Pork Larb Recipe for Cambodian Laab Sach Chrouk. Copyright © 2022 Terence Carter / Grantourismo. All Rights Reserved.

Best Ground Pork Recipes for Delicious Southeast Asian Pork Mince Dishes Made For Sharing

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Our best ground pork recipes are Southeast Asian minced pork recipes that are made for sharing. These often gently-spiced pork mince dishes boast punchy flavours and vibrant colours and eaten with fresh fragrant herbs and crunchy raw vegetables are also healthy. Just as fun to make together as they are to eat together, they’re fantastic for spice-loving families in lockdown.

As you seemed to enjoy our compilation of best ground beef recipes (the round-up post was our most popular August recipe post), which included classic comfort food dishes such as ragu alla Bolognese and lasagne from Northern Italy, Tex-Mex chilli con carne and nachos, and my recipes for the Russian pelmeni dumplings and Russian savoury minced meat-filled hand pies called piroshki, we thought we’d share a collection of our best ground pork recipes.

As I said in my introduction to our favourite minced beef recipes, if there’s one thing that we’ve learnt from this pandemic, it’s to always keep minced meat in the freezer. Ground pork, beef and chicken are just so versatile, so easy to cook with, and so affordable.

One of the most anxiety-inducing things about this pandemic has been shopping at the supermarket and we learnt very early in the pandemic that the best way to keep the panic attacks at bay was quarantine cooking and stretching out ingredients over several meals to prolong the period between shops. Minced meat is just so good for that!

Like our minced beef dishes, our best ground pork recipes make perfect pandemic meals as they keep well and taste even better when reheated the next day. Before I tell you about our best ground pork recipes, I have a favour to ask. Grantourismo is reader-funded. If you’ve made any of our recipes and enjoyed them, please consider supporting Grantourismo so we can keep creating food stories and recipes.

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You could also shop our online store, where we’ve got everything from gifts for street food lovers to food-themed reusable cloth face masks created from Terence’s images; support our epic first-of-its-kind Cambodian culinary history and cookbook on Patreon; or purchase something on Amazon, such as one of these James Beard 2020 award-winning cookbooks, classic cookbooks for serious cooks, cookbooks by Australian chefs, cookbooks for foodie travellers, and gifts for Asian food lovers and picnic lovers. Now let me tell you about our best ground pork recipes.

Best Ground Pork Recipes for Delicious Southeast Asian Pork Mince Dishes Made For Sharing

Cambodian Pork Larb Recipe for the Fragrant Pork Mince Salad Laab Sach Chrouk

This Cambodian pork larb recipe for laab sach chrouk in Khmer is one of the best ground pork recipes for quick and easy pandemic meals and one of our all-time favourite pork mince recipes. It makes a lightly spiced minced pork salad that’s infused with the delightfully funky flavour of fish sauce.

This pork larb is dusted with toasted rice powder, and served with fresh perfumed herbs, crunchy vegetables and steamed rice. While it has more famous, spicier cousins in Thailand and Laos, Cambodia’s pork laab is a delicious dish that will appeal to those who prefer more gentle levels of spice.

Pork Larb Recipe for Cambodian Laab Sach Chrouk – A Fragrant Pork Mince Salad

Cambodian Fried Spring Rolls Recipe for Crispy Deep-Fried Egg Rolls

This classic Cambodian fried spring rolls recipe makes a crunchy deep-fried egg roll filled with minced pork, dried shrimp, carrot, garlic, and daikon radish or taro, seasoned with fish sauce, Kampot pepper, sea salt, and palm sugar. We also have a Cambodian fried spring roll dipping sauce recipe to go with it.

Easy to make once you get the hang of the rolling technique, these Cambodian fried spring rolls are a classic, but by all means can be adapted to your taste. While the origin of the spring roll is Chinese, and in Cambodia specifically its provenance is the Chinese-Cambodian community, these fried spring rolls are eaten by everyone these days. When you taste them you’ll realise why!

Cambodian Fried Spring Rolls Recipe for Crispy Deep-Fried Egg Rolls Just Like in Cambodia

Vietnamese Bun Cha Recipe for Chargrilled Pork Patties, Pork Belly, Noodles and Herbs

Our Vietnamese bun cha recipe makes the style of bún chả we used to eat for lunch on the streets of Vietnam’s capital Hanoi – smoky char-grilled minced pork patties and pork belly (the ‘chả’), served in or with a warm dipping sauce, fresh rice noodles (bún), and fragrant herbs such as perilla, fish leaf, basil, mint, coriander, and butter lettuce.

