This tender and juicy, easy-to-make sweet and savory grilled Vietnamese lemongrass pork chops recipe (Thit Heo Nuong Xa) is full of flavors from lemongrass, garlic, and fish sauce and grilled for that extra char and caramelization. If you don't have a BBQ, not to worry - I have included stovetop instructions as well.
Table of Contents
- Ingredients and Substitutions for Thit Heo Nuong Xa
- How to Make Vietnamese Lemongrass Pork Chops
- Joyce's Tips for Making Vietnamese Pork Chops
- Recipe Variation Ideas for Vietnamese Pork Chops
- Serving Suggestions
- FAQs
- How to Store Leftover Lemongrass Pork Chops
- Recipes To Use Up Leftover Lemongrass
- More Vietnamese Recipes You May Like
- Did You Make This Vietnamese Pork Chop Recipe?
- Recipe Card
This Vietnamese grilled pork chop recipe is also known as Thit Heo Nuong Xa and it is definitely one of my favorite ways to have pork chops. I have never had a more flavorful, juicy, and moist Porkchop, and it's very easy to make - all it requires is the pork chop to be marinated for 24 hours, and then grilled!
This lemongrass marinade is strong in flavors from the garlic, fish sauce, and lemongrass which penetrates the meat very well. Grilling not only gives it a light smoky flavor but the caramelization of the sugars from the marinade is actually one of the best parts of this recipe.
It pairs deliciously with rice (if you have broken rice it's even better!), some refreshing light vegetables like cucumbers and tomatoes, and Vietnamese dipping sauce, nuoc cham.
Nuoc cham dipping sauce is a wonderful sauce balanced with sweetness, tang, and saltiness. Not only does it add a wonderful burst of flavor, but it will also cut the greasiness from the grilled pork chop. I like to sometimes lightly drizzle this sauce on the rice, to make the dish even more sweet and savory.
While we are on the topic of grilling, if you're looking for more dishes to grill, you can also quickly whip together my Nem Nuong (Vietnamese Grilled Sausage), which is a sweet and savory (and very garlicky) and delicious sausage with a bit of springiness to it or lemongrass chicken!
Ingredients and Substitutions for Thit Heo Nuong Xa
- Pork chops - Traditionally, Vietnamese grilled pork chops are made with thin slices of bone-in pork chops that come from the loin - both loin chops and rib chops. For this recipe, I break tradition and use shoulder chops instead. I like to use shoulder chops because it is has a lot more fat marbled into the meat, and it's essentially all 'dark meat' so it stays moist, juicy, and flavorful - even if you overcook it. That being said, you definitely can use the traditional loin or rib chops cuts instead if that is what you prefer - just keep in mind that the cooking time in this recipe is for a ¾ inch thick shoulder chop, so you may need to adjust your grilling time.
- Water - I add water to my marinade so that the food processor has an easier time grinding through the dry aromatics, and because the water in the marinade creates a mini brine when it gets combined with the salt from the fish sauce/soy sauce. The salt helps draw in the water into the meat, which keeps it juicy and flavorful.
- Garlic - There is no substitute for garlic in this recipe. It is a very important ingredient and it should not be omitted.
- Sugar - I like to use sugar to sweeten this marinade, but you can easily substitute this with honey if that is what you prefer.
- Shallots - For the marinade, shallots add a lot of wonderful flavors - especially when the shallots get seared on the grill. If you can't find shallots, you can substitute it with a ¼ of a small red onion, which should be approximately 2 tablespoons.
- Lemongrass - This is the main ingredient that gives this pork chop recipe its wonderful flavors. There is no substitute for it, and you should not omit this. If you cannot find fresh lemongrass, you can use frozen pre-ground lemongrass. It is usually stored in the freezer section of Asian grocery stores. Do not use powdered lemongrass, it will not taste the same.
