Who doesn't love a good sandwich? I enjoy too many of them but my first sandwich love is the Vietnamese banh mi. So I wrote a little book about making them -- old school versions and new fangled ones too.
Well, The Banh Mi Handbook isn't exactly a tiny book. There are over fifty-five (55!) recipes to get your creative sandwich juices flowing, from bread, condiments and pickles to meaty and vegan fillings.
Take a sneak peek, learn about the banh mi photo shoot, and read about the final proofs and book blurbs. Peruse banh mi recipe photos for a sense of the variety of recipes. Watch my banh mi basics how-to video at Google offices in Venice, CA. Listen to my interviews on public radio programs: NPR News, KCRW, and The Splendid Table.
Quick low-down on the book:
Title: The Banh Mi Handbook: Recipes for Crazy-Delicious Vietnamese Sandwiches
Publisher: Ten Speed Press (Crown/Penguin Random House)
Release date: July 8, 2014
Availability: Choose between hardcover and regular ebook (a digital version of the printed book). We are not doing an enhanced ebook.
Purchase: Amazon, B&N, IndieBound, Powell’s and wherever book are sold. Here's a list of 200+ retailers. As of January 2015, there may be a book shortage where you shop. The third and fourth printing will arrive by mid to late February 2015.
Press: Food & Wine, Wall Street Journal's Asia Scene, Publisher's Weekly, SF Chronicle, Wall St Journal, Cooking Light, SF Weekly, Ottawa Citizen, Ravenous Couple, Rasa Malaysia, Bay Area Bites, Oregonian, Canadian Living, WireCutter, Food Schmooze (CT/NY), Parade, the Ktchn, KPLU (WA), Journal Sentinel, Calgary Herald, Fare Trade, Washington Post, the Week, 7x7 (SF), Huff Post/Oprah, Canada.com, Cooking with Amy, Chicago Tribune, Wisconsin Public Radio, LA Weekly, Food Gal, Randy Clemens, Splendid Table, Huffington Post, CTV Vancouver, Global TV (CAN), CTV Vancouver, Los Angeles mag, Good Food (KCRW radio), San Jose Mercury, Fresno Bee, Boston Globe
Reviews:
“Somewhere around the 11th sandwich in an afternoon's tour of Bay Area banh mi shops, it's clear that Andrea Nguyen is a little obsessive about what makes this Vietnamese staple great or not. . . .These are not the machinations of the unhinged.”
— Jonathan Kauffman, San Francisco Chronicle, “Banh Mi Detective”, 7/18/14“This book is your gateway into banh mi bliss. And then some.”
— Emma Christensen, the Kitchn, 7/23/14“. . . the best sandwich this side of a po’ boy…except funkier and a lot healthier.”
— Gregory Han, the WireCutter, Inner Vision for the Weekend, 7/18/14“Author Andrea Nguyen showcases these sandwiches, which have risen in popularity in this country during the last decade, with a terrific "handbook" filled with guidelines and tips for making them at home. And handbook really is the right word, since the basic concept is to pile on various options for vegetable add-ons, meaty fillings and seasonings, so each banh mi can go dozens of different directions.”
— Grant Butler, Oregonian, 7/16/14“. . . an informative, mouth-watering guide to making banh mi at home.”
— Stephanie Klassen, KQED's Bay Area Bites, 7/16/14“The banh mi sandwich is itself the product of many miles traveled: the crusty bread brought to Vietnam by French colonists, filled with all the bright, hot, fresh, meaty, intensely tasty elements of the local cuisine. This delicious cultural collision is the subject of The Banh Mi Handbook: Recipes for Crazy-Delicious Vietnamese Sandwiches by Andrea Nguyen. Out July 8 from Ten Speed Press, it's a master course in banh mi construction, from the bread to the pickles and condiments to every imaginable filling, whether it's pork meatballs or fried oysters or a lipsmacking citrus-marinated grilled chicken you're hankering for. Wrap up a few for the road and declare independence from insipid rest-stop subs.”
— Wall Street Journal, “50 Reasons to Love Road Trips”, 6/14/14“Who better than Andrea Nguyen to unravel the mysteries of one of the great sandwiches of the world? Her book is deceptively simple on the outside but bursting with layers of flavor and complexity within— just like the best banh mi. As always, Andrea puts mastery within the reach of any curious cook smart enough to take her advice.”
— Joe Yonan, author of Eat Your Vegetables“Brimming with information, inspiration, and smart advice, this is much more than a sandwich book. Andrea Nguyen once again demonstrates her commendable talent for writing recipes that deliver great tasting food and teach you to become a better cook.”
— Molly Stevens, author of All About Roasting“Andrea perfectly tells the story of how Vietnamese food culture was influenced by French colonials. Her simple recipes elevate very humble ingredients to heights you would not expect. I can’t wait to incorporate some of these ideas into our sandwich menu.”
— Sam Mogannam, owner of Bi-Rite Market“Through these recipes, Andrea tells her life story: from childhood lunches of silky sausage on toasted baguettes to postmodern banh mi smeared with curried edamame pâté. She sketches the transformation of a simple sandwich, born of French and Chinese colonization and Vietnamese ingenuity, into a global culinary phenomenon.”
— John T. Edge, author of the Truck Food Cookbook
A zillion thanks to the volunteer recipe testers: Diane Carlson, Alex Ciepley, Jay Dietrich, Georgia Freedman-Wand, Alyce Gershenson, Petra Gördüren, Candace Grover, Doug Grover, Andrew Janjigian, Robyn Laing, Thien-Kieu Lam, Thien-Kim Lam, Kate Leahy, Laura McCarthy, Josie Nevitt, Karen Shinto, Terri Tanaka, Maki Tsuzuki, Dave Weinstein, and Lea Yancey.
As a final note . . .
