Vietnamese Lemongrass Pork Chops (Thit Heo Nuong Xa)
By Lee Jackson ↣ Published on: November 27, 2020
The perfect balance of sweet, sour, salt and spice, these juicy and perfectly charred Vietnamese Lemongrass Pork Chops have all the fragrance of lemongrass and more. Grilled to perfection!
Lemongrass is an ingredient that never fails to entice and delight the senses. The subtle, floral lemon fragrance and rounded mild flavour exotic yet familiar. My recipe for Vietnamese Lemongrass Pork Chops, are one of the country's tastiest offerings. A simple marinade and a little time, ensures the thin pork chops, when grilled are the essence of Vietnamese cuisine - a marriage of sweet, sour, salt and spice. What I love about this dish is the balance of flavours, from the pork chop to the fresh salad and then the soft broken jasmine rice. The perfect blend.
What are Vietnamese Pork Chops?
Vietnamese Lemongrass Pork Chops, known as 'Thit Heo Nuong Xa (Thịt Heo Nướng Xả)' in Vietnam are a traditional way to grill/bbq thin pork steaks or chops. Fresh ingredients are pounded into a puree and combined to create a balanced marinade to coat the pork. Time does its magic (12-24 hours) and then the chops are typically grilled over hot coals. The meat chars and the sugar in the marinade caramelises into something very special. Juicy pork, fragrant for the ages and a masterpiece of flavour.
A complete meal: Traditionally, pork chop is often served as part of a meal that includes the Chop (Thit Heo Nuong Xa) broken Jasmine rice (Com Tam) or vermicelli rice noodles, a salad or pickled vegetable element, a slice of a Vietnamese meat loaf (Cha Trang), Shredded pork rinds (Bi Heo) and more often than not a delicious crispy fried egg. To accompany the plate is the ubiquitous sweet & salty dipping sauce (Nuoc Cham).
My recipe features the pork chop, salad, broken rice and dipping sauce.
Why it works
It's juicy - The pork chop is cooked over a grill/bbq, so it's charred on the outside and juicy on the inside.
It's fragrant - What makes this pork chop like no other is the intensely delicious marinade. Sweet, lemon and umami. Utterly addictive.
The dressing/dipping sauce - As if the pork itself want flavourful enough, the Nước chấm dipping sauce is simple and packed with additional sweet and savoury flavour.
Stuff you'll need
My recipe features all that I love about Vietnamese food. A wonderful combination of fresh and flavour-bomb ingredients. Nothing too difficult to track down in most supermarkets these days. If you do struggle, get yourself off to the nearest Asian supermarket and you'll be sure to find everything.
- Pork chops - go for thin cut pork chops or steaks.
- Fresh - Lemongrass, cilantro/coriander, mint, Thai chillies, garlic, cucumber and tomato.
- Store cupboard - light soy sauce, rice wine, oil, white vinegar, sugar, fish sauce, white pepper
- Broken rice - you can find this in many Chinese/Vietnamese supermarkets or buy it online. You can also use regular Jasmine rice.
Step by Step
Now that you have all your ingredients, let's see just how easy it is to create the most wonderful Vietnamese Lemongrass Pork Chops.
- Step 1 - Make the marinade - combine all the ingredients
- Step 2 - Marinate the pork - Pour the mixture over the chops and coat well (use a plastic bag to save mess). Refrigerate the chops for 12-24 hours. This step is essential in getting the ultimate flavour.
- Step 3 - Nước chấm dipping sauce - Just combine all the ingredients and you're set. This recipe makes more than you'll need, but you can store it for weeks to enjoy as a salad dressing and more.
- Step 4 - Cook the broken rice - I use a rice cooker, which I couldn't/wouldn't be without!
- Step 5 - Char the steaks - Use a bbq grill for the best results (3 minutes per side for thin chops, or until cooked). You can also use a hot broiler or skillet pan.
- Step 6 - Arrange and serve. Serve the pork chop with a little rice and salad and the dipping sauce in a small bowl on the side.
Pro Tips to make your life easier
- Marinate in a plastic bag. To save mess and fuss, a zip-lock bag is the ideal way to marinate meat.
- Pre-make your dipping sauce, it'll stay fresh for a week or so in the fridge.
- If you don't have a BBQ grill, use a hot broiler/oven grill or a skillet/frying pan.
Serving and storing suggestions
Serve your pork chop with a little rice and salad with the dipping sauce on the side.
- Freezing marinated chops: Before you cook, you can freeze the pork in the marinade for up to 2 months. Defrost thoroughly before cooking as normal.
- Leftover chops: Leftover chops will refrigerate for 2-3 days and eaten warmed or cold. I don't recommend freezing leftover chops, they'll dry out, especially when reheating.
- Leftover dipping sauce: The Nuoc Cham will stay fresh in the fridge for 1-2 weeks. You can use it with other Vietnamese dishes or as a simple Asian salad dressing.
- Alternative to salad: This dish is often served with lightly pickled vegetables like carrot and radish. Use 1/2 cup of the dipping sauce and soak some thin batons or slices of raw carrot and radish for 20 minutes.
- Put an egg on it - I can't look past a fried egg, and this Vietnamese pork chop dish is the perfect contender for one. Just fry an egg (one side only) for a little longer than you think is right, until the edges are browned and super crispy, while the yolk still runny. Then rest it on top of your rice for serving. Perfection!