Vietnamese fried spring rolls are an optional extra. The pork mince patties and pork belly are laid in a barbecue grilling basket and cooked over charcoal on a traditional brazier to achieve that smoky flavour. When they’re done on one side, you just flip the basket over. It’s one of the best ground pork recipes and another favourite.

Vietnamese Bun Cha Recipe for Char-Grilled Pork Patties, Pork Belly, Noodles and Herbs

Thai Nam Prik Ong Recipe for a Spicy Minced Pork and Tomato Dip from Northern Thailand

This Thai nam prik ong recipe makes a spicy minced pork and tomato dip from Northern Thailand that’s served with fresh or steamed vegetables and sticky rice, which you dip into the bowl, and it’s one of the best ground pork recipes.

Nam prik ong is the most approachable of Thailand’s fiery and pungent nam priks, a family of Thai condiments that embrace everything from dips and relishes to salsas and dipping sauces. They’re typically served with pork crackling and sticky rice, which you roll between your fingers and dip into the bowl. If you like spicy you could also try this nam prik num recipe.

Tasty Thai Nam Prik Ong Recipe for a Spicy Pork and Tomato Dip from Northern Thailand

Thai Khao Tang Na Tang Rice Cakes with Chilli Prawn and Minced Pork Dip Recipe

This Thai khao tang na tang rice cakes with chilli prawn and minced pork dip recipe makes a popular Thai dish of homemade crispy rice crackers used to scoop up this creamy, slightly sweet, a little salty, and gently-spiced dip. Found in both Thailand and Cambodia, many believe this snack was created to use up leftover rice, which was made into crispy rice cakes.

In his Thai Food cookbook, Thai chef and Thai food authority David Thompson, in the introduction to his recipe for khao tang na tang – which he calls kao dtang nar dtang – notes that rice cakes were distributed to soldiers as rations.

David calls the chilli, prawn and pork dip a ‘sauce’, and you’ll see it in a saucier form, as well as the thicker consistency we prefer so that it can be more easily spooned onto rice cakes and served as finger food or canapés, just as we do with the Cambodian hors d’oeuvres.

Thai Khao Tang Na Tang Rice Cakes with Chilli Prawn and Pork Dip Recipe

Cambodian Grilled Eggplant with Minced Pork Recipe for Chha Trob

Our Cambodian grilled eggplant with minced pork recipe makes a delicious dish called chha trob in Khmer and it’s another one of our best ground pork recipes. The eggplant is char-grilled so it has a wonderful smoky flavour, while the pork mince is stir-fried with fermented soybeans, so it’s a little funky, a little salty, and a little sweet.

If you enjoy this, you could also try some of our other Cambodian barbecue recipes, including these smoky grilled pork ribs and pork skewers, two popular Cambodian street food dishes typically eaten at local neighbourhood eateries and rowdy barbecue joints, washed down with an abundance of Cambodia beer.

Cambodian Grilled Eggplant with Minced Pork Recipe for Chha Trob

Vietnamese Banh Xeo Recipe for Crispy Turmeric Pancakes Filled with Savoury Minced Pork and Sprouts

This Vietnamese bánh xèo recipe makes another of our best ground pork recipes, crispy turmeric-tinted yellow pancakes filled with savoury minced pork and bean sprouts, wrapped in fragrant herbs and leafy lettuce, and dunked in the deliciously funky nuoc cham dipping sauce.

In Cambodia they’re call banh chao. When you’re making these, you need to serve them as soon as they’re ready, before they start to soften. Note that ‘bánh’ refers to rice flour cakes, but historically referred to anything made from rice flour, so rice flour is key.

Don’t attempt them with another flour or you won’t get the crispiness that you want. Along with high heat, a heavy pan, skillet or Dutch Oven lid helps with that crispiness. We recommend using a Vietnamese fish sauce.

Vietnamese Banh Xeo Recipe for Crispy Turmeric Crepes Filled with Savoury Minced Pork and Sprouts

Southeast Asian Grilled Pork Meatballs with Rice Paper, Rice Noodles, Salad and Pickles

This grilled pork meatballs recipe is another one of our best ground pork recipes. It makes a delicious meatball that’s typically served on a platter with rice paper, rice noodles, salad, and pickles in Southern Cambodia and Vietnam.

It’s a DIY (do it yourself) dish that you can eat as you wish, wrapping and rolling the meatballs, noodles, salad, and pickles in the rice paper. You’ll need to work quickly to shape the minced pork meatball in your hand, then don’t waste time getting it onto the grill or barbecue, ensuring the heat is high.