- Dark soy sauce - The dark soy sauce gives this recipe a bit of color and salt. You can substitute this with regular soy sauce if you cannot find dark soy - the color won't be the same, but it will still taste fantastic.
- Fish sauce - Fish sauce is a very important ingredient in this recipe and should not be substituted. I like to use Squid brand fish sauce because it only contains 3 ingredients (anchovy, salt, and sugar) and it's very easy to find. Alternatively, I also love Golden boy fish sauce but it is harder to find. Golden boy fish sauce is also only made with 3 ingredients but it's a lot more potent and saltier.
- Oil - I add oil and coat each pork chop with it right before I grill them so they don't stick to the grill and so that it helps with the charring process. You should still oil your grill when you grill these pork chops.
How to Make Vietnamese Lemongrass Pork Chops
- Remove the top 2-3 inches of dried tips from the lemongrass. I like to smash the base of the lemongrass with a rolling pin or the back of a knife so that it's easier to chop and it releases the oils.
- Cut the lemongrass into small pieces 1\4 inch pieces and place it in a food processor. If you are not using a food processor, finely chop the lemongrass as fine as you can.
- Add the rest of the marinade ingredients (garlic, shallots, soy sauce, water, fish sauce, and sugar) into the food processor and blitz it until it becomes a paste. Pour it over the pork shoulder and make sure it is well coated. Marinate the pork chop for 24 hours.
- After it has marinated for 24 hours. Bring the pork chop out of the fridge for an hour to marinate at room temperature - bringing the meat to room temperature makes it cook faster and more evenly, and the marinade absorbs better as well.
- Scrape off and remove the marinade by hand, as much as possible so it doesn't burn while you are grilling the pork chops.
- Drizzle oil on the marinated pork chops and lightly coat each piece. This will help prevent it from sticking on the grill (you still should oil the grill as well).
- Preheat the grill to high heat and wait for it to get hot.
- Grill for 2-3 mins on high with the lid up (approximately 1-2 minutes per side), then set the heat to medium and cook it for 4-6 mins with the lid down, no flipping required.
- Remove it from the grill and let it rest for 5-10 mins before you eat it.
Joyce's Tips for Making Vietnamese Pork Chops
- Cut off and discard the top 2-3 inches of the dried lemongrass tips. Cut the lemongrass into ½ inch pieces before you blitz it into a food processor. It's a tough and woody herb, and it will grind more easily this way.
- If you are not using a food processor for the marinade, make sure you finely mince the lemongrass as fine as you can get it. Lemongrass is very woody and not very pleasant to eat, especially in larger pieces.
- Remove most (but not all) of the marinade by hand before grilling, so that it doesn't burn. You want the lemongrass pork chops to char and caramelize slightly but not full-on burn.
- Can you pan-fry these lemongrass pork chops? Yes, you can! It won't have the same char and grilled smoky flavor but if you don't have a grill and want to try this at home it is definitely doable. I like to use a cast-iron pan or a heavy-bottom frying pan. Using a similar method, I would sear the meat at high heat for approximately 2 minutes per side. Then I would drop the heat to medium and cook it for 4 minutes a side with a lid on the pan so that the center gets cooked all the way through.
- Try adding a fried egg over your rice and pork chop for even more deliciousness!
- Don't forget to make a Vietnamese fish sauce dipping sauce (nuoc cham) - Personally, I think this dipping sauce is a must for this pork chop for the best flavor. It really gives it a pop of flavor and cuts into the greasiness of the meat.
- The marinade can be doubled, tripled, quadrupled, etc if you are planning to make a lot of pork chops. Just make sure you remove some of it before you grill the pork chop
Recipe Variation Ideas for Vietnamese Pork Chops
- Make It Spicy - To make these Vietnamese pork chops spicy, I actually just add 1-2 birds eye chili to the nuoc cham dipping sauce. Use 1 birds eye chili for medium spicy and 2 for very spicy hot.