Ready to get cooking?
So there you have it, restaurant style Vietnamese pork chop at home. All the flavour you'd expect and more. This is such a wonderfully fresh, fragrant and delicious combination, and you'll see that it's not at all difficult to make at home. I hope you enjoy and if you do, be sure to let me know in the comments.
Any Questions? (FAQ)
Have a question about my recipe for Vietnamese Lemongrass Pork Chops? Let me know in the comments.
What is Heo Nuong?
Heo Nướng is a Vietnamese preparation for pork. Usually chops or steaks, they are marinated in a variety of fresh aromatics and fish sauce.They are then grilled over hot coals until charred. They're served alongside rice, noodles and other Vietnamese condiments including a nuoc cham dipping sauce.
What is the secret to juicy pork chops
- Don't overcook. For thin chops like the ones in this recipe 2-3 minutes per side is good.
- Rest. Rest the chops for roughly half the time you cooked them. I like to loosely place a sheet of foil over them while they rest.
- Marinade. In this recipe, the marinade will act as a tenderiser to the meat, making it softer and juicier when cooked.
- Baste. If you're using a thicker chop, use either some of the leftover marinade half way through cooking to coat (baste) the chops, or baste with a little peanut oil during cooking. (NOTE: if you're using the marinade to baste with, be sure to give it time to cook out as the raw meat has been sitting in it).
More South East Asian recipes
If you liked this recipe for Vietnamese lemongrass pork chops, you'll be sure to enjoy more of my favourite South East Asian recipes.
- Vietnamese Bun Cha Vermicelli Salad
- Vietnamese Chicken Curry
- Laotian Nam Khao (Crispy Rice Salad)
- Vietnamese Braised Pork Belly with Eggs – Thit Kho
- Vietnamese Pork with Lemongrass & Chilli
- Cha Kroeung Sach Moan (Cambodian Lemongrass Chicken Stir-Fry)
- Sambal Udang (Sambal Prawns)
- Ayam Serundeng (Chicken with Crispy Coconut)
- Babi Pongteh (Malaysian Pork Stew)
- Laotian Chicken Curry with Bamboo Shoots
- Roti Canai with Dhal
- Malaysian Curry Powder
Vietnamese Grilled Lemongrass Pork Chops (Thit Heo Nuong Xa)
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For the pork
- 4 pork chops (thin chops, bone in)
- 2 lemongrass stalks (white parts only, very finely chopped)
- 3 stems cilantro (stems only, chopped)
- 3 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 Thai chillies (finely sliced)
- 1 tbsp peanut oil (or vegetable/canola)
- 1 tbsp rice wine (or Chinese cooking wine)
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 tbsp fish sauce
- ½ tsp white pepper
For the Nước chấm dipping sauce (makes 2 cups)
- ½ cup Sugar
- 200 ml boiling water
- 100 ml fish sauce
- 200 ml white vinegar
- 3 garlic cloves (very finely chopped)
- 1 Thai chilli (very finely chopped)
For the accompaniments
- 1 cucumber (seeded and cut into slices)
- 2 tomatoes (chopped into large pieces) or 1 cup cherry tomatoes (halved)
- 2 tbsp cilantro (chopped)
- 2 tbsp mint (chopped)
- 2 cups broken rice (cooked)
Instructions
- Combine all the marinade ingredients with the pork and leave covered or in a plastic bag in the fridge for as long as you can! 24 hours is great, 4 hours minimum.
- Once marinated, heat a BBQ grill or a skillet pan. Cook the pork chops for about 4-5 minutes per side (depending how thick your chops are) a thicker chop may take 5-7 per side. My chops were about 1-inch (2.5cm) thick.
- Leave the chops to rest for 2 minutes before serving.
For the Nước chấm dipping sauce
- Boil the water and when hot, pour over the sugar. Add the fish sauce and vinegar and whisk until the sugar is dissolved. Add the garlic and chilli and stir. Leave to cool to room temperature. You can store in a jar in the fridge for up to 2 months.
For the accompaniments
- Make a simple salad with cucumber, tomato, cilantro and mint. Serve a little cooked broken rice (or Jasmine rice) alongside the salad and the little Nước chấm dipping sauce on the side in individual bowls per person.
Notes
- Marinate in a plastic bag. To save mess and fuss.
- Pre-make your dipping sauce, it'll stay fresh for a week or so in the fridge.
- Instead of a BBQ grill, use a hot broiler/oven grill or a skillet/frying pan.
- Freezing marinated chops: Freeze the pork in the marinade before cooking for up to 2 months. Make sure the meat is full defrosted before cooking as normal.
- Leftover chops will refrigerate for 2-3 days. In my opinion, freezing the cooked chops is not recommended.
- Leftover dipping sauce: The Nuoc Cham wis good in the fridge for 1-2 weeks. Reuse as an Asian salad dressing or a light pickle for an alternative to salad for this dish. Simply soak thin batons or slices of raw carrot and radish for 20 minutes in 1/2 cup of the dipping sauce. Drain and serve.
- Crispy fried egg - This is a common addition and perfect! Fry an egg on one side only until the edges are browned and crispy, while the yolk still runny.
Nutrition
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