Bánh mì

In Vietnamese cuisine, , bánh mỳ or banh mi (Template:IPAc-en, Template:IPAc-en; , 'bread' (Hanoi: [ɓaʲŋ̟˧˥.mi˧˩] or Saigon: [ɓan˧˥.mi˧˩])), is a short baguette with thin, crisp crust and a soft, airy texture. It is often split lengthwise and filled with meat and savory ingredients like a submarine sandwich and served as a meal, called . Plain is also eaten as a staple food.

A typical Vietnamese roll or sandwich is a fusion of proteins and vegetables from native Vietnamese cuisine such as (Vietnamese sausage), coriander (cilantro), cucumber, pickled carrots, and pickled daikon combined with condiments from French cuisine such as , along with red chili and mayonnaise. However, a variety of popular fillings are used, like (Chinese barbecued pork), xíu mại (Vietnamese minced pork), nem nướng (grilled pork sausage), Đậu Hũ (tofu), and even ice cream, which is more of a dessert. In Vietnam, bread rolls and sandwiches are typically eaten for breakfast or as a snack.

The baguette was introduced to Vietnam by the French in the mid-19th century, during the Nguyễn dynasty, and became a staple food by the early 20th century. In the 1950s, a distinctly Vietnamese style of sandwich developed in Saigon, becoming a popular street food, also known as ('Saigon sandwich' or 'Saigon-style '). Following the Vietnam War, overseas Vietnamese popularized the sandwich in countries such as Australia, Canada and the United States. In these countries, they are commonly sold in Asian bakeries.

Terminology

File:Banh mi and cuon.jpg

and

In Vietnamese, the word is derived from (which can refer to many kinds of food, primarily baked goods, including bread) and ("wheat"). It may also be spelled in northern Vietnam. Taken alone, means any kind of bread, but it could refer to the Vietnamese baguette or the sandwich made from it. To distinguish the unfilled bread from the sandwich with fillings, the term ("plain bread") can be used. To distinguish Vietnamese-style bread from other kinds of bread, the term ("Saigon-style bread") or ("Vietnam-style bread") can be used.

A folk etymology claims that the word is a corruption of the French , meaning soft, white bread. However, (or its Nôm form, Template:Vi-nom) has referred to rice cakes and other pastries since as early as the 13th century, long before French contact.

History

File:Bánh mì nhân chà bông, giò lụa, ớt.jpg

Bánh mì chà bông, giò lụa, chili pepper

The word , meaning "bread", is attested in Vietnamese as early as the 1830s, in Jean-Louis Taberd's dictionary . The French introduced Vietnam to the baguette, along with other baked goods such as pâté chaud, in the 1860s, at the start of their imperialism in Vietnam. Many sources characterize primarily as a French bread tradition adapted in Vietnam, with local fillings added atop the colonial-era baguette base. Vietnamese vendors layered herbs, pickles, chiles, and meats onto this foundation, producing a distinctive Saigon street-food form by the mid-20th century. Northern Vietnamese initially called the baguette , literally "Western bánh", while Southern Vietnamese called it , "wheat bánh". Nguyễn Đình Chiểu mentions the baguette in his 1861 poem "". Due to the price of imported wheat at the time, French baguettes and sandwiches were considered a luxury. During World War I, an influx of French soldiers and supplies arrived. At the same time, disruptions of wheat imports led bakers to begin mixing in inexpensive rice flour (which also made the bread fluffier). As a result, it became possible for ordinary Vietnamese to enjoy French staples such as bread. Many shops baked twice a day, because bread tends to go stale quickly in the hot, humid climate of Vietnam. Baguettes were mainly eaten for breakfast with some butter and sugar.

File:Bánh mì Việt Anh, Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh.jpg

A stand in Ho Chi Minh City

Until the 1950s, sandwiches hewed closely to French tastes, typically a jambon-beurre moistened with a mayonnaise or liver spread. The 1954 Partition of Vietnam sent over a million migrants from North Vietnam to South Vietnam, transforming Saigon's local cuisine. Among the migrants were and , who opened a small bakery named in District 3. In 1958, became one of the first shops to sell . Around this time, another migrant from the North began selling sandwiches from a basket on a mobylette, and a stand in Gia Định Province (present-day Phú Nhuận District) began selling sandwiches. Some shops stuffed sandwiches with inexpensive Cheddar cheese, which came from French food aid that migrants from the North had rejected. Vietnamese communities in France also began selling .

After the Fall of Saigon in 1975, sandwiches became a luxury item once again. During the so-called "subsidy period", state-owned phở eateries often served bread or cold rice as a side dish, leading to the present-day practice of dipping in phở. In the 1980s, Đổi Mới market reforms led to a renaissance in , mostly as street food.

Meanwhile, Vietnamese Americans brought bánh mì sandwiches to cities across the United States. In Northern California, and his sons are credited with popularizing among Vietnamese and non-Vietnamese Americans alike through their food truck services provider and their fast-food chain, Lee's Sandwiches, beginning in the 1980s. Sometimes was likened to local sandwiches. In New Orleans, a "Vietnamese po' boy" recipe won the 2009 award for the best po' boy at the annual Oak Street Po-Boy Festival. A restaurant in Philadelphia also sells a similar sandwich, marketed as a "Vietnamese hoagie".

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Bánh mì in California

Since the 1970s, Vietnamese refugees from the Vietnam War arrived in London and were hosted at community centers in areas of London such as De Beauvoir Town eventually founding a string of successful Vietnamese-style canteens in Shoreditch where bánh mì alongside phở, was popularised from the 1990s.

sandwiches were featured in the 2002 PBS documentary Sandwiches That You Will Like. The word was added to the Oxford English Dictionary on 24 March 2011. As of 2017, is included in about 2% of U.S. restaurant sandwich menus, a nearly fivefold increase from 2013. On 24 March 2020, Google celebrated bánh mì with a Google Doodle.