Serving Suggestions
- To keep this simple, I like to serve this with plain steamed jasmine rice or broken rice (which are rice grain fragments, which you can find in Asian grocery stores or online). You definitely want to also have a side of nuoc cham dipping sauce as well, as the tangy sauce cuts a lot of the greasiness and gives it a burst of flavor.
- Alternatively, if you're looking for something different, I also like to serve this with egg fried rice with a side of cucumber salad as well.
- I also love to slice these lemongrass pork chops into thin pieces and roll them into Vietnamese rice spring rolls! The pork chops have so much flavor and add a lot to them, especially when they are being rolled with fresh veggies, basil/mint and thin vermicelli noodles and dipped in a hoisin dipping sauce or peanut sauce.
- Vermicelli noodle bowls (aka bun), are also a fantastic way to serve these flavorful lemongrass pork chops. I like to cut them into smaller pieces, remove the bone and serve it with thin rice noodles, cucumbers, tomatoes, nuoc cham sauce, bean sprouts and mint.
- If you're looking for something more lighter, I also like to serve it with Vietnamese sweet and tangy canh chua soup on the side as well.
FAQs
I like to eat this with white jasmine rice, but if you have broken rice, you definitely should use that instead. I find broken rice has a really nice texture when paired with this Vietnamese porkchop.
I also like to serve it with a few slices of cucumbers and tomatoes to lighten it up a bit.
Using nuoc cham (Vietnamese fish sauce dipping sauce) is a must. It adds a lot of extra flavors and it cuts the greasiness from the pork chops as well.
1.) Add oil to the flat top grill and set the heat to high heat.
2.) Once it is very hot, add the pork chop onto the flat top grill and sear it for 2 minutes per side. (approximately 4 minutes in total) Try not to flip it too much so it can create a bit of char.
3.) Once you have charred and seared the outside, cook it with a lid for 4 minutes a side with a lid. (8 minutes in total)
4.) Depending on how hot your stovetop is, the pork chop should be cooked by now. This is based on a ¾ inch shoulder chop.
5.) Remove it from the pan and let it rest for 5-10 minutes before serving it
How to Store Leftover Lemongrass Pork Chops
To store these Vietnamese pork chops, wait for it to cool and store it in an airtight container for up to three days in the fridge.
To reheat it, I like to microwave it for about 1 minute to get it warm all the way through and then quickly re-grill it on high heat on the grill for 1 minute to get a sear on it again.
Alternatively, you can also reheat it over the stovetop in a pan on high heat and a bit of oil as well.
Recipes To Use Up Leftover Lemongrass
More Vietnamese Recipes You May Like
- Bun Bo Hue (Spicy Vietnamese Beef Noodle Soup)
- Bo Kho (Vietnamese Beef Stew)
- Vietnamese Fish Sauce Dipping Sauce (Nuoc Cham / Nuoc Mam)
- Nem Nuong (Grilled Vietnamese Pork Sausages)
- Vietnamese Grilled Shrimp Vermicelli Noodle Bowl
- Easy Hoisin Dipping Sauce (3 Ingredients)
- Canh Chua (Vietnamese Sweet and Sour Soup)
- Vietnamese Lemongrass Chicken
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Recipe Card
Vietnamese Grilled Lemongrass Pork Chops (Thit Heo Nuong Xa)
Joyce's Recipe Notes
- Traditionally, Vietnamese grilled pork chops are made with thin slices of bone-in pork chops that come from the loin - both loin chops and rib chops. For this recipe, I break tradition and use shoulder chops instead. I like to use shoulder chops because it is has a lot more fat marbled into the meat, and it's essentially all 'dark meat' so it stays moist, juicy, and flavorful - even if you overcook it. That being said, you definitely can use the traditional loin or rib chops cuts instead if that is what you prefer - just keep in mind that the cooking time in this recipe is for a ¾ inch thick shoulder chop, so you may need to adjust your grilling time, and grill it for less time if you are using a thinner pork chop.
