Photo: Belle Morizio • Food Styling: Maggie Ruggiero • Prop Styling: Paige Hicks. Photo: Belle Morizio • Food Styling: Maggie Ruggiero • Prop Styling: Paige Hicks
The brilliance behind sườn nướng, the addictive smoke-scented grilled pork chops that are often served with fluffy white rice and nước chấm dipping sauce, is their slim size: Because these bone-in cuts are so thin, they soak up their sweet, garlicky, lemongrass-spiked marinade like a sponge, and they cook in minutes, charred on the outside, tender and intensely seasoned within. You can get three delicious cutlets out of one American-size pork chop: We usually find them pre-sliced at Asian markets, but you can ask your butcher to cut quarter-inch slices from the loin. Aside from the classic Vietnamese preparation, they’re great for making schnitzel and roulades. Check out all of our favorite Vietnamese recipes here.
Featured in the January/February 2012 issue.
Yield: 4–6 Time: 1 hour 30 minutes ½ cup plus 2 Tbsp. sugar, divided ⅓ cup thinly sliced shallots ¼ cup thinly sliced lemongrass 2 Tbsp. vegetable or peanut oil 2 Tbsp. soy sauce 1½ Tbsp. fish sauce 1 Tbsp. freshly ground black pepper 8 garlic cloves, finely chopped 1 lb. pork blade chops (¼-in.-thick), pounded thin Steamed white rice and nước chấm, for serving Instructions Bring a
