Last week I made pan seared betel wrapped pork rolls, which was inspired by a very popular and traditional Vietnamese dish, grilled betel wrapped beef rolls (bo la lot). Bo la lot is marinated ground beef wrapped in betel leaves and grilled to perfection. This traditional dish is usually served as one of the 7 appetizers as part of the famous ‘7 course beef dish’ which you’ll typically find at Vietnamese restaurants. The name ‘7 course beef dish’ basically means 7 ways of cooking beef and the bo lat lot (grilled betel wrapped beef) is one of them.

Anyhow, I made the pan seared betel wrapped pork rolls kinda on a whim. I had other intentions of cooking the ground pork which I’ve defrosted earlier during the day. While clearing out the fridge, I found a pack of betel leaves. The rest is history and I literally whipped up this dish in less than 30 mins.

You can find betel leaves (heart shaped) in most Asian markets.

Before listing the ingredients for the ground pork marinade, I must first add that I NEVER ever follow recipes exactly. I don’t think there are any recipes out there that would fit my taste buds since I eat a lot saltier and spicier than the normal population. I always just eye my ingredients and adjust as I go.

– 1/2 lb of ground pork (the fattier, the better! but if you are health conscious, I understand)

– 2 Tablespoons of Roast Red Pork seasoning mix

– dash of sugar, salt, and black pepper

– a few teaspoons each of onion powder, garlic powder, + lemongrass powder (fresh minced garlic and minced lemongrass can substitute for the powder versions)

– a tablespoon of fish sauce

– a tablespoon of oyster sauce

– a dash of cayenne powder

– mix well, allow to marinate for about 15-20mins.

– when ready… wrap about 1 tablespoon full of the marinated ground pork in 1 large betel leaf or multiple of the smaller ones

– use toothpicks to hold the rolls

– pan sear for about 5-8 mins on each side over medium heat (you can also choose to shallow fry)

The smell is AMAZING!!!

We ate ours w/ rice but you can also enjoy w/ noodles. Since mine was so well marinated (pat on back), there was no need for additional dipping sauce. However, these are usually eaten w/ a fish sauce dipping concoction (recipe in link below).

Recipe for the traditional Bo la lot, here.

Must try!

‘Til next post, Kellie.