz package, so I cut mine in half and froze half for a future recipe. Tofu freezes well.
Place the other half of
Blend until smooth and adjust any seasoning if needed.
TO that mayo, I added 2 teaspoon Hoisin Sauce. The brand SAN-J has an oil-free and gluten-free Hoisin Sauce I picked up at Whole Foods. And finally, add a little Sriracha for some kick. I used a heaping tablespoon, but you might like it a little tamer. Adjust to your own taste.
Again blend until nice and smooth, scraping down the sides as necessary, and then scrape out into a small bowl and set inside your fridge for now. You should end up with about ¾ cup of mayo.
The Portobellos
And finally, the 'meat' of our sandwich.
For our marinade, whisk together ¼ cup Low Sodium Soy Sauce, 2 Tbs Maple Syrup, and ½ tsp Liquid Smoke. Set aside.
Saute about ¼ of an onion in a tablespoon or two of water or veg broth until softened. Then add 16 oz of sliced Portobello Mushrooms. Cook until they begin to soften and release their own juices, then stir in the marinade.
Let that simmer, stirring occasionally, until most of the liquid has cooked off and evaporated.
The Assemble
Since this Vegan Banh Mi literally translates into 'bread' - what we assemble our sandwich on is kind of important.
For those following a strictly oil-free diet, I was able to find oil-free French Baguettes at my local Whole Foods. If that is not an option, I'm sure Dave's Killer Bread or Ezekiel Bread will work just fine
But in all honesty? A crusty baguette really makes this sandwich.
I cut mine in half, slathered on some mayo on both halves, and then lightly toasted them using my toaster oven at 350 degrees for about 5 minutes.
Then you just pile on the mushrooms on one half, and some of that slaw on the other.
Optional Garnish
To garnish this awesome sandwich, you really should try some sliced cucumbers and fresh cilantro. And if you can handle it......some freshly sliced jalapeno as well.
You get the savory 'meat' from the mushrooms, the crunchy tang from the slaw, and that spicy Asian kick from the mayo, PLUS the flavors of the garnish.
Man - what a great Sandwich!
Be sure and leave a comment if you enjoyed this as much as I did!
Until next week....
Vegan Banh Mi Sandwich
- Prep Time: 40 min
- Cook Time: 20 min
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 2 Sandwiches 1x
- Category: Sandwich
- Cuisine: Asian
Description
For my birthday this year, I ordered this Vegan Banh Mi Sandwich from a local beachfront brewpub. It was so good I decided to recreate it myself!
Ingredients
Pickled Veggies
- 1 cup shredded Carrot
- 1 cup shredded Daikon Radish (or Jicama)
- ⅔ cup Rice Vinegar (or Apple Cider Vinegar)
- ⅓ cup Hot Water
Tofu Remoulade
- 6-8 oz Silken Tofu
- 1 Tbs Lemon Juice
- 1 Tbs Sriracha (or to taste)
- 2 tsp Hoisin Sauce
- 1 tsp Apple Cider Vinegar
- 1 clove Garlic, crushed
- ¼ tsp Salt
Sandwich
- Two 6" French Baguettes
- 16oz Portobello Mushrooms
- ¼ cup Onions, sliced
- Marinade
- ¼ cup Low Sodium Soy Sauce
- 2 Tbs Maple Syrup
- ½ tsp Liquid Smoke
Garnish
- Sliced Cucumber (optional)
- Freshly Sliced Jalapenos (optional)
- Fresh Cilantro (optional)
Instructions
Pickled Veggies
- Peel carrots and daikon
- Carefully shred or julienne about 1 cup each of the carrot and daikon
- Place veggies in a glass bowl and add vinegar and water.
- Stir occasionally and set aside.
- Drain before using.
Tofu Remoulade
- Place all of the sauce ingredients into a blender
- Adjust Sriracha to your own taste preference
- Blend until smooth, scraping down sides as necessary
Mushrooms
- Slice onion and gently saute in 1-2 Tbs water until softened
- Clean the mushrooms and remove the stems.
- Slice the Portobellos thinly and add to pan
- Gently saute until softened and they begin to release their own liquid
- Add marinade and stir well
- Simmer until most of the liquid has cooked off and evaporated
Assembly
- Although not necessary, I recommend toasting the baguettes
- Slice each baguette lengthwise and slather with the remoulade
- Toast 5 min at 350 degrees F
- Pile high with generous amounts of mushrooms, drained slaw, and garnishments
Terri
This is a really good recipe.
Becky
Yum!
Kim
Banh Mi is my new favorite sandwich! Oh my goodness... I am going to try your version this week. Thanks, Chuck!
Jill Princehouse
I live on the Oregon Coast and would love to try this sandwich there. Would you mind sharing the name and location of this pub?
Everything we make of yours is delicious. 🙂 Thanks, Jill
Chuck Underwood
Be glad to, it was Pelican Brewery, but the last several times I was there (since covid) the sandwhich was no loinger on the menu.
Jill Princehouse
Tillamook or Pacific City? I live in Oceanside. Thanks, Chuck
Judy
Yum. Eating right now. Did not take hat long to make. Hardest problem is having all the ingredients and time to make. at same time.
Liane
We absolutely loved this sandwich! We are going to serve it to our meat-loving family. They’ll for sure love it too. Many thanks for your generous sharing of these great recipes.
Ellen Lederman
Is the silken tofu the aseptic package type or the refrigerated type? This looks great.
Dana
Tofu mayo made my roll too soggy.
Will use Hoisin sauce instead on the bread and put the tofu mayo on the mushrooms and salad just before eating.
Missmarydee
I bet this would be good in a panini press! I am tempted to try this!!!
Shari T
So I made this tonight, and it was delicious! There's a Vietnamese restaurant up the road from us with these sandwiches. The tofu version is very oily. This recipe is great, very flavorful! I really wouldn't know that this was low fat had I not made it myself. Next time I think I'll try jicama instead of the daikon; just a hair too strong for me. Thanks for figuring this out and posting!
Laura Walker
What brand is your mandolin? Thanks!
Chuck Underwood
I have it listed in my Amazon Store. https://www.amazon.com/shop/brandnewvegan
Judy Gulliver
Finally (!) made this and was definitely not disappointed. I'll be making it again. Thanks for another delicious recipe, Chuck.
Kimberly
Super delicious!!! One of our favorite go to meals now!
oldeleorechaun
My wife is curios as to the 'shelf life on the Tofu Remoulade. Or do you have leftovers?
Chuck Underwood
Did not have any leftovers - sorry. I would say though no more than 3-5 days in the fridge.
Tonah
What brand of bread did you use Thanks
Chuck Underwood
It was an oil-free French Baguette I found at Whole Foods.
Shana
Sorry for my ignorance, but I am trying to eat WFPBNO and would assume that a baguette is not in compliance. I tend to choose whole wheat/whole grain breads with no oil so maybe I'm missing out. I plan to make this today! I'll be sure to comment. Thanks, Chuck for the great recipes.
Christine Straight
I have frozen firm and extra firm tofu, for that extrs dense texture. but never silken...does it alter that too or is it just to store it but texture stays the same? The sandwich looks amazing btw!
TimesAFlyin
Looks good, Chuck. Thanks for letting us know what brands you have discovered that are compliant with WFPB WOE.
Sharon
It sounds very good, but I did not see onion in the recipe ingredients.
susan beterbide
Wow! Just wow!