Banh Mi Roll

Banh mi roll is a Vietnamese short baguette with thin, crisp crust and soft, airy texture. It is often split lengthwise and filled with savory ingredients like a sub sandwich and served as a meal.

The filling often includes a combination of meats such as grilled pork, chicken, or cold cuts, along with pâté for added richness. Some versions also include Vietnamese-style pickled vegetables like carrots, daikon radish, cucumber, and cilantro.

To add flavor and a touch of heat, traditional banh mi sandwiches are typically garnished with condiments like mayonnaise, soy sauce, and chili sauce. This combination of savory and tangy flavors, along with the contrast of textures from the crusty bread, tender meat, and crunchy vegetables, makes banh mi a delicious and popular street food choice.

• 400g bread flour
• 250g lukewarm water
• 4g instant dry yeast or 2g fresh yeast
• 40g sugar
• 8g salt
• 20g oil without flavor (original recipe doesn’t contain any fat, but I noticed that oil will provide softer crumb)

Directions 

• 8 am mix lukewarm water, dry instant yeast and sugar until dissolved add flour, salt, mix all together, until no dry flour remained, cover, let rest 30 min for autolyse (during the autolyse stage the flour absorbs the water, becoming fully hydrated. This will activate gluten development). Dough will look lumpy but don’t worry it will become smooth  later.
• 8.30 am add oil and knead by hands or with your mixer for 5-7 min. Until dough will become smoother. Cover, let rest for 1 hour – 1 hour and 30 min at 76-84F/24-28C.

• 10 am dough should get almost twice bigger in volume. 
• Sprinkle work surface with flour.
• Divide the dough into 6 equal pieces (about 100g each).

• Roll each piece in a tight roll, creating a mini baguette shape.

• Place rolls on parchment paper, or into a baguette pan, cover the rolls and let them proof for 1 hour at 76-80F/24-26C, until they get slightly bigger in volume.
• 11 am move rolls to fridge for 15 min, it will make scoring easier.
• Preheat the oven to 450F with empty tray under.
• 11.15 am remove rolls from fridge, score them.

• Place rolls into the hot oven, pour 1 cup of hot boiling water in a tray( the one that was preheating under).
• Bake rolls 10 min with steam, then 10-12  min without steam until golden brown.

One of the things that makes banh mi so special is the incredible balance of flavors and textures packed into every bite. The bread plays a very important role — it should be light and airy on the inside with a delicate, shatteringly crisp crust that crackles slightly when bitten into. Unlike a traditional French baguette, banh mi rolls are typically softer and lighter, making them perfect for holding generous fillings without feeling too heavy.

These Vietnamese sandwiches are endlessly customizable and can be adapted to suit almost any preference. From grilled meats and roasted chicken to tofu or fried eggs, every variation brings its own unique character while still preserving the classic sweet, salty, tangy, and spicy flavor profile banh mi is known for. The quick-pickled vegetables add freshness and crunch, while fresh herbs and sauces tie everything together beautifully.

Homemade banh mi rolls are especially rewarding to bake because they create that authentic bakery-style texture that is difficult to find outside of specialty shops. Fresh from the oven, the rolls are wonderfully fragrant and golden, ready to be filled with your favorite ingredients. Whether served for lunch, dinner, or a casual gathering with friends, banh mi sandwiches are flavorful, satisfying, and always impressive.

Enjoy!

Vietnamese Banh Mi Rolls

302kcal

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Prep 30 minutes mins

Cook 20 minutes mins

Total 3 hours hrs 35 minutes mins

An exceptional recipe for authentic Vietnamese short baguettes. Featuring a paper-thin, crackly, shatteringly crisp exterior crust and an ultra-light, airy, cloud-like crumb. A brief autolyse period builds gluten strength naturally, while a touch of neutral oil ensures the interior remains pillow-soft.

Servings 6 servings

Cuisine Vietnamese

Ingredients

1x2x3x

Ingredients

• ▢ 400 g Bread Flour
• ▢ 250 g Lukewarm water
• ▢ 4 g Dry Instant Yeast
• ▢ 40 g Sugar
• ▢ 8 g Salt
• ▢ 20 g Neutral oil

Equipment

• ▢
  Stand Mixer
• ▢
  Baguette Pan
• ▢
  Deep Baking Tray
• ▢
  Sharp Bread Lame
• ▢
  Kitchen Scale

Method

Prevent Sleep ModePrevent Sleep Mode

Instructions

1. In your stand mixer bowl, whisk together the lukewarm water, instant dry yeast, and sugar until completely dissolved. Add the bread flour and salt. Mix thoroughly by hand or on the lowest speed just until no dry flour patches remain and a shaggy mass forms.
2. Cover the bowl and let the mixture rest undisturbed for 30 minutes for the autolyse phase to activate gluten development.
3. Pour the 20g of neutral flavorless oil directly over the rested, lumpy dough. Knead with your machine’s dough hook or vigorously by hand for 5 to 7 minutes until the oil is completely absorbed and the dough transforms into a smooth, elastic ball.
4. Cover tightly and let the dough proof for 1 hour to 1.5 hours at warm room temperature until it has successfully doubled in volume.
5. Lightly dust your workspace with flour. Tip the puffy dough out and divide it cleanly into 6 equal pieces weighing roughly 100g each.
6. Flatten each dough piece slightly, then roll it tightly from the top edge downward into a dense cylinder. Pinch the final seam firmly to seal, then gently roll the log under your palms, applying slightly more pressure to the outer edges to create tapered, pointed tips. Repeat for all 6 portions.
7. Place the shaped mini baguettes seam-side down into a baguette pan or onto a parchment-lined baking sheet. Cover loosely and let them proof for 1 hour at a warm temperature until noticeably plump.
8. Transfer the proofed rolls directly into the refrigerator for 15 minutes to firm up the surface skin, which makes clean scoring much easier.
9. While the rolls are chilling, preheat your oven to its high baking temperature setting with an empty, deep baking tray positioned on the lowest rack underneath.
10. Remove the cold rolls from the fridge. Using a sharp bread lame held at a shallow angle, make one confident, swift cut down the length of each roll, leaving an uncut inch at both ends.
11. Slide the baguettes into the oven. Immediately pour 1 cup of boiling water directly into the preheated hot tray below to generate a massive burst of steam, and quickly shut the door.
12. Bake with steam for exactly 10 minutes. Carefully remove the steam tray from the oven, turn the rolls for even browning, and bake for an additional 10 to 12 minutes without steam until the crust turns a crisp, even golden brown. Cool completely on a wire rack.

Nutrition

Calories302kcalCarbohydrates55gProtein9gFat5gSaturated Fat1gPolyunsaturated Fat1gMonounsaturated Fat2gCholesterol2mgSodium98mgPotassium93mgFiber2gSugar7gVitamin A3IUVitamin C0.05mgCalcium14mgIron1mg

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