Cơm Tấm (Vietnamese Broken Rice)
Saigon's signature plate: broken rice — the fractured grains discarded during milling, now prized — topped with a lemongrass and fish sauce-marinated pork chop grilled until caramelized, a sunny-side-up fried egg, cool sliced cucumber and tomato, pickled carrot and daikon, and a drizzle of hot scallion oil. Served with nước chấm on the side, spooned over the plate as you eat. Broken rice absorbs the fish sauce dipping sauce more readily than whole grains and has a slightly firmer, more interesting texture. In Saigon this plate is eaten at any hour — a food stall with a 'Cơm Tấm' sign is open from before dawn until after midnight. 'Saigon people eat cơm tấm like Hanoi people eat phở.'
Ingredients
- 400 gbroken rice
- 4 bone-in pork chops
- 3 tbspfish sauce
- 2 tbspoyster sauce
- 1 tbspsugar
- 1 tbsphoney
- 2 stalks lemongrass, white and pale green parts only, very finely minced
- 4 garlic cloves
- 1 tbspneutral oil
- 4 eggs
- 4 scallions, green parts only
- 3 tbspneutral oil
- 200 gcarrots
- 200 gdaikon
- 3 tbsprice vinegar
- 2 tbspsugar
- 60 mlfish sauce
- 60 mllime juice
- 3 tbspsugar
- 180 mlwarm water
- 2 small cucumbers, sliced on the diagonal
- 2 ripe tomatoes
Method
- Pickle the vegetables. Combine the rice vinegar, sugar, and a pinch of salt. Toss with the julienned carrot and daikon. Set aside at least 30 minutes. The pickles brighten quickly and can be made 2 days ahead.
- Marinate the pork chops. Combine fish sauce, oyster sauce, sugar, honey, lemongrass, garlic, and neutral oil in a bowl. Add the pork chops and coat thoroughly. Marinate at least 2 hours at room temperature, or overnight in the fridge — longer produces deeper flavor and more even caramelisation. Score the fat cap lightly if present to prevent the chop from curling.
- Cook the broken rice. Rinse the rice under cold water until the water runs clear. Cook in a rice cooker with a 1:1 ratio of water to rice, or on the stovetop: bring to a boil, reduce heat to the lowest setting, cover tightly, and steam for 15 minutes. Do not lift the lid. Rest 5 minutes covered before fluffing. Broken rice cooks faster than whole rice — check at 12 minutes.
- Grill the pork chops. Heat a grill pan or cast-iron skillet to high. Add a little oil. Grill the chops for 4 to 5 minutes per side without moving, allowing the marinade to caramelize and char at the edges. The chops are done when the thickest part reads 63°C (145°F) internally. Rest 5 minutes. If available, a charcoal grill gives the closest result to street-stall cơm tấm.
- Make the scallion oil. Place the sliced spring onion greens in a small heatproof bowl with a pinch of salt. Heat the oil in a small pan until just smoking. Immediately pour the hot oil over the scallions — they will sizzle and release a vivid green fragrance. Stir and set aside.
- Make the nước chấm and assemble. Dissolve the sugar in warm water. Add fish sauce and lime juice. Taste: it should be bright, balanced — sweet, sour, salty. Add minced garlic and thinly sliced fresh chilli to taste. To plate: press a portion of rice into a small bowl then invert onto a plate — this gives the classic domed shape. Lean the pork chop against the rice. Arrange cucumber and tomato slices around the edge. Add pickles and a fried sunny-side-up egg. Drizzle scallion oil over the rice and meat. Serve nước chấm in a small bowl on the side to spoon over as you eat.
FAQ
Broken rice (gạo tấm) is exactly what it says: rice grains that fractured during the drying and milling process. They were historically discarded as inferior and became cheap street food in Saigon. The smaller, irregular pieces cook slightly faster than whole grains, absorb flavor more readily, and have a firmer, slightly more textured mouthfeel that holds up better under sauces. Find it in Asian supermarkets, often labelled 'broken jasmine rice', usually in large bags. If unavailable, substitute regular jasmine rice soaked in water for 1 hour before cooking — the soaked grains will swell and crack slightly, approximating the texture. Cook the soaked rice for slightly less time.
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Comments (2)
Broken rice has a texture that regular rice cannot replicate. The fractured grains cook unevenly, creating a mix of soft and slightly chewy that soaks up the pork chop marinade differently than whole grains would. The lemongrass pork chop marinade needs at least 2 hours — the lemongrass flavour does not penetrate quickly. Slice the chops thin (about 1cm) so they grill fast and stay juicy.
Com Tam war mein erster Versuch mit vietnamesischer Küche und ich bin begeistert! Der Bruchreis hat so eine tolle Textur, ganz anders als normaler Reis. Die Schweinkoteletts hab ich auf dem Kontaktgrill gemacht weil ich kein Kohlegrill hab, hat auch funktioniert. Die Fischsauce riecht komisch aber im Essen schmeckt man nur Umami, vertraut dem Rezept!