Vermicelli bowls with lemongrass pork

Caramelized lemongrass pork over cool rice noodles and herbs, with a sweet, tangy fish sauce dressing.

How many people are eating

Written for 4. Everything below is scaled to 4.

What goes on the list — untick anything you have

1.5 lb Pork shoulder(boneless; ask for it thinly sliced, or buy thin-cut pork chops)
12 oz Rice vermicelli(thin rice sticks; Walmart international aisle or Asian market)
2 stalks Lemongrass(Asian market produce, sometimes Walmart produce. Swap: 2 tbsp lemongrass paste in a tube from the herb section)
2 Shallots
6 cloves Garlic
1 head Romaine lettuce
1 Cucumber
2 Carrots
1 bunch Fresh mint
1 bunch Fresh cilantro
6 oz Bean sprouts
0.5 cup Roasted peanuts
3 Limes
2 Thai bird chilies(or 1 serrano)
6 tbsp Fish sauce(Walmart Asian foods aisle, or Three Crabs at an Asian market. Swap: soy sauce, though the dressing will be different)
2 tbsp Honey
5 tbsp Sugar· most people have this
1 tsp Black pepper· most people have this
3 tbsp Vegetable oil· most people have this

It lands in the shopping form, where you can edit anything, add to it, and say what you think each thing costs. Nothing is ordered until you send it.

How to cook it · about 60 minutes

Trim the lemongrass to the pale lower third, peel off the tough outer layer and mince it very finely. Mince the shallots and 4 cloves of garlic.
Slice the pork as thin as you can (15 minutes in the freezer helps). Mix it with the lemongrass, shallots, minced garlic, 3 tbsp fish sauce, the honey, 2 tbsp sugar, pepper and 2 tbsp oil. Marinate at least 30 minutes, or overnight.
Make the nuoc cham dressing: stir 3 tbsp sugar into 1/2 cup warm water until dissolved, then add the juice of 2 limes, 3 tbsp fish sauce, and the remaining 2 garlic cloves and the chilies, finely minced. Taste; it should be sweet, sour and salty in balance.
Cook the vermicelli in boiling water for 3 to 5 minutes until just tender, drain and rinse under cold water until cool. Shred the lettuce, cut the cucumber and carrots into matchsticks, pick the herbs and crush the peanuts.
Cook the pork in a very hot skillet or grill pan with the last 1 tbsp oil, in batches, 2 to 3 minutes a side until browned and caramelized at the edges and cooked through. Or grill over high heat.
Build each bowl with lettuce, herbs and sprouts on the bottom, noodles on top, then cucumber, carrot and pork. Scatter peanuts over and pour on the dressing at the table. For meal prep, keep the dressing in a separate jar.

Amounts are on the list above — they change with the number of people; the steps do not.