A “Banh Mi” is a Vietnamese sandwich that typically consists of pork (and or other meats), pickled vegetables, cilantro, and a spicy mayonnaise – served on a fresh baguette.
Now I can’t help you with making the baguette low carb (yet), but the rest of the components of a traditional Banh Mi sandwich are all represented in this delicious low carb meatball recipe!
To make the pickled Daikon radish and carrots, I finally unpacked this vegetable spiralizer I bought from Amazon.com months ago for the first time! It was surprisingly easy to use, and I am kicking myself for not putting it to work sooner!
If you don’t have a spiralizer, you can simply cut the veggies into thin strands (julienne) or grate them with a cheese grater (not as pretty but it will work!) Keep in mind that you may not get as much yield if you grate the veggies as they will pack down more than if they are spiralized.
The pickled veggie strands, mixed with cilantro and sliced scallions add a tangy, fresh component that really livens up this dish. The meatballs are delightfully savory, and the mayo has a spicy sweet thing going on that brings it all together.
When I had Mr. Hungry try it out, his comment was “it’s like eating an entire Chinese Buffet in one bite….in a good way.” He loved it needless to say. It really is a party in your mouth, with every flavor represented in a bold way – salty, sweet, tangy, spicy, all there and working in perfect harmony.
I can only imagine how much better this would all be nestled into a warm, fresh baguette – but I promise that this low carb version is the next best thing! Even without the baguette, this recipe makes a hearty and totally satisfying meal!
Vietnamese Bahn Mi Meatballs – Low Carb Recipe
5 Stars4 Stars3 Stars2 Stars1 Star
5 from 4 reviews
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
Description
A low carb meatball recipe inspired by the classic Vietnamese Bahn Mi sandwich. “Like eating an entire Chinese buffet in one bite!”
Ingredients
Scale
For the pickled vegetables:
- 1 medium daikon radish, spiralized or julienne cut
- 1 medium carrot, spiralized or julienne cut
- 1/3 cup unseasoned (no sugar added) rice wine vinegar
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar substitute (Swerve, Splenda, etc.)
- 1 tsp fish sauce
For the meatballs:
- 1lb ground pork (or turkey)
- 1 egg
- 1/4 cup almond flour
- 1 tsp minced ginger
- 1/4 cup scallions, chopped
- 2 Tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped
- 2 Tbsp fish sauce
- 1 Tbsp granulated sugar substitute (Swerve, Splenda, etc.)
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
For the mayonnaise:
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 1 Tbsp (or more) Sriracha hot sauce
- 1 Tbsp granulated sugar substitute
- 1 tsp unseasoned (no sugar added) rice wine vinegar
To garnish:
- 1/4 cup sliced scallions
- 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
Instructions
For the pickled vegetables:
- Combine the diakon and carrot in a medium bowl. In a small bowl, whisk together the rice wine vinegar, sugar substitute, and fish sauce. Pour over the veggies and toss to coat. Refrigerate for at least one hour, stirring occasionally.
For the meatballs:
- Combine all of the meatball ingredients in a medium bowl and mix thoroughly. Form into 16 one and a half inch meatballs. Fry in a nonstick pan (use a little olive oil if necessary) until golden brown and cooked through.
For the mayonnaise:
- Combine all of the mayonnaise ingredients together and stir until smooth.
To assemble:
- Drain the pickled veggies and place on a plate or platter. Place the meatballs on top of the vegetables and garnish generously with the fresh cilantro and scallions. Serve with the mayonnaise on top or on the side.
Notes
Approx nutrition info per serving: 529 calories, 45g fat, 6g net carbs, 25g protein
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 4 meatballs, 1/2 cup veggies, 2 tbsp mayonnaise
Can’t get enough meatballs? Me either! That’s why I post a new low carb meatball recipe here on I Breathe I’m Hungry almost every Monday! You can find some of my favorites like the Meatballs alla Parmigiana, General Tso’s Meatballs, Jalapeno Popper Meatballs, and Loaded Nacho Meatballs – along with over 30 others by clicking here!
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Reader Interactions
Comments
Catherine says
These will definitely go on my meatball rotation! I’m thinking of doing a meatball bar for Super Bowl! Thank you for another awesome recipe!
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Suzanne Adams says
I love this recipe, so good and easy to make. I could’t find the radish at the store so I used mung bean sprouts and shirataki noodles, worked well.
