Here’s a super fast pork stir fry made with ground pork infused with flavours from the streets of Vietnam. With just a handful of ingredients you probably already have, it’s sweet, salty, beautifully caramelised and absolutely irresistible. It’s the quick and easy version of Vietnamese Caramel Pork, a famous Vietnamese food speciality!
This is a reader-favourite recipe included by popular demand in my debut cookbook “Dinner”!
Vietnamese stir fry – Pork Mince recipe
Ground pork – which we call “mince” here in Australia – is extremely good value.
It’s also just about the least sexy protein I know. Don’t you think? A dry aged piece of New York strip is sexy. Quail is gourmet. Oysters are….well, we’ve all heard that oysters are an aphrodisiac, right? 😉
Mince is…well, it just isn’t fancy. And yet, it makes it into my shopping trolley every single week because it’s such good value and so versatile. Sure, there are the usual suspects you can make with mince. Bolognese, meatballs, burgers, Meatloaf, Shepherds Pie – to name a few of the more common ones.
But sometimes, it’s nice to do something a little different. Like this Vietnamese pork stir fry.
The crazy thing about this pork mince recipe is that the ingredients list is so short. Chili, garlic, ginger, sugar and fish sauce. That’s it. Seriously!
Can I make this pork stir fry with chicken or beef mince?
Yes! This is fabulous made with chicken, beef and turkey!
“This is a terrific ground pork recipe that tastes and sounds so exotic…. yet it’s so easy!”
The secret to this ground pork is the caramelisation. It is rare to see recipes made with ground meat that are cooked this way so the meat is caramelised.
But those golden brown bits you see – they are the crowning glory in this recipe that takes it from a rather unappetising pale brown-grey colour to a golden brown pile of deliciousness that you will want to eat with a spoon straight out of the skillet. (Go on – you deserve it – cook’s privileges!)
What you need
Short list – see? I didn’t exaggerate!!
Lemongrass is optional – it’s not a pantry staple and also it’s not an ingredient in traditional Vietnamese Caramel Pork. But lemongrass flavour is certainly at home in this dish!
How to make this Vietnamese pork mince stir fry
This pork mince stir fry comes together as quickly as any stir fry. Once you start cooking, you’ll be done in 6 minutes flat.
Authentic Vietnamese roots
I am not 1000% sure that this is strictly authentic Vietnamese but the combination of ingredients I use most certainly are and it is my replica of dishes I have tried at Vietnamese restaurants here in Australia. It is an adaptation of the marinade I use in my Vietnamese Chicken Noodle Bowl and essentially the quick version of Vietnamese Caramel Pork, a famous Vietnamese food speciality.
How to serve it
Serve this pork stir fry over rice and eat it with a spoon! This pork mince recipe doesn’t have a sauce, but you don’t need it because the flavour is intensified and the pork mince mixes all through the rice which flavour it.
To complete your meal, try these:
A fresh side salad like this Asian Slaw;
Add a side of cucumber and tomato wedges, pictured (very classic South East Asian way to add vegetables to a meal); or
Shredded lettuce, cucumber and carrots which makes it more like the classic Vietnamese Noodle Bowls.
Make my Vietnamese Chicken Salad but without the chicken for a fresh, slaw-like salad side.
Hope you enjoy! – Nagi x
PS For a healthy low carb option try Cauliflower Rice – 77% fewer calories and 87% less carbs than rice.
Watch how to make it
This recipe features in my debut cookbook Dinner. The book is mostly new recipes, but this is a reader favourite included by popular demand!
Get your Vietnamese fix!
Vietnamese Caramel Pork – and the Chicken version!
Lemongrass Chicken – one of my favourite things to grill!
Browse all Vietnamese recipes
More quick pork mince recipes
San Choy Bow (Chinese Lettuce Cups)
Egg Foo Young (Chinese Omelette with Pork)
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Vietnamese Caramelised Pork Bowls
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 tbsp cooking oil (I use peanut oil)
- 1/2 onion , finely diced (brown, white or yellow) (~1/2 cup)
- 2 tsp ginger , grated or minced
- 2 garlic cloves , minced (2 tsp paste)
- 1 birds eye or Thai chili , deseeded and finely chopped (Note 1)
- 1 lb / 500g ground pork (mince) (Note 2)
- 5 tbsp brown sugar
- 2 tbsp fish sauce
Serving:
- 1 green onion stem , finely sliced
- Rice
- Sliced red chilli, tomato, cucumber (optional)
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a large skillet over high heat.
