Cooking with Viki

  • Home
  • Vietnamese Recipes
  • Lao Recipes
  • Thai Recipes
  • About Viki
You are here: Home / Vietnamese Recipes / Authentic Vietnamese Bun Bi – Shredded Pork Skin and Vermicelli Noodles

November 17, 2019 · Leave a Comment

Authentic Vietnamese Bun Bi – Shredded Pork Skin and Vermicelli Noodles

Vietnamese Recipes

I’m sharing with you how to make an easy, delicious authentic Vietnamese dish called Bun Bi – a dish that melds vermicelli noodles with narrowly cut roasted pork, shredded pork skin, fresh vegetables with a delicious sweet and sour fish sauce drizzled over it.

Bun Bi is a classically traditional Vietnamese dish that can easily be replicated at home. If you have ever tried this dish at a Vietnamese restaurant, I’m sure you can agree that the different textures of this dish along with the flavorful punch of nuoc mam provides a delicious and scrumptious treat!

Bun bi has many names when translated to English. This includes shredded pork skin, thinly sliced pork skin noodles and it’s even called pork skin shredded with vermicelli noodles.

vietnamese bun bi recipe

Overall, the concept is the same. You prepare vermicelli noodles, add roasted pork meat on top, followed by shredded pork skin, a spoonful of roasted rice powder, fresh veggies on top, and then drizzle nuoc mam right over it.

vietnamese bun bi recipe with sweet fish sauce and vermicelli noodles

The conclusion is a wonderfully fresh dish that is great anytime of year, but especially during the hot summer months! It’s a wonderfully aromatic dish that uses the basis of other dishes to bring out the flavor that stands on its own.

vietnamese bun bi recipe with sweet fish sauce and vermicelli noodles

What is Vietnamese Bun Bi?

Vietnamese Bun Bi is a dish that has one main star followed by two supporting actors. Bun Bi is made with shredded pork skin and roasted pork.

vietnamese bun bi recipe with sweet fish sauce and vermicelli noodles

The main star of this show is the deliciously, crispy pork skin. The two supporting actors are the audacious pork belly and the very subtle, quiet toasted rice powder.

Bun bi is also known as bi heo. If I had to translate Vietnamese recipe names, here’s what everything means: Bi means skin, heo means pig, bun means noodles.

Is Bun Bi Healthy for you?

Shredded pork skin may sound unhealthy, but it is actually quite delicious and good for you. The vermicelli noodles topped with crispy pork skin, roasted pork, and fresh herbs and vegetables like mint and cilantro make it a all around great meal. It’s under 500 calories per serving and is a great dish especially during spring and summer months.

vietnamese bun bi recipe with sweet fish sauce and vermicelli noodles

Special Ingredients to Get At the Asian Grocery Store for Making Bun Bi

As in most recipes, here I’m going to list some of the ingredients that you might need to go to a specialty asian supermarket in order to get the ingredients.

Frozen, Cooked Pork Skin

Most asian grocery stores carry this in either the freezer or refrigerated section. You’ll need to ensure that the pork skin thaws completely before using. When you are looking for it, it looks like a bunch of noodles frozen together. I would not recommend getting the dehydrated pork skin. In generally, bi is a mixture of both pork skin and meat.

Roasted Rice Powder

Roasted rice powder can be purchased in asian grocery stores. However, this is a really easy recipe for toasted rice powder that you can make right at home.

Pork Belly

You can find this in the meat section of an asian grocery store

Ingredients to Make Vietnamese Bun Bi – Shredded Pork Skin Vermicelli Noodles

1 bag of frozen, cooked shredded pork skin
1 pound of pork belly
1 bag of ground roasted rice called “thinh” (you can make your own using this my authentic roasted rice recipe)
cup of vinegar
cup of white cooking wine
1/2 tablespoon of sugar
3 tablespoons of vegetable oil, divided
1 tablespoons of minced garlic
3 tablespoon of roasted rice powder
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1/2 teaspoon of pepper

Accompaniments:
mint
cucumber, sliced narrowly
cilantro
sprouts

Instructions on How to Make Vietnamese Bun Bi

Step 1 – Thaw and Prepare Frozen Pork skin

Defrost the frozen pork skin, rinse well under cold water.

