Vietnamese Broken Rice (Cơm Tấm Chay)

Have you ever heard of cơm tấm? If not, bear with me, I will explain all about this dish below!

Cơm tấm is the kind of dish that is comforting, flavorful, and has a stick-to-your-ribs factor. While it does require some preparation, you can easily prepare the toppings ahead of time.

📘 What is Cơm Tấm

Cơm tấm (usually referred to as “Cơm Tấm Sườn Bì Chả”) is a Vietnamese dish that first appeared in the early 20th century. It consists of cooked broken rice served with grilled pork ribs, pork skin, egg meatloaf, vegetables, and a sweet and salty sauce.

Vegan versions of this dish can be found easily in Vietnam. This recipe is inspired by the ones you can find in Saigon.

🥣 How to Make Cơm Tấm

This dish consists of 4 key elements and a few extra toppings:

• Rice – It makes the base of this dish. You can use any type of rice, but traditionally it is broken rice that is used. Since the grains are broken, this type of rice looks like short-grain rice.
• Vegan ribs – While the non-vegan version of this dish includes grilled pork chops, we are using TVP slices here to replace them. You can check out our Vegan Char Siu Ribs recipe here.
• “Pork” skin – To replace the pork skin, we are using vermicelli which we will season with roasted rice powder.
• Steamed tofu loaf – Check out our Steamed Tofu Loaf recipe here.

Then, for the toppings we have:

• Cucumber – I used Persian cucumbers, but any type will work.
• Pickles – Carrot and radish pickles bring crunchiness and freshness. You can check out our Vietnamese Pickles recipe here.
• Green onions – Sautéed green onions add a mild and earthy flavor.
• Nước chấm – This sauce is basically diluted vegan fish sauce that is combined with sugar, lime juice, garlic, and chili.

Char Siu Ribs

It starts with the “ribs”. Here, I went with TVP slices that are first soaked, drained, and fried, and then sautéed in a sweet and salty char siu sauce. You can easily replace the TVP with your favorite meat substitute as long as it can be cut into thick slices.

Tofu Meatloaf

For the tofu meatloaf, simply follow my recipe to make Vietnamese Tofu Loaf. You can prepare it up to 3 days ahead. Plus you can use leftovers as an appetizer!

“Pork” Skin

Next, comes the “pork” skin that brings a toasty flavor and more texture to this dish. To make the vegan pork skin:

1. Cook the vermicelli and drain it very well.
2. Transfer to a bowl and add the seasonings: soy sauce, sugar, roasted rice powder, and ground black pepper.
3. Stir to coat. Note: The vermicelli should not stick together. If it does, add a bit of rice powder.

Sauce

For the sauce, combine vegan fish sauce with lime juice, sugar, minced garlic, and chili if you want some heat. If you can’t find fish sauce, simply use soy sauce.

Assembling

Finally, it’s time to assemble! Fill a plate with cooked broken rice and top with one piece of vegan “ribs”, a few slices of tofu meatloaf, some vegan “pork” skin, and vegetables. Pour in the sauce and enjoy!

💬 FAQ

🇻🇳 More Vietnamese-Inspired Recipes

• Vegan Pho
• Vegan Vietnamese “Beef” Stew
• Easy Vegan Vietnamese Curry
• How to Make Vegan Banh Mi (Vietnamese Baguette)

Let me know in the comments if you try this recipe!