Bún chả is Hanoi’s defining lunch dish: grilled pork patties (chả) and sliced grilled pork belly (chả miếng) in a bowl of nuoc cham (fish sauce, lime, sugar, chilli, garlic, vinegar), served alongside a plate of fresh rice vermicelli and a large herb plate.
Nuoc cham (dipping broth)
The broth-dipping sauce has more liquid than the dipping sauce of gỏi cuốn — it is almost a light soup. Ratio: fish sauce : lime juice : sugar : water = 1 : 1 : 1 : 5. Add garlic and chilli to taste. The pork patties and sliced belly are submerged in this; the vermicelli is dipped and mixed at the table.
Charcoal versus gas
Bún chả is traditionally charcoal-grilled. The fat dripping from the pork onto hot coals creates smoke that flavours the meat. Gas-grilled versions are clean but lack this dimension. At home, a cast-iron grill pan at maximum heat produces the closest approximation.