When my kids were toddlers, they were very picky eaters. I had the hardest time getting them to eat anything other than plain white rice or noodles. Meat was the one thing they struggled the most with. They would swallow everything on their spoons, but spit out the meat. It was a terrible waste of effort and yum.
Husband and I love meat so we always have a little meat as our main protein source in our family meals. Meat not only tastes delicious when done correctly, but it also makes you feel full. I tried a vegetarian and vegan diet in the past and it was the most excruciating 3 hours of my life. I’m sorry — life is too short for that.
It took me some tweaking of my regular meat dishes to get them to eat meat. This simple pan-fried Vietnamese pork patties perfectly hit the mark. No bones. No toughness. Just nothing but tender meat with great Asian flavors.
I normally marinate my grilled/fried pork with lemongrass as in Thit Nuong Xa or use fish sauce in my pork patties as in Bun Cha Hanoi. Since this kid-friendly, I eliminated the aromatic lemongrass. Since this is fried, I took away the liquid fish sauce and replace it with a not-so-liquid oyster sauce. I like to pan-fry these to get maximum caramelization on the outside, but it’s also great on the grill. Recipe below. Happy eating!
Quick Kid-Friendly Vietnamese Pan-Fried Ground Pork Patties
- Total Time: 15 minutes
- Yield: 4 1x
Description
Simple pan-fried Vietnamese pork patties that are perfect for kids. No bones. No toughness. Nothing but tender meat with great Asian flavors.
Ingredients
- 1 lb fatty ground pork
- 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons oyster sauce
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 shallot (minced)
- 4 large garlic cloves (minced)
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
Instructions
- Prepare the pork: Season ground pork with sugar, oyster sauce, ground black pepper, shallot, garlic and sesame oil. Divide the pork into 10 even patties.
- Pan fry: Coat the bottom of a large skillet with vegetable oil. Pan-fry pork patties for 4 minutes on each side. Patties might puff up so gently flatten them with a spatula for even cooking if needed. Serve with steamed rice, fresh cucumbers, or other vegetables for a complete meal.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Category: side dish
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: asian, vietnamese
