What’s good, friends?
It’s my birthday this week, and every year to celebrate I make a banh mi sandwich.
Why? Because it is, without a doubt, the greatest sandwich to ever exist, and I will very much die on that hill. It’s also one of the only sandwiches that doesn’t rely upon something like cheese or a dipping sauce (although I do love a good dipping sauce).
To take things to another level this year, I made the baguette rolls from scratch! Not gonna lie: it’s quite the ordeal to make baguettes from scratch. And so for those of you who are normal humans with minimal time to spare in 2025 (soon to be 26), just buy a baguette at the store and use that. The rest of the components are simple to prep and require minimal time.
I’ve broken the steps for this recipe down into different sections. For the full process, I made the dough first, and while it rested, I put together the remaining components. I then baked the bread, cooled it, cut it, and assembled the sandwiches.
Let’s jump into this:
FULL RECIPE
Vegan Banh Mi w/ Homemade Baguette Rolls
baguette rolls
ingredients
700g bread flour
7g salt
9g organic sugar
10g active dry yeast
420ml water (115F degrees)
preparation
Combine the flour and salt in a large mixing bowl and stir together with chopsticks. In a separate bowl, mix together the sugar (buy organic, as most others are processed with bone char), yeast, and warm water with whisk. Allow to activate (mine took 10 minutes). Pour the yeast mixture into the large mixing bowl with the flour and salt and use the chopsticks to bring together into a shaggy dough. Roll out onto a work surface and knead together 10 minutes. Place in a lightly oiled bowl and cover for 10 minutes. Remove from the bowl and knead again 10 minutes. Place back in the oiled bowl covered for another 10 minutes. Bring back out one more time, knead another 1 minute, then form into a ball and place back in the oiled bowl covered. Place the bowl in your oven with along with a baking dish filled with hot water (do not turn the oven on) and allow to proof 1 hour. Bring back out, punch the dough down to remove the air, then form into a ball. Use a knife to cut 6 equal portions of the dough and place each piece on a parchment lined tray. Cover the dough with a damp towel while you form the baguettes. Working one at a time, slap each the dough piece down on a work surface 3 to 4 times, then roll out into an oblong shape, about one foot length. Working from top to bottom, roll the dough into a cylinder and crimp the edges as you roll to form that almost football-like baguette shape. Once rolled up, crimp the seams to lock it together, then roll in your hands once more to form a small baguette shape. Place all formed baguettes on a parchment-lined tray, cover with more parchment, and allow to proof 1 hour. In the last 20 minutes of proofing, preheat your oven to 475F and leave the baking dish with water in. Once the dough is proofed, spray with water, score the top with a razor or knife, spray again with water, and pop into the oven to bake 10-12 minutes. When this time is up, remove the baking dish with water, turn the tray, and spray the baguettes again with water. Close the oven and allow to bake another 10-12 minutes, or until golden brown to your liking. Remove and allow to cool at least 15 minutes before cutting in to make your sandwich rolls. You can remove some of the inner bread to make more room for the sandwich ingredients (and please, for the love of all things, eat that inner bread because it is so fluffy and good, especially when still warm).
char siu tofu
ingredients
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup maple syrup
2 tablespoons ketchup
1 tablespoon hoisin sauce
2 tablespoons sesame oil
1/4 teaspoon Chinese five spice
2 blocks firm tofu, frozen, thawed, and cut into 1/4-inch rectangular strips
preparation
Mix the garlic, soy sauce, maple syrup, ketchup, hoisin sauce, sesame oil, and five spice in a small bowl. Place the tofu slices out on a tray and pour the marinade over all the slices. Allow t sit at least 1 hour or covered in the fridge overnight. Preheat a griddle pan over medium heat 3-4 minutes. Add oil to the pan, then working in batches, add your tofu to the pan and grill about 3-4 minutes on each side.
pickled carrot and daikon
ingredients
1 daikon radish, peeled and cut into battonet
1 large carrot, peeled and cut into battonet
organic sugar, salt, and white vinegar
preparation
Add your carrot and daikon to a large mixing bowl along with 3-4 pinches of salt and organic sugar. Mix together with your hands and set aside 15 minutes. Rinse the carrot and daikon with water through a strainer, allow to dry, then add to a mason jar with another 3 tablespoons each sugar and salt, plus 3/4 cup white vinegar. Close the lid and set in the fridge.
mushroom duxelle
ingredients
2 shallots, finely chopped
6 cloves garlic, minced
8oz button mushrooms, finely chopped
preparation
Place a stainless steel pan over medium heat and warm 3-4 mins. Add 2 tablespoons oil and go in with the shallots. Season with a few pinches salt and stir in, cooking down 2-3 minutes. Add the minced garlic with another pinch of salt and cook down 1 minute. Add the mushrooms, stir in, and cook down about 8-10 minutes, stirring every minute or so. The mushrooms will stick to the bottom at times, and then that happens, add 1/4 cup water to the pan to deglaze, stirring to release all the bits. At the very end, season with another 1-2 pinches salt and black pepper to taste then remove into a separate container and set aside.
spicy mayo
ingredients
3/4 cup vegan mayo
3 tablespoons sriracha
salt
preparation
Mix the mayo, sriracha, and few pinches salt together in small bowl using a whisk. Set aside.
other necessary fixings
thinly sliced cucumber
thinly sliced jalapeño
fresh cilantro (not chopped; place the leaves and stems whole in the sandwich)
assembly
Cut the baguette rolls in half but not all the way through - leave a “hinge” on one side so that the roll stays intact. Remove some of the inner bread to make space. Spread your duxelle across the bottom, followed by the spicy mayo, then layer in the tofu, pickled veggies, cucumber, jalapeño, and cilantro. Dig in and enjoy 🙏
