The Grand Tour Story
The Grand Tour stays in Vietnam but swaps the smoky roadside grills for the bustling bakeries of Ho Chi Minh City.
Every morning, baskets of warm baguettes arrive still crackling from the oven while cooks build bánh mì at
lightning speed. French bread meets Vietnamese herbs, pickled vegetables, chilli and grilled meat in one of the
greatest sandwiches ever invented.
Our guide, Minh, waves us into a tiny bakery no bigger than a garage. The smell of fresh bread, roasted chicken and
coriander fills the room before we've even sat down.
He smiles.
"Bánh mì isn't about filling the bread."
"It's about balancing every bite."
After one sandwich, we knew why people queued down the street.
You’ll Need
For the Chicken
600g chicken thighs, sliced thin
2 tbsp vegetable oil
2 cloves garlic, finely grated
1 stalk lemongrass, very finely chopped
1 tbsp fish sauce, 1 tbsp light soy sauce, 1 tbsp brown sugar
1 tsp sesame oil, ½ tsp cracked black pepper
For the Rolls
4 small crusty baguettes or sub rolls
Pickled Vegetables, 1 carrot, julienned
½ cucumber, julienned, 2 tbsp rice vinegar, 1 tsp sugar
To Finish
Fresh coriander
Fresh chilli, finely sliced
Mayonnaise
Lime wedges
Optional but dangerous
Sriracha sauce
Chicken liver pâté
Spring onions
Cold Vietnamese lager
Method
Preheat your air fryer to 200°C.
In a bowl, combine the vegetable oil, garlic, lemongrass, fish sauce, soy sauce, brown sugar, sesame oil and black
pepper.
Add the sliced chicken and coat thoroughly. Marinate for 30 minutes if possible.
Mix the carrot, cucumber, rice vinegar and sugar together and leave to lightly pickle while the chicken cooks.
Spread the chicken into the air fryer basket in a single layer.
Air fry for 10–12 minutes, shaking halfway through, until lightly caramelised around the edges.
Warm the baguettes in the air fryer for 2 minutes until the crust becomes crisp.
Slice each baguette open and spread lightly with mayonnaise.
Fill with the hot lemongrass chicken, pickled vegetables, fresh coriander and sliced chilli.
Finish with a squeeze of fresh lime and a drizzle of Sriracha if using.
Serve immediately while the bread is still crisp and the chicken is piping hot.