Here’s a super fast pork stir fry made with pork mince (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 (can omit, Note 1)
- 500g / 1 lb pork mince (ground pork) (Note 2)
- 5 tbsp (tightly packed brown sugar (don't skimp, else won't caramelise)
- 2 tbsp fish sauce
Serving:
- 1 green onion stem , finely sliced
- Jasmine rice or other rice for serving
- Sliced red chilli, tomato, cucumber (optional)
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a large skillet over high heat.
- Sauté – Add the onion, ginger, garlic and chili and cook for 2 minutes.
- Cook pork – Add the pork mince and cook for 2 minutes or so until white all over, breaking up the meat with a wooden spoon.
- Add sauce & caramelise – 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 jasmine or other rice, or vermicelli noodles, garnished with sliced green onion. 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!)
Pork + fish sauce + palm (or brown) sugar = a match made in heaven!
I did find the result very, VERY sweet though so next time will take a chance and halve the sugar.
Served with fresh mint and lemon juice. Nice!
Made this tonight for dinner and it was such a hit! We served with some lettuce leaves, fresh mint and coriander leaves and some rice! We will have this one in our weekly rotation
We love this with cauliflower rice and fried egg
Thanks Nagi, your recipes are always so easy. I added a splash of soy to this recipe, as my husband is addicted to anything with soy. It was delicious but on the sweeter side for him. So maybe next time I will add a bit more soy!
Hi!
Thank you so much for this recipe — I’ll definitely be buying your book!
I’ve been making this recipe for a while, and let me tell you… every time I do, I have to make at least 3 pounds of ground pork because everyone loves it. It’s also the only leftover I can actually stomach!
I usually hate when people make changes to recipes, but I do use just a little less sugar. I was planning to try the version with pork belly next, but I’m a little afraid I might mess it up.
I really love this recipe. Thank you so much — sending lots of blessings your way! ❤️
Very tasty recipe, thanks! Reduced the sugar to 3 tbsp raw sugar and it caramelised lovely. Served with cucumber, tomato, asparagus and avocado. Yummy, and will make again.
So delicious. Might try it next time with just a bit less sugar. Topped it with shredded cucumber and carrot, a splash of nuoc cham sauce and a sprinkle of chopped peanuts, yum!
Love this for a quick meal after ferrying children between sports, work etc. I double the recipe and freeze the second batch to use in rice paper rolls for another quick lunch or dinner option.
This is sooooo good! And fabulously easy! I halved the sugar, still got great caramelisation. Followed everything else on the recipe. So amazing, 2 thumbs up from my kids. Thank you Nagi!
we love this and my daughter uses tofu instead of pork – delicious as well
Love love this and all your incredible recipes. And dozer is gorgeous. Take care
Absolutely delicious it’s become a family favourite . Quick easy tasty every recipe I have followed has been amazing!! Thank you
I put this on a bed of shredded cabbage with a fried egg on top – delicious
Found the mince served on rice a bit dry. Maybe fresh tomatoes would’ve helped, we just had grated carrot, cucumber slices, sliced spring onions and a wedge of lime. My husband quickly mixed up some chilli jam into mayonnaise, and that helped a lot. Also I used 50% beef and 50% pork mince, maybe 100% pork mince would give juicier results
So you made a completely different recipe and are complaining about what you made?
Made this tonight and it was terrific. I had some lemongrass in the fridge so plonked that in as well with the onions, ginger, garlic and chilli. Nice one Nagi!
Added a teaspoon of five spice powder to this, and topped with chopped Pink Lady apples: it is a perfect fall-flavors dish like so! So easy, so tasty. Tarter apples might be amazing too.
Made it with a large porkchop cut in strips. Less sugar but it caramelized beautifully. Rice, cukes with toasted sesame seeds, carrot and pepper sticks, and a wedge of lime. Yummy!
The fella and I both loved this. I made it with a huge porkchop cut in strips. Reduced the sugar but it caramelized beautifully. Served with rice, cukes in vinegar with toasted sesame seeds, carrot and pepper strips, a lime quarter for each bowl. Will put it in rotation!
Thank you very much for this recipe; quick and delicious. Girlfriend loved it also. Have a great day.
Tried this tonight. Absolutely delicious but too sweet to be a staple for me. I was only going to put in 3 tablespoons of sugar but was swayed by the recipe saying don’t scrimp. If I try this again I will definitely use less sugar, around half I think (made it for the whole family and took my kids portions out before adding the sugar and chillis and theirs was delicious)