I just returned from a four-day trip to the Poconos, with my in-laws, to celebrate my mother-in-law’s upcoming 70th birthday! We stayed at a large house that fit the 22 of us, with a jam-packed itinerary. While it was exhausting, we all had tons of fun, with the following memorable highlights:
- The trip began with a flat tire that almost took the entire family to replace 😂
- We sang our hearts out until 3-4am while our kids were sound asleep … then woke at 7:30am. We were running on fumes the next day and woke up with sore throats 😩, but still managed to stay up until 2am, playing board games 😁.
- For my MIL’s party, my SIL and I blew up about 50 balloons BY MOUTH due to a somewhat malfunctioned pump. Not to mention, the blowing happened after a bloody lip injury I suffered from, missing a catch for a bottle of hand sanitizer 🥴.
- On our last day, we saw a cute cub right by the house! Some of us were amazed, whereas others freaked out about mama bear’s potential appearance (and attack).
- My BIL grilled some bangin’ ribs, topped with homemade sauce, and steak that my LO could not stop eating!
- Most importantly, my MIL did not expect and was extremely touched by the surprise party and set-up. We ended our steak dinner with ice cream cake and the premiere of my YouTube video on her Vietnamese ham recipe, which I dedicate to her 💜.
My MIL, a happy woman who possesses a BIG heart, beautiful soul and stands under 5 feet tall, has made the family countless Vietnamese ham. This is a homemade cold cut that conveniently sits in my fridge/freezer and is often eaten as a snack, side or topping for my banh cuon.
The downside about making this cold cut at home is it can be a pretty time-consuming process. Fortunately, Cha Lua / Gio Lua can also be found in many Asian supermarkets. While I can find mine in the refrigerated aisle by the meat section at my local supermarket, I actually prefer cha lua from a Vietnamese business in Boston, pictured below. I’ve picked up Cha Lua, which is a plain version and Gio Bi, which contains pork skin and black peppercorns, giving the ham a gelatinous texture and aromatic scent and flavors.
Vietnamese ham is commonly found in Vietnamese sandwiches, or banh mi, and used to top or garnish dishes. They also make great finger foods and is loved by my toddler. She calls it Grandma Meat 😂.
We never fully acknowledged the effort that goes into making this ham, until I had my MIL over my place recently and filmed the entire process. Check out her recipe and the video below to see for yourself! And if you tried out her recipe, post and tag me @rackoflam on social media! Thank you MIL!
My Mother-in-Law’s Vietnamese Ham (Gio Lua / Cha Lua) Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 lb pork loin
- 4 tbsp potato starch
- 1 tsp sugar
- 4 tbsp oil
- 4 tbsp fish sauce
- 5 tsp baking powder
- 5-6 dashes white pepper
- 8 tbsp water
Instructions
- Cut the pork into smaller pieces. In batches, grind them up in a food processor until smooth.
- Add the rest of the ingredients onto the ground meat and mix until well blended.
- Cover and freeze the meat for 6-7 hours.
- Remove the meat from the freezer and allow to thaw for app. 1 hour.
- In batches, grind the meat again in the food processor until smooth.
- In small portions, wrap the meat in banana leaves (my mother-in-law also uses aluminum foil), shaping them into logs, then tie with string or twine to ensure water does not seep into the foil/leaf during boiling. (See Note 1)
- Bring a pot of water to a boil and fully submerge the logs of meat for 40 minutes, or until an inserted meat thermometer reads 165°F.
- Allow the Vietnamese ham to cool before serving or refrigerate and serve cold. See Note 2.
Video
Notes
- I created 6 logs of Vietnamese ham using 4 lbs of pork loin. Therefore, you may divide the meat up equally into 6 portions, or more if you wish.
- I typically freeze the Vietnamese ham to extend shelf life.
do you absolutely NEED to add starch?
will it still hold without it?
Hi Monika! Yes, you need to add starch because it serves as a binding agent. I have never tried the recipe without it but I would assume that the ingredients would not hold together.