I recently asked the baes who follow me on Instagram what recipes they wanted to see more of (I just hit 1k there! Follow me at @bun.bobae if you'd like to interact with me more.) Overwhelmingly, people were asking for easy weeknight recipes you can make in 45 minutes or less. And I'm here to deliver! This Vietnamese Ground Pork in Tomato Sauce, or thịt băm sốt cà chua, is in regular rotation at my place. It uses only a few ingredients that I usually always have on hand, so when I don't know what to make, I make thịt băm sốt cà chua!
Vietnamese ground pork in tomato sauce can be served a variety of ways. It's extremely comforting over a bowl of hot white rice. Are you cutting back on carbs? This sauce tastes delicious over some finely shredded lettuce as well! I've even eaten it over vermicelli noodles and pasta.
Vietnamese Ground Pork in Tomato Sauce (Thịt Băm Sốt Cà Chua): Step-by-step instructions
This recipe uses ingredients you likely already have with you. I always keep a little bit of ground pork in the freezer because it's one of my most used proteins. You can easily sub ground chicken if you don't eat red meat. If you're vegetarian or plant-based, you can sub crumbled up tofu or a plant-based ground meat alternative. Just alter the cooking time accordingly!
Start by seasoning the ground meat/your protein of choice. As always, I season with my holy grail mix of ingredients: fish sauce, garlic, shallot salt and pepper. Mix thoroughly and set aside before you dice the tomato and onion.
Start by sweating the onions. Then, add the diced tomatoes and cook down until the tomatoes are soft and have lost their shape. If you like spicy food, you can add some chile flakes here as well. The chile flakes will also help develop a deep red color in the dish.
Add the ground beef in and break it up into the sauce. If it seems a little thick, add a splash of water, chicken or vegetable stock (whatever you have around). My dad likes his thịt băm sốt cà chua thinner and more liquidy. I like mine a little thicker. If you want to punch up the tomato flavor and get a prettier color, you can add a squeeze of tomato paste.
After everything has bubbled away and the flavors have melded nicely, turn off the heat and add a handful of scallions to the sauce.
The beauty of this Vietnamese ground pork in tomato sauce is that it's so versatile. If I don't have ground pork, then I'll use ground beef. I don't usually add tomato paste, but I had some around and decided I wanted it the tomato flavor to be stronger. If you like onions, make the sauce mostly onions. If you like fresh tomato flavor more than tomato paste flavor, buy more tomatoes to add.
📋 Recipe
Vietnamese Ground Pork in Tomato Sauce (Thịt Băm Sốt Cà Chua)
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon oil
- ½ lb ground pork (you can sub any other ground meat, crumbled tofu or a plant based substitute)
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 1 tablespoon shallot, minced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 small onion diced (about ½ cup)
- 1 large tomato diced (about 2 cups)
- ½ teaspoon chile flakes (optional)
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste (optional)
- ¼ cup water, vegetable or chicken stock (optional)
- 3 stalks scallion, finely chopped
Instructions
- Season the ground pork with salt, pepper, shallot, garlic and fish sauce. Set aside and dice the vegetables
- In a small saucepan on medium-high heat, sweat the onions in 1 tablespoon of oil and cook until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes.
- Add diced tomato and the optional flakes. Simmer and let tomatoes break down for about 10 minutes.
- Add the pork mixture and stir to break down pork into small pieces. Add a splash of stock and some tomato paste for a deeper flavor. (optional) Simmer for another 10 minutes until pork is fully cooked and the flavors have developed.
- Turn off the heat and wilt chopped scallions into the sauce
- Serve with rice, over salad, with noodles etc.
Nutrition
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SierraMadreSue says
Wow, wow, wow! I just made this tonight and it was outstanding! I heard you talk about it on NPR and knew I would love it. I used ketchup because I didn't have any tomato paste and had read that it made a good substitute. I definitely used the chili flakes and was surprised how much spice they added in that small amount! I served it over quick cooking udon noodles and topped the dish with chopped cilantro. I didn't have any dry roasted peanuts or I would have used them too.... next time! My son wasn't home to enjoy it tonight, but he'll be glad I doubled the recipe!
I am now exploring the rest of your recipes and can't wait to try more.
Suzanne Nuyen says
So glad you enjoyed this Sue!
Jenni says
My daughter is allergic to fish. What can I use instead of fish sauce? Will soy sauce work as a substitute?
Thanks
Suzanne Nuyen says
Yes, you can use soy sauce instead! The flavor will be a tiny bit different, but still really delicious.
Anne says
Perfect! I had everything on hand and it quickly came together for a Friday night at home. I added a bit of angel hair pasta and a lovely white wine! Thanks for this recipe!
Suzanne Nuyen says
That sounds delicious Anne! I'm glad you enjoyed it.
Laurie Rasor says
Have A Good Day
NN says
Super delicious and simple! It’s a nice change from the typical thit kho. I used ground chicken instead of ground pork and subbed tomato paste with tomato bouillon instead. 🙂 I’ll be making this again!
Suzanne Nuyen says
So glad that you liked it! Ground chicken is a great substitution for making it leaner and healthier!
Veena Azmanov says
Awesome dish for an amazing Dinner. I love it.
kim says
This recipe was perfect! It was super easy and had so much flavor! I'll be making again and again!
Suzanne Nuyen says
I’m so glad you liked it!
Adrianne says
I could eat Vietnamese food every day and I am loving this recipe. So fresh, healthy and colourful. It really ticks a lot of boxes, cheers for great looking food!!
Adriana says
Yummy Vietnamese cuisine is one of my favorites not to mention pork. That meat is so flavorful and goes with a lot of different flavor profiles.
Suzanne Nuyen says
Pork is used most often in Vietnamese food!
Natalie says
Looks so delicious and comforting! Can't wait to try this recipe!