- I add water to my marinade so that the food processor has an easier time grinding through the dry aromatics, and because the water in the marinade creates a mini brine when it gets combined with the salt from the fish sauce/soy sauce. The salt helps draw in the water into the meat, which keeps it juicy and flavorful.
- For the marinade, if you can't find shallots, you can substitute it with a ¼ of a small red onion, which should be approximately 2 tablespoons.
- If you cannot find fresh lemongrass, you can use frozen pre-ground lemongrass. It is usually stored in the freezer section of Asian grocery stores. Do not use powdered lemongrass, it will not taste the same.
- The dark soy sauce gives this recipe a bit of color and salt. You can substitute this with regular soy sauce, if you cannot find dark soy - you will mostly like some of the color but it will still taste fantastic.
- The fish sauce is a very important ingredient in this recipe and should not be substituted. I like to use Squid brand fish sauce because it only contains 3 ingredients (anchovy, salt, and sugar) and it's very easy to find. Alternatively, I also love Golden boy fish sauce but it is harder to find. Golden boy fish sauce is also only made with 3 ingredients but it's a lot more potent and saltier.
- I add oil and coat each pork chop with it right before I grill them so they don't stick to the grill and so that it helps with the charring process. You should still oil your grill when you grill these pork chops.
-
Cut off and discard the top 2-3 inches of the dried lemongrass tips. It's a tough and woody herb, and it will grind more easily this way.
- If you are not using a food processor for the marinade, make sure you finely mince the lemongrass as fine as you can get it. Lemongrass is very woody and not very pleasant to eat, especially in larger pieces.
- Try adding a fried egg over your rice and pork chop for even more deliciousness!
- Don't forget to make a Vietnamese fish sauce dipping sauce (nuoc cham) - Personally, I think this dipping sauce is a must for this pork chop for the best flavor. It really gives it a pop of flavor and cuts into the greasiness of the meat.
- The marinade can be doubled, tripled, quadrupled, etc if you are planning to make a lot of pork chops. Just make sure you remove some of it before you grill the pork chop
Ingredients
- 2 Pork shoulder steaks *see notes (approximately ½-¾ inch thick)
- 1 tablespoon Oil (used to coat porkchop right before grilling)
Lemongrass Marinade
- 1 Stalk of Lemongrass *see notes (approximately 3½ tablespoons)
- 4 cloves Garlic (approximately 2 tablespoons)
- 1 Shallot (approximately 2 tablepoons)
- 1½ tablespoons Fish Sauce
- 1½ tablespoons Dark Soy Sauce
- 2 tablespoons Sugar
- 2 tablespoons Water
Garnishes & Extras
- ½ cup
nuoc cham dip (fish sauce dip) - cucumbers (a few slices)
- tomatoes (a few slices)
- green onions/scallions (finely chopped)
Instructions
Marinating and Preparing the Pork Chops
- Remove the top 2-3 inches of dried tips from the lemongrass and discard it. I like to smash the base of the lemongrass so that it's easier to chop and it releases the oils. Cut the lemongrass into small pieces 14-inch pieces and place it in a food processor. If you are not using a food processor, finely chop the lemongrass as fine as you can.
- Add the rest of the marinade ingredients (4 cloves Garlic, 1 Shallot, 1½ tablespoons Dark Soy Sauce (optional), 2 tablespoons Water, 1½ tablespoons Fish Sauce, and 2 tablespoons Sugar) into the food processor and blitz it until it becomes a paste.
- Add the pork shoulder into a large bowl. Pour the marinade over the pork and make sure it is well coated. Marinate the pork chop for 24 hours
- After it has marinated for 24 hours. Bring the pork chop out of the fridge for an hour to marinate at room temperature - bringing the meat to room temperature makes it cook faster, more evenly and the marinade absorbs better as well.