Next, soak the thawed frozen pork skin in the vinegar and cooking wine in order to get rid of the smell of the skin. Soak it for about 15 minutes.

Rinse it again. I would recommend using a salad spinner to ensure that the pork skin is completely dry. If it isn’t completely dry before combining in the next steps with the pork belly and roasted rice powder, the skin will clump. Using a salad spinner will help get rid of the excess water and does an incredible job. If you don’t have a salad spinner, just use paper towels and do an extra careful job of ensuring that the skin is completely dry.

vietnamese bun bi recipe with sweet fish sauce and vermicelli noodles

Step 2 – Boil the Pork belly

In a medium pot, fill the water enough so that it will cover up the pork belly. Bring the water to a boil, add the pork belly into the pot. Add a 1/2 tablespoon of sugar. Boil it for about 45 minutes until the meat is no longer pink.

Pork belly provides a very much flavorful taste to this dish.

vietnamese bun bi recipe with sweet fish sauce and vermicelli noodles

Step 3 – Sear the Pork belly

Remove the pork belly from the pot. Using a paper towel, pat it down completely dry. Next, add 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil into a pan and add the pork belly. Cook for about 1-2 minutes on each side until all sides are brown.

Remove from the pan and let it cool. Once cool, cut it into 1/4 inch to 1 inch strips of pork.

Step 4 – Cook the Pork Skin

In the same frying pan, add an additional tablespoon of cooking oil. Add in the minced garlic and allow it to turn golden. Next, remove it from heat and combine the pork skin and sliced pork belly.

vietnamese bun bi recipe with sweet fish sauce and vermicelli noodles

Step 5 – Prepare the Pork Skin and Pork Belly Together

In the frying pan, add in pork belly and the pork skin and combine them thoroughly together. They key to do this dish is both the pork skin AND the rice powder. Add three tablespoons of roasted rice powder and mix it in thoroughly.

Roasted rice powder is one of the secret ingredients in many asian dishes from Vietnamese to Lao foods that cannot be overlooked. The rice powder provides texture that can’t compete with any other spice.

A little rice powder can go a long way.

vietnamese bun bi recipe with sweet fish sauce and vermicelli noodles

Just make sure you don’t add too much, else you end up with a really gritty texture (no one wants that)!

vietnamese bun bi recipe with sweet fish sauce and vermicelli noodles

Step 6 – Season

Season with salt and pepper, adjust the seasoning based on your personal preference.

Step 7 – Prepare the Vermicelli, Nuoc Mam, and Vegetable Accompaniments

Prepare the vermicelli noodles based on package instructions. This is the package I use:

vietnamese bun bi recipe with sweet fish sauce and vermicelli noodles

Make the nuoc mam to set aside along with the dish. Prepare the mint, cucumber, sprouts and cilantro to set next to the dish.

vietnamese bun bi recipe with sweet fish sauce and vermicelli noodles

Step 8 – Serve and eat!

The delicious meld of the warmth of the bi and pork roast along with the coolness of the vermicelli noodles drizzled with cool fish sauce makes this dish an absolute delight.

vietnamese bun bi recipe with sweet fish sauce and vermicelli noodles

How to Serve Vietnamese Bun Heo

Similar to other Vietnamese dishes, the accompaniments are the MOST important part of this dish. Adding fresh herbs like mint, cilantro, narrowly cut cucumber, and any other fresh veggies make this dish out of this world.

