Quick Vietnamese Pork Bowl With Broccoli Rice

This Quick Vietnamese Pork Bowl with broccoli rice comes together in just thirty minutes (less if you already have some riced broccoli stored in the freezer). Light, delicious, and satisfying, this nutritious bowl is low in carbs and high in protein. The perfect meal for the whole family, it also packs well for lunch the next day.

Jump to:

• Why You Will Love This Vietnamese Pork and Broccoli Bowl
• Ingredients
• Can This Broccoli Bowl Be Vegetarian?
• Serving Suggestions and Substitutions
• Storing Leftovers
• Recipe

We love a quick and easy dinner-in-a-bowl type recipe, and this is one of our favorite dishes, as well as this Rainbow Brown Rice and Sesame Veggie Bowl, and this Spicy Chipotle Tofu Burrito Bowl.

Why You Will Love This Vietnamese Pork and Broccoli Bowl

Vietnamese food is fresh and punchy, and so full of flavor!

This Vietnamese pork stir fry and broccoli rice bowl has been on rotation in this house for years.

Quick and easy to make, it is so full of flavor, is loved by the kids, and makes perfect leftovers to pack for lunch the next day.

I promise you won't regret that little bit of prep required to get the broccoli rice going.

It is:

• High in protein: with about 39g of protein per serving
• Low in carbs: using broccoli rice keeps the carbs down, but you aren't missing anything, ending up with a whole extra serving of veggies
• Great for the whole family: with a delicious Vietnamese-inspired dressing that will know your socks off in terms of flavor, but not in spice. Plus all of the ingredients can be found at your local grocery store, so no need to visit a specialty store
• An easy weeknight dinner full of fresh vegetables: we fit bell peppers, carrots, cucumber, and of course broccoli into one bowl.

Don't like broccoli? Try some cauliflower rice instead!

Ingredients

Don't let the long list of ingredients scare you off, most of them are for the dressing, and they come together quickly

You can have this light but filling and nourishing bowl on the table in no time.

You will need:

• coconut sugar: this can be found in the regular sugar section of most well-stocked grocery stores. Otherwise, look in the health food section. You can of course just use regular palm sugar or brown sugar, or another sweetener or choice if preferred. Please note we want the almost caramel-like flavor you get from dark sugar, so keep this in mind with any substitutions you make;
• fresh lime juice: use fresh, unless they aren't in season, or super expensive, in which case use the jarred lime juice;
• rice wine vinegar: you can use apple cider vinegar here in a bind;
• fish sauce: not all fish sauce is created equally, check the ingredients and go with a good quality brand if you have options available;
• broccoli rice: this is used instead of regular rice for a grain-free alternative. If you prefer you can use regular long-grain white rice, brown rice, or wild rice. You could also use cauliflower rice if that is preferred. To make your broccoli rice please see this tutorial: What is Riced Broccoli: How to Prepare and Use it;
• pork tenderloin: this is a long, thin (almost tubular) cut of pork. To make it easier to cut into thin slices you may want to allow it to rest in the freezer for about an hour or two before cutting with a sharp knife. You could replace the tenderloin with ground pork if preferred;
• garlic: fresh or pre-prepared depending on preference;
• fresh ginger: fresh or pre-prepared depending on preference;
• fresh mint;
• fresh cilantro (coriander);
• shallots: these are found in the same section as onions and garlic. They look almost like a mini brown onion on the outside, but with a slightly pink color;
• bell peppers (capsicum): please feel free to use any color of bell pepper, or a mix of colors if preferred;
• carrot;
• Lebanese cucumber: these are the small cucumbers, however, you can sub with an English cucumber if needed;
• roasted unsalted peanuts.

You may also want some fresh chili, dried chili, lime cheeks, and extra cilantro in your Vietnamese pork bowls for serving.

Can This Broccoli Bowl Be Vegetarian?

We love this pork version, but if you aren't a fan of pork, or you would prefer to make this meal vegetarian then you can always replace the meat with some tofu.

Be sure to give the tofu a good press to remove all excess liquid and allow it to marinade in the dressing for at least 30 minutes before cooking, to ensure it still has that great flavor.

If you want some proper instructions for how to prepare your tofu, then pop over here and check out this post: Crispy Asian Baked Tofu.

Serving Suggestions and Substitutions

To serve, divide the broccoli rice between 4 bowls, top with equal measures of the pork mixture, followed by some of the red bell peppers, carrots, cucumber, and peanuts.

Drizzle over the remaining sauce, and add extra toppings of your choosing.

Some favorites are:

• roasted peanuts
• extra cilantro, mint, and Thai basil
• red pepper flakes or sliced bird's eye chili
• lime wedges
• sliced green onions
• bean sprouts for some extra crunch
• a drizzle of nuoc cham if you like it extra saucy (this is a more traditional Vietnamese dipping sauce, and can be found in the Asian aisle of good grocery stores)
• rice vermicelli noodles (thin rice noodles) can replace the broccoli rice if preferred, simply cook them according to package instructions, and toss everything together in a large bowl
• serve in a lettuce cup to change things up

Pop all the toppings on the dinner table and let everyone build the perfect bowl for them, this is a great way to make sure everyone eats all of their dinner.

This would be a great main dish to serve with some Vietnamese spring rolls and pickled vegetables like these quick pickled carrots.

Who doesn't love a good bowl loaded with lots of fresh veggies and other goodness?

Storing Leftovers

Leftovers should be stored in an airtight container in the fridge.

I would suggest storing the broccoli rice separately from the pork, as the dressing can make the broccoli become soggy.

The pork mixture can also be frozen for up to 3 months.

This is a great recipe if you like to meal prep, as all of the elements can be made beforehand and simply assembled when needed.

I love to hear from you, so if you try out my Vietnamese pork bowl be sure to pop back and leave a comment to let me know your thoughts!

Happy Eating.

xx

Recipe

The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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