This unique dish is especially loved in the north part of Vietnam. It gets its interesting name from its appearance after having been cooked dry- It basically looks like cotton candy, if cotton candy were made of dry, fluffy, finely shredded seasoned pork. It tastes far better than it sounds.

Thit Cha Bong- Vietnamese Cotton Meat

In Vietnam, cotton meat is often served for breakfast in rice soup, or sprfinkled over a bowl of rice for dinner. It's easy to prepare and can be stored for several weeks in the refrigerator.

5 from 2 votes

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Course: Breakfast, Gluten-free, Lunch, Main Course

Cuisine: Southeast Asian, Vietnam

Prep Time: 10

Cook Time: 20

Total Time: 30

Servings:

Author: My Hungry Traveler

Equipment

Medium saucepan
Mortar and Pestle (optional)
Frying pan

Ingredients

1 lb Chunk lean pork loin or ground pork
5 tbsp Fish sauce
1 tbsp Soy sauce
1 tbsp Sugar
1 tsp Coarse black pepper

US Customary – Metric

Instructions

Slice meat ¾-inch thick and around 3-inches wide. Place in a saucepan with the fish sauce. Cover and simmer on medium for 10 minutes, turning meat after 5. All the liquid should be evaporated.
Place meat into mortar a few pieces at a time. If no mortar, pound meat with a meat tenderizer. Pound until completely crushed and stringy. Continue with remaining meat. Shred pounded meat with fingers.
Heat a frying pan over low heat. Add the shredded meat, sugar, black pepper, and soy sauce. Pat everything down with a wooden spoon then spread it about. Keep doing this until the meat is completely dry and begging to make a sizzling sound. Serve or store in refrigerator to use later.