A drizzle of the delicious chilli garlic fish sauce (nuoc mam) makes it a delectable dish. Bun bi will become one of your favorite Vietnamese noodle dishes outside of the very popular pho soup!

vietnamese bun bi recipe with sweet fish sauce and vermicelli noodles

You can dish it up in any order. If you are worried about presentation, start with the noodles first, topped with the protein, and then the veggies. 

My favorite way to dish it up is actually with the vegetables on bottom first. It’s not the “prettiest” presentation, but it’s by far the best way to get the fish sauce to meld with the rest of the ingredients.

First, I add in the veggies:

vietnamese bun bi recipe with sweet fish sauce and vermicelli noodles

Next, I top it with the cooled vermicelli noodles.

vietnamese bun bi recipe with sweet fish sauce and vermicelli noodles

Next, I add the bi and pork on top.

vietnamese bun bi recipe with sweet fish sauce and vermicelli noodles

Then, I drizzle the fish sauce on top and add a few sparing mint leaves!

vietnamese bun bi recipe with sweet fish sauce and vermicelli noodles

Other Ways to Use Bun Bi in Other Vietnamese Dishes

When you find that the restaurant portions of bun bi are never enough, come back to this recipe and make a large batch of these and it will last you at least 5 days. This dish is absolutely a meat lover’s delight!

vietnamese bun bi recipe with sweet fish sauce and vermicelli noodles

What you may also find is that the way you prepare the pork belly, pork skin, and roasted rice powder can be used in a variety of Vietnamese dishes, including the ever popular vermicelli noodles with sliced egg rolls on top.

There’s another amazing dish called com bi cha thit nuong that literally means “rice with pork skin and barbeque meat” that you can use pork skin with.

vietnamese bun bi recipe with sweet fish sauce and vermicelli noodles

Bun Bi and it’s ingredients are so versatile, you can really mix up a few other variations of some of the core ingredients and switch up the main carb ingredient to make another dish that is uniquely your own.

vietnamese bun bi recipe with sweet fish sauce and vermicelli noodles

Cool vermicelli noodles mixed with mint, cabbage and drizzled with fish sauce along with bi is an absolutely delicious meal that I hope you find scrumptious too!

If you are looking for another asian dish, check out my khao poon recipe that is authentically delicious, especially if you love a light curry noodle dish!

vietnamese bun bi recipe with sweet fish sauce and vermicelli noodles

vietnamese bun bi recipe

vietnamese bun bi recipe with sweet fish sauce and vermicelli noodles

Authentic Vietnamese Bun Bi Recipe

Yield: 4
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 35 minutes

Vietnamese Bun Bi (which is also known as Bi Heo) is an absolutely delicious recipe made with shredded pork skin, roasted pork and accompanied by nuoc mam and fresh vegetables topped over vermicelli noodles.

Ingredients

  • 1 bag of frozen, cooked shredded pork skin
  • 1 pound of pork belly
  • 1 bag of ground roasted rice called "thinh" (you can make your own using this my authetnic roasted rice recipe)
  • cup of vinegar
  • cup of white cooking wine
  • 1/2 tablespoon of sugar
  • 3 tablespoons of vegetable oil, divided
  • 1 tablespoons of minced garlic
  • 3 tablespoon of roasted rice powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon of salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon of pepper
  • mint
  • cucumber, sliced narrowly
  • cilantro
  • sprouts