We like to slide them onto wooden skewers but you could give them a miss and deep-fry the meatballs, as they do in Laos with laap moo tod. You can also bake them.

Southeast Asian Grilled Pork Meatballs with Rice Paper, Rice Noodles, Salad and Pickles

Authentic Khmer Prahok Ktis Recipe for Cambodia’s Coconut Milk and Pork Mince Dip

This authentic Khmer prahok ktis recipe makes the deliciously rich Cambodian dip made from fermented fish and minced pork that is served with fresh crispy vegetables. It’s a great introduction to the use of Cambodia’s beloved prahok and the herb and spice paste called kroeung.

Made with prahok, yellow kroeung herb and spice paste, minced pork, pea eggplants, chillies and coconut milk, it’s another of the best ground pork recipes. If you’re new to prahok and its funky flavour, you can reduce the amount the first time you make this.

Authentic Khmer Prahok Ktis Recipe for Cambodia’s Pork and Coconut Milk Dip

Spicy Pork Mince Pie Recipe Made with Cambodian Prahok Ktis

Terence’s spicy pork mince pie recipe is made with Cambodia’s prahok k’tis, above, and it’s a marriage of Australian and Cambodian food made in heaven – Australia’s iconic meat pie filled with Cambodia’s famously funky minced pork, prahok and coconut cream dip.

If you love curried meat pies, you’re going to love our spicy minced pork pie. It’s easily another of our best ground meat recipes. If you’re a fan of meat pies and sausage rolls, try making our sausage roll with eggplant and pork, curried chicken pie, hearty curry pork pie, and Saraman curry sausage rolls, and traditional Aussie sausage rolls adapted from Jane Lawson’s Milkbar Memories cookbook.

Spicy Pork Mince Pie Recipe Made with Cambodian Prahok Ktis

Traditional Scotch Eggs Recipe with a Thai Inspired Pad Kra Pao Twist

Our Thai take on the traditional Scotch eggs recipe gives the popular British picnic snack a Thai-inspired makeover by infusing it with the flavours of Thailand’s favourite stir-fry pad kra pao or pad gaprao. Scotch eggs are made from a boiled egg that’s been wrapped in seasoned ground meat that is crumbed and deep-fried.

Terence has done the same thing with this dish, however, he’s added the flavours of pad kra pao to the minced pork.

While mass-produced Scotch eggs are sold in supermarkets and service stations in the UK, the gastro-pub revolution saw the humble snack elevated to Michelin-starred restaurants. Those posh Scotch eggs have long been a source of inspiration for Terence, making this another of our favourite ground pork recipes.

Traditional Scotch Eggs Recipe with a Thai Inspired Pad Kra Pao Twist

Lao Khao Soi Recipe for the Laotian Soup with a Ragu Bolognese Style Sauce

This Lao khao soi recipe makes a delicious filling Laotian soup with wide rice noodles and a rich, hearty sauce of rich pork mince, tomatoes and fermented soy beans that could best be described as a Southeast Asian style ragu Bolognese soup. Warning: this is seriously addictive.

Our Lao khao soi recipe is one Terence has been perfecting for years, since we first tasted Lao khao soi on our first trip to Laos. After introducing us to ‘cat poo’ biscuits, our guide Bounmee pointed out a simple noodle joint in a dilapidated shed that he claimed made the best Lao khao soi in Luang Prabang, Laos.

As soon as our tour of Luang Prabang’s glittering pagodas ended, we made a beeline for the timber and corrugated iron shack on Manomai Road and the best Lao khao soi we’ve ever eaten. Admittedly at the time, it was the only Lao khao soi we’d ever eaten as we were new to the cuisine of Laos and Laotion cooking.

Lao Khao Soi Recipe – How to Make the Laotian Soup with a Ragu Bolognese Style Sauce

Please do let us know if you make any of our best ground pork recipes as we’d love to know how they turn out for you.

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A travel and food writer who has experienced over 70 countries and written for The Guardian, Australian Gourmet Traveller, Feast, Delicious, National Geographic Traveller, Conde Nast Traveller, Travel+Leisure Southeast Asia, DestinAsian, TIME, CNN, The Independent, The Telegraph, Sunday Times Travel Magazine, AFAR, Wanderlust, International Traveller, Get Lost, Four Seasons Magazine, Fah Thai, Sawasdee, and more, as well as authored more than 40 guidebooks for Lonely Planet, DK, Footprint, Rough Guides, Fodors, Thomas Cook, and AA Guides.

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