Ingredients

Bread

File:Dong Phuong Bread.JPG

Loaves of at Dong Phuong Oriental Bakery in New Orleans

A Vietnamese baguette has a thin crust and white, airy crumb. It may consist of both wheat flour and rice flour.

Besides being made into a sandwich, it is eaten alongside meat dishes, such as bò kho (a beef stew), curry, and . It can also be dipped in condensed milk (see Sữa Ông Thọ).

Fillings

File:Banh mi assemblage.JPG

Assembling a bánh mì

A sandwich typically consists of one or more meats, accompanying vegetables, and condiments.

Accompanying vegetables typically include fresh cucumber slices or wedges, leaves of the coriander plant and pickled carrot and daikon in shredded form (). Common condiments include spicy chili sauce, sliced chilis, seasoning sauce, and mayonnaise. These sandwiches can even be filled with seared tofu.

Varieties

File:Bánh mì bò kho ở cà phê Nguyệt Ca.jpg

Bánh mì to eat with bò kho

Many fillings are used. A typical shop in the United States offers at least 10 varieties.

The most popular variety is , thịt meaning "meat". (also known as , , or "special combo") is made with various Vietnamese cold cuts, such as sliced pork or pork belly, chả lụa (Vietnamese sausage), and head cheese, along with the liver and vegetables like carrot or cucumbers.

Other varieties include:

• (shredded pork sandwich)Template:Snd shredded pork or pork skin, doused with fish sauce
• (pork floss sandwich)
• (minced pork meatball sandwich)Template:Snd smashed pork meatballs
• (ham sandwich)
• (sardine sandwich)
• ( sandwich)
• or (barbecue pork sandwich)
• or (Vietnamese sausage sandwich)
• (grilled chicken sandwich)
• (vegetarian sandwich)Template:Snd made with tofu or seitan
• (fish patty sandwich)
• (margarine or buttered sandwich)Template:Snd margarine / butter and sugar
• (fried egg sandwich)Template:Snd contains fried eggs with onions, sprinkled with soy sauce, sometimes buttered; served for breakfast in Vietnam
• (ice cream sandwich)Template:Snd contains scoops of ice cream topped with crushed peanuts

• Script error: No such module "Lang". (pork sausage sandwich)
  (pork sausage sandwich)
• Script error: No such module "Lang". ("special combo" sandwich)
  ("special combo" sandwich)
• Script error: No such module "Lang". (shredded pork sandwich) at Eden Center
  (shredded pork sandwich) at Eden Center
• Script error: No such module "Lang". (minced pork meatball sandwich)
  (minced pork meatball sandwich)
• Script error: No such module "Lang". (barbecue pork sandwich)
  (barbecue pork sandwich)
• with Chicken Schnitzel
  with Chicken Schnitzel
• Script error: No such module "Lang". (Bamboo charcoal bánh mì)
  (Bamboo charcoal bánh mì)

File:Một phần bánh mì chảo với trứng và chả (38657217774).jpg

Bánh mì chảo

File:Banh my que.jpg

Bánh mỳ que

Nowadays, different types of are popular. For example, bánh mì que is thinner and longer and can be filled with various ingredients just as normal .

• Khao jee pâté in Laos, with spice paste called Jeow bong
  Khao jee pâté in Laos, with spice paste called Jeow bong

Notable vendors

File:Banh mi from Lee's Sandwiches in Falls Church.jpg

Bánh mì sold in Lee's Sandwiches.

Prior to the Fall of Saigon in 1975, well-known South Vietnamese vendors included and (which opened in 1968).

In regions of the United States with significant populations of Vietnamese Americans, numerous bakeries and fast food restaurants specialize in . Lee's Sandwiches, a fast food chain with locations in several states, specializes in Vietnamese sandwiches served on French baguettes (or traditional at some locations) as well as Western-style sandwiches served on croissants. Phở Hòa, a Vietnamese-American restaurant chain primarily specializing in pho, also offers as part of its menu. In New Orleans, Dong Phuong Oriental Bakery is known for the bread that it distributes to restaurants throughout the city. After 1975, owner Võ Văn Lẹ fled to the United States and, along with , founded . The Eden Center shopping center in Northern Virginia has several well-known bakeries specializing in .

Mainstream fast food chains have also incorporated and other Vietnamese dishes into their portfolios. Yum! Brands operates a chain of cafés called Bánh Shop. The former Chipotle-owned ShopHouse Southeast Asian Kitchen chain briefly sold . Jack in the Box offers a "–inspired" fried chicken sandwich as part of its Food Truck Series. McDonald's and Paris Baguette locations in Vietnam offer .

Banh mi is additionally highly popular as a favoured snack in Australia. This includes fast food chain Roll'd and various Vietnamese-run bakeries.

In November 2025, a limited time special "Zinger Bánh Mì" roll was added to the nationwide menu of KFC Australia. It was made up of "... [a] spicy Zinger chicken fillet with slaw, fresh chillies, coriander, a new Bánh Mì-style mayonnaise, and Supercharged sauce, all served in a traditional Bánh Mì roll." Although a trial of the item had been successful earlier in the year in Newcastle, New South Wales, the nationwide launch proved to be controversial. So, for example, whereas a This is Canberra reviewer described the product as "glorious", a reviewer in The Guardian dubbed it "... bánh mì by name but not nature ... the Dannii Minogue of chicken sandwiches."

See also

• Khao jee pâté
• Num pang
• French roll
• List of sandwiches
• Vietnamese cuisine