Instructions

    1. Thaw and Prepare Frozen Pork Skin - Defrost the frozen pork skin, rinse well under cold water. Next, soak the dethawed frozen pork skin in the vinegar and cooking wine in order to get rid of the smell of the skin. Soak it for about 15 minutes. Rinse it again. I would recommend using a salad spinner to ensure that the pork skin is completely dry.
    2. Boil the Pork Belly - In a medium pot, fill the water enough so that it will cover up the pork belly. Bring the water to a boil, add the pork belly into the pot. Add a 1/2 tablespoon of sugar. Boil it for about 45 minutes until the meat is no longer pink. Pork belly provides a very much flavorful taste to this dish.
    3. Sear the Pork Belly - Remove the pork belly from the pot. Using a paper towel, pat it down completely dry. Next, add 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil into a pan and add the pork belly. Cook for about 1-2 minutes on each side until all sides are brown. Remove from the pan and let it cool. Once cool, cut it into 1/4 inch to 1 inch strips of pork.
    4. Cook the Pork Skin - In the same frying pan, add an additional tablespoon of cooking oil. Add in the minced garlic and allow it to turn golden. Next, remove it from heat and combine the pork skin and sliced pork belly.
    5. Prepare the Pork Skin and Pork Belly Together - In the frying pan, add in pork belly and the pork skin and combine them thoroughly together. They key to do this dish is both the pork skin AND the rice powder. Add three tablespoons of roasted rice powder and mix it in thoroughly. Roasted rice powder is one of the secret ingredients in many asian dishes from Vietnamese to Lao foods that cannot be overlooked. The rice powder provides texture that can't compete with any other spice. A little rice powder can go a long way.
    6. Season with salt and pepper, adjust the seasoning based on your personal preference.
    7. Prepare the vermicelli noodles based on package instructions. Make the nuoc mam to set aside along with the dish. Prepare the mint, cucumber, sprouts and cilantro to set next to the dish.
    8. Serve and eat!

Recommended Products

As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.

  • OXO Good Grips Salad Spinner, Large, Clear
    OXO Good Grips Salad Spinner, Large, Clear
  • Vietnamese Rice Stick(vermicelli) Three Ladies Brand 2lbs
    Vietnamese Rice Stick(vermicelli) Three Ladies Brand 2lbs
Nutrition Information:
Serving Size: 4
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 450Total Fat: 14gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 0gCholesterol: 48mgSodium: 1477mgCarbohydrates: 35gNet Carbohydrates: 35gFiber: 3gSugar: 10gProtein: 24g
© Viki
Cuisine: Vietnamese / Category: Noodles

More Easy Vietnamese Recipes You’ll Love

  • Vietnamese Bun Bo Hue – Spicy Noodle Soup
  • Banh Xeo – Vietnamese Yellow Pancakes
  • Instant Pot Banh Tet Recipe
  • Vietnamese Spring Roll Peanut Dipping Sauce
  • Authentic Vietnamese Pho Broth

If you love this Bun Bi Vietnamese recipe as much as our family does, please write a five star review and help me share on Facebook and Pinterest!

Vietnamese bun bi noodle with pork skin

Vietnamese bun bi noodle with pork skin

Previous Post: « Authentic Lao Jaew Sauce (Smokey and Spicy Tomato Dipping Sauce)
Next Post: Vietnamese Banh Uot – Steamed Rice Rolls Recipe »

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published.

Primary Sidebar

Meet Viki

Viki souvannalith
Hi, I'm Viki! I love sharing my love of authentic Vietnamese, Lao, and Thai food! I moved into the states in the 1980s. During my life change, I brought along with my delicious recipes from Vietnam (my descent), Laos (where I was born), and Thailand (where I was a refugee during the war). I'm passionate about showing how anyone can make these delicious cuisines and how you can make it right at home! Learn more ...

Free Recipes

Join thousands of others for new recipes sent to your inbox weekly!

Disclosure

We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.
  • Contact Me
  • About Viki

Footer

LEGAL INFORMATION

  • About Viki
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • Contact Me

Recipe Search

INGREDIENT INDEX

  • Grocery Hauls & Ingredients
  • Bean Sprouts
  • Toasted Rice Powder
  • Cha Lua

Join the Newsletter

Join thousands of others for new recipes sent to your inbox weekly!

Copyright © 2020 · Captivating Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

Too intimidated by your local Asian grocery store?

Let me help you out!  I'll send you a free shopping list to your email inbox that will help you navigate your next visit. 

Sign up now to open up a whole new world of flavor!

x