banh mi

noun

ˈbän-ˈmē 

plural banh mi or less commonly banh mis

: a usually spicy sandwich in Vietnamese cuisine consisting of a split baguette filled typically with meat (such as pork or chicken) and pickled vegetables (such as carrot and daikon) and garnished with cilantro and often cucumbers

Here we have the original banh mi—a reliable favourite on a classic crusty baguette. Cold cut-style pork belly, chicken liver pâté (you can sub in avocado if that's more your thing), and soy-based Vietnamese sausage are finished with pickled carrots and daikon … , cucumbers, cilantro, aïoli and special sauce.

—Liza Agrba

In Queen Anne, the Vietnamese coffee shop Queen Càphê serves banh mis and spring rolls.

—Tan Vinh

Example Sentences

Recent Examples on the Web

And to round out the who's-who of Houston culinary genres, Roostar Vietnamese Grill (section 139) will offer its renowned banh mi and Roegels Barbecue (sections 111 and 121) will fire up the 'cue. —Emma Balter, Chron, 13 Mar. 2023

Good bets are the Crispy Chicken sandwich with Sichuan aioli, marinated tofu banh mi with beef roll sausage and chicken liver mousse, shrimp po’boy sandwich and Wild Isles salmon burger. —Pam Kragen, San Diego Union-Tribune, 10 Mar. 2023

Chef and co-owner Andrew Markert grafts Chinese shrimp toast onto a Vietnamese banh mi with an application of a Philippine-style crab fat sauce, the latter fortified with enough crab meat to resemble a kind of pâté. —Tim Carman, Washington Post, 27 Feb. 2023

Sales of banh mi have helped to offset rising rent and food prices, Nguyen said. —Diti Kohli, BostonGlobe.com, 26 Feb. 2023

Spring rolls, bowls, rice dishes, and banh mi sandwiches on baguettes are among their specialties. —Patricia Doherty, Travel + Leisure, 22 Feb. 2023

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Vietnamese bánh mì, literally, "bread, baguette," from bánh "cake, pastry" + mì "wheat"

First Known Use

1985, in the meaning defined above