Everything Tastes Better in a Banh Mi, Right? Sunday Edition – Uni (Sea Urchin) and Egg Banh Mi

If you've read my previous post, you'll recall my testing the limits of that phrase. I can't recall who told me that, but it has stuck in my head. This'll be a short post….'cause you know that you should be spending time with Dad on this Father's Day, not checking out some silly "Everything Tastes Better in a Banh Mi" post! 

The Banh Mi itself looks fairly innocuous. 

 

I became a big fan of Banh Mi Trung (Egg Banh Mi) during our visit to Vietnam….and I still crave it from time to time. While looking through the recipes in Izakaya: The Japanese Pub Cookbook, I came across a recipe for "Scrambled Eggs with Sea Urchin in Lobster Sauce". It really wasn't the recipe that hit me, but the photo. Along the side of the dish, was a baguette! In the sometimes strange way that my mind works, I thought this to be a great idea. I've had a wonderful "Oeufs Brouillés aux Oursins" (scrambled eggs with sea urchin), and even "Oeufs Brouilles Au Caviar D'Oursin" (scrambled eggs with caviar and sea urchin) a couple of times. Uni, egg, and Banh Mi sounded just wonderful. So why not?

 

My objective was to not "kill" the wonderful, unique, and delicate flavor of the Uni. I wanted everything to be in harmony, yet not boring. I guess you'd call it "fusion" without "con-fusion".

The bread I picked up from Paris Bakery.

 

In homage to the Vietnamese Banh Mi Trung, I added some Maggi to the eggs, because as we all know, "Maggi makes everything taste better"! And some sea salt.

For texture, and to balance out the richness, I used the ubiquitous Vietnamese pickled radish and carrots. In addition, instead of cilantro, I added some Kaiware (daikon sprouts). I think a touch of mayo might have been nice, but pate would have killed the sandwich.

There's not much more except for some photos:

 

 

 

Wow, this was "killer", I was amazed at how good this was. The pickles cut the richness, the sprouts added a bit of "spice" and bite, the Maggi added a nice "umami", and you could still taste the wonderful "soul of the ocean"! Not a cheap Banh Mi, but man was it good!

 

So no Kimchi and Peanut Butter Banh Mi this time around. But the saying still runs true; everything tastes better in a Banh Mi!