- Add the onion, ginger, garlic and chili and cook for 2 minutes.
- Add the pork mince and cook for 2 minutes or so until white all over, breaking up the meat with a wooden spoon.
- Add the sugar and fish sauce. Stir, then leave it to cook without touching until all the juices cook out and the pork starts caramelised – about 2 minutes. Then stir it and leave it again, without stirring, for around 30 seconds to get more caramelisation. Repeat twice more until caramelised to your taste.
- Serve over rice or vermicelli noodles, garnished with sliced scallions/shallots. For a low carb, low cal option, try Cauliflower Rice! I like to have chunks of plain cucumber and carrots on the side which is a classic way of making Vietnamese bowls.
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
Originally published November 2015. Updated September 2019 with new writing, some new photos, brand new video and most importantly, new Life of Dozer section added!
Life of Dozer
Dozer on the wrong side of the counter at the pet shop!!!
(PS yes you spy cat treats, buying a present for a friend!)
Paula says
Super easy and delicious. Winner with the whole family.
Rachael Gibbs says
A very tasty dish .. but very sweet.
I will lessen the sugar by half next time .. but everyone liked it regardless.
Kerri Ogden says
My mince did not turn that caramelised colour as shown
Does anyone know why?
Meena says
Delicious but I made some adjustments to make it perfect for me. It was too sweet and oily the first time I made it so I adjusted the following:
2 tbsp of brown sugar instead of 5
1 tbsp sesame oil instead of 1.5 of cooking oil
It needs something crunchy and salty to balance the flavors. We used her idea of tomatoes and cucumbers but modified it. We diced the cucumbers, tomatoes and a chilli. We added lemon juice and salt and pepper, that became our garnish. I added some fresh cabbage and it was perfect.!
This recipe is in our family book now! It’s a staple.
Christina says
Nagi, your recipes are always fantastic. Full of flavour with great instructions to get it right! Whenever I’m searching for a recipe, I always end up on one of your pages. Love it! Thanks Nagi
Hayley says
Thank you for this recipe! It’s so delicious ❤️
Ame says
If using the lemongrass paste- how much is recommended?
Jayne Pennington says
This was very, very tasty. I made this with rice and then had left overs with my lunch the next day (udon noodles with soy sauce and mirin). Highly recommend and super easy to make!
Micky says
Thank you so much Nagi this recipe is delicious. I love the no frills videos but most of all the simplicity of recipe and for me personally can twist it for an even more awesome dish/s, again many thanks
sammy says
the things i would do to this meal if it was a person
Kath Barker says
LOVE LOVE LOVE this recipe! So quick and easy and super delicious. I make this almost once a week.
Debbie says
Delicious! I only used half the sugar, and added the juice of a small lime, some carrot and green beans. It was so quick and so tasty! Thank you so much Nagi x
Tanya says
So delicious. Quick and easy to make, too!
Veronica says
I love how simple and easy this recipe was!
I did end up changing the amount of sugar, by 3 tbsp it seemed to be too much. I tried scooping out 1/2 tbsp and the dish was still too sweet for my taste. I added a bit more fish sauce to balance it out.
Very delicious! I think next time I make it I’ll try 1 – 1.5 tbsp sugar. 🙂
Sarah says
Love this recipe. We make it at least once a month… sometimes 3. Love it so much, Do you have any similar recipes to this? We could eat this all day.
Ben says
My kids both asked for seconds! Winner of a dish tasty as is and so easy to make, with plenty of option to add own flair if desired.
Kimmy says
So delicious! I lessened the sugar to 3 TBSP the second time I made it because it was too sweet for my taste and added 1 TBSP of dark soy sauce. It’s yummy with fried egg! Thank you, Nagi!
Linda E says
Excellent! I could not find a Bird’s Eye or Thai chili so I used a Serrano. I also used less brown sugar and added lemongrass paste to the brown sugar. I served with tomatoes, cucumbers, green onion and jalapeños. Saved some of the meat for lunch tomorrow, going to serve over lettuce.
Jeanette SY says
I love this recipe!! It’s always a winner at our house and so versatile. We’ve made it with beef and chicken and have never had leftovers. Thanks Nagi!
Deb says
Was concerned about the amount of fish sauce but I followed the recipe. I used chicken mince. What can I say……ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL
Served it with stir fried veg dressed with fresh mint
Thank you Naji and Dozer for sharing 💕