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!)
So quick and easy, and five clean plates. It is a dry dish but tastes amazing.
I left out the chillies (I’m the only one who likes a kick) and substituted fish sauce for light soy. I also used dark brown sugar (not sure if this matters).
Hi! I didn’t find in recipe how much add lemongrass? Thank you
Hi Natalie, it’s option & it’s listed in the notes too. N x
Sorry, I was not accurate reading optional tips.
This was a huge hit with my family. Was served with a plate of grated carrot, cucumber, celery, cherry tomatoes, mint, coriander, chilli, spring onion & lime.
It’s delicious but a little on the dry side (I used Swerve brown sugar substitute ) Any ideas of what I could add to make it juicier (as I’m sure regular Brown sugar would have done)?
Absolutely delicious! I’ll have to hunt down a birds eye chili but I used a couple of standard red chili peppers. Also tossed in some shredded carrots and broccoli at the end. I had a little trepidation because I’m a saucy kind of person but I loved the texture and sweetness and umami! Definitely making this one again. I may have to double it since my son and I polished off most off this in one sitting! 🙂
Thank you for sharing!
This was amazing. Loved the blend of spicy, sweet and fresh cilantro. Pickled some shredded carrots for a bit of pucker.
Yummy 😋
So delicious and easy to make. Will defo make again. The flavours transported me back home to South East Asia at a time when I can’t travel out to see my family. Thanks for sharing x
I’m so glad you loved it Sarah, thanks so much for letting me know ❤️
This is a simple but delicious meal. My wife told me at least a dozen time that this recipe is a keeper and that the dish was great. I was shocked by her exuberance!
This was SOOOOO GOOD. Def one of my top ten dishes to make at home. <3
This has become one of my favourite and easy goto recipes and is the reason I now buy Costco sized ground pork. This time, I had no green onions or spicy peppers so I added a long yellow pepper and 1 tbsp of Sambek Olek chili sauce. Ginger garlic paste was also substituted. I also added about half as much extra-firm tofu as pork as I had it sitting around. I topped it with shredded lettuce and bean sprouts after putting it on a serving of rice. It was so, so, good.
I actually cooked 3 times as much as called for as I wanted to freeze it and send some over for my 90 year old mother. She was an amazing cook but is almost blind now and it is making it hard for her to do anything but the basics.
This is a winner recipe. I made this today and the whole family enjoyed. The colour was a little lighter than the picture to start but nothing a little plum and soy sauce couldn’t fix.
I plan to make this in the upcoming week or so. When I cook ground pork it gets greasy (can’t find a leaner ground pork) — can I drain before adding sauce ingredients?
Hi Kathy, if you find the mince too fatty, yes I would drain before adding the sauce in – it will just take away any excess grease. N x
I drained my minced pork, as per Nagi’s directions, and made the recipe otherwise as directed. Delicious! I served with basmati rice, but there’s not much sauce/juice so I didn’t really need it. Thank you Nagi!
another great recipe! Thanks Nagi.. feel so sorry for you having to respond to people who fail to read the recipe properly or complain when they change the recipe!!! You must have the patience of a saint!!
used beyond burger mince to make this and it tasted delicious! served with raw carrot, tomato, cucumber and a little chili oil.
Made this tonight and it was so easy and delicious!! Will definitely make it again.
So yummy! I used Coconut Sugar for caramelization!
Perfect Mimi! N x
I added a 3 x sliced button mushrooms and a cup of beansprouts 30 secs before end of cooking…… worked for me….
this looks good
I absolutely love this and so does my family. We have it at least once a week. I like it with the tomato and cucumber for added crunch and squeeze lime over. Yum 😋
This was excellent!