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Calvin says
A nice classic, I like bahn mi
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Shantelle C Stephens says
My 5th recipe of yours… Another winner, I used coconut flour instead of almond flour. I added cucumbers thinly sliced to the carrot daikon pickles, added fermented gojuchang to the meatball mixture. And mixed some shirataki noodles. In with the pickles veggies for a base and served it in a bowl. And did not add any sugar substitutes. So very delicious! Thank you for inspiring me daily!
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Brandy T Jones says
So the pickles came out fine without any sugar?
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Ms. Maggie Maye says
Made these a second time, made about 1.75 lb of ground pork since I’m meal prepping for the week and wanted more than 3-4 meatballs for my 5 lunches. (Can you blame me?!) I wound up with 32 meatballs about 1″ with my scooper.
A short cut I did was putting the cilantro (I added more, as I love cilantro), 3 garlic cloves, and cut 3 green onion into 2″ pieces, with the fresh ginger (a 1″ piece) in my mini processor. Got everything all finely minced, rather than grating and chopping.
I also baked in the oven at 350*F for 17 minutes instead of pan frying and about 3 minutes under the broiler to brown them a bit. YUM!
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See AlsoChili Gumbo Recipe on Food52Lisa says
OMG – One thing I miss is going out and eating Korean food with my best friend. At the place I go to, they make their pickled radish the same exact way (minus the sugar free part) and I request it every time they bring me the banchans (free little apps). I could eat a gallon of it and now i’m so excited I have the recipe, haha. Who knew it was so simple…
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Ms Maggie Maye says
I just made these. So easy and so good! The ginger really make the flavor pop out. Definitely will make these again.
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Matthew Underbrink says
Ok… so this was by far the best low carb recipe I’ve made. I was skeptical about pickling my own veggies and the sauce seemed TOO simple. I put it all together and it not only looked amazing, it tasted phenomenal. The only thing I’m worried about is the amount of sugar substitute in everything. There have been some studies that artificial sweetners can kick you out of Ketosis. I’ll definitely be making this again, but depending on the verdict on sweeteners, it may be a rare treat!
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Vanessa says
I just made these, and they were AMAZING. Really tasted JUST LIKE BAHN MI. I will be making this often. THank you!. One side note, I brought them to work for lunch… not a good idea. The fish sauce is super stinky. I think I made some enemies in the office.
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Mellissa Sevigny says
Oops! Ha ha! Glad you enjoyed them though, make your coworkers some lemon bars – they’ll forgive you for the fish sauce! ;)
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Janice Ingram says
I made these the other night and they were amazing! My husband had three servings…I couldn’t stop him! LOL! I was always curious about daikon and now that I’ve eaten it, I’m hooked on the possibilities it can provide to many of my favorite Asian dishes! Everything about this dish was awesome! Thanks!
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Lindsey Carter says
I just discovered you today and I’m so glad! I can’t wait to give everything a try. I saw in a different meatball post that you were taking suggestions for new meatball ideas. I’m not sure if you’ve already created these two, but what about a chicken pot pie meatball or a stroganoff meatball? Anyway I’m so looking forward to trying your recipes this week. They all look amazing!
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Leah huarte says
Husband just whipped these up. They are amazeballs!
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Kaitlin Vincent says
Oh, yum. YUM. Can’t wait to put these on my menu!! :D I have to ask, what do you use to flip your meatballs when browning? I only have some cheap kitchen-aid tongs that work most of the time I make all your amazing Meatball Monday recipes. Do you use tongs or maybe there’s a spoon option I’m overlooking?
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These are great! I have made something like this before but not low-carb. Beautiful!
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Leslie says
I’m new to low carb and you really have been a godsend. I made 5 of your recipes over the weekend. I’ve liked everything, so thank you so much. I have a question that is about low carbing in general. I completely understand if you’re too busy to answer individual questions, so if you are, just please accept my thanks for all the info your blog does provide. Here goes– when calculating carbs/day, I often see 20-25 carbs for induction. Does this hold true regardless of weight and calories consumed each day, or should carbs be calculated as a percentage of total calories? I can’t seem to find that info anywhere I’ve looked. Once again, thanks for the yummy food. Just put my ice cream liner in the freezer to make some coffee ice cream tomorrow. And only 1 carb per serving. You’re amazing :)
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Mellissa Sevigny says
How many grams of carbs a person can eat to stay in ketosis will vary, but not based on percentage of calories. 20g is a good place to start, once you’ve been low carbing awhile you may find you can go as high as 50 and still maintain ketosis.
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Leslie says
Thanks for taking the time to answer, Mellissa!
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