- Scrape off and remove the marinade by hand, as much as possible so it doesn't burn while you are grilling the pork chops
- Drizzle 1 tablespoon Oil on the pork chop and lightly coat each piece. This will help prevent it from sticking on the grill (you still should oil the grill as well)
Grilling the Lemongrass Pork Chops
- Pre-heat bbq to high heat and wait for it to get hot.
- Grill for 2-3 mins on high with the lid up (approximately 1-2 minutes per side), then adjust the heat to medium heat and cook it for 4-6 mins with the lid down, no flipping required.
- Once it is done, remove it from the grill and let it rest for 5-10 mins
- Enjoy with a side of rice and some cucumbers, tomatoes and, nuoc cham dip!
(Alternative) Pan-Frying the Lemongrass Pork Chops
- If you do not have a grill, you can use a cast iron pan or a heavy bottom frying pan to cook this as well. It is very important to remove as much as the marinade off the porkchop as possible before you pan-fry it so that it doesn't burn.
- Add oil to a heavy bottom frying pan or cast iron pan and set the heat to high heat.
- Once the pan is very hot, add the pork chop in the pan and sear it for 2 minutes per side. (approximately 4 minutes in total) Try not to flip it too much so it can create a bit of char. The house may get a bit smoky during this step.
- Once you have charred and seared the outside, cook it with a lid for 4 minutes a side with a lid. (8 minutes in total)
- Depending on how hot your stovetop is, the pork chop should be cooked by now. This is based on a ¾ inch shoulder chop. Remove it from the pan and let it rest for 5-10 minutes before serving it
- Enjoy with a side of rice and some cucumbers, tomatoes and, nuoc cham dip!
Nutrition
*Nutritional information is calculated using online tools and is an estimate*
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Anonymous says
Susan says
Amazing... Sooo 👍👍👍👍
Joyce Lee says
Hi Susan!
So happy you liked it! 🙂
Anh S. says
So simple and so quick and easy! I didn't have time to marinate for more than an hour but the flavor was there! I left out the water from the recipe since I was looking to concentrate more flavor in the hour. Pan seared it on a cast iron pan and added the char I was missing from a grill. This recipe will be going into my regular rotation! Approved by a Vietnamese!
Joyce Lee says
Hi Anh!
Yay I'm so happy you liked it! 🙂
I love using my cast iron pan for the same purpose in the winter here as well. 😀 My grill is always frozen shut haha
Kuulei says
Made this last night and it was so good! Even my hard to please husband liked it! I used thin porkchops, but will use a thicker shoulder chop and marinate overnight. Flavor was good on the thin chops with the nuoc chan, but a little dry.
Joyce Lee says
Hi Kuulei!
Yay! I'm so happy everyone liked it!! 🙂 I had to use this recipe to convince my husband that porkchops are not so bad as well! haha 🙂 He was traumatized by porkchops growing up! haha 🙂
Raf D. says
Absolutely delicious dish! Very simple to prepare. I was extremely happy to find a dish that can use more of the lemongrass stalk (i usually only use the botttom 4 inches of the stalk). Thank you Joyce. Looking forward to trying more of your recipes.
Emilie Thomas says
This is SO good! The second night I had it, I added a splash of mirin to the oil that I cooked it in - best pork ever! Adding this to the rotation!
Joyce Lee says
Hi Emilie!
I'm so happy you liked it!
Allison says
The first time I ever tried Vietnamese pork chops was at a hole-in-the-wall in Osaka, Japan. I’ve never been to Vietnam, but I can only imagine it’s even more superb there. From that point forward, I fell in love. I could never find anything quite as yummy in the states. I decided to try at home since I recently purchased a new grill.
Oh. My. Goodness. This brought me back to my dinner in Osaka (9 years ago). I made with your Nuoc Cham. A+++++++
This will be in my weekly rotation. Thank you!
Joyce Lee says
Hi Allison!
Thank you so much for sharing this with me. It makes me incredibly happy that I am able to share my recipes for everyone to enjoy. I'm so happy you liked it. Thank you for making my day. 😊💖