Vietnam was a French colony from 1885 to 1954, and remnants of French colonization can still be seen in Vietnamese cuisine today. The tastiest example of this is banh mi, a Vietnamese sandwich with a distinctly French influence.

2 tablespoons rice vinegar or white vinegar

1 teaspoon caster (superfine) sugar

¼ teaspoon salt

½ carrot—peeled and grated

¼ cup peeled, deseeded and diced cucumber

1 cup bean sprouts

6 oz (180g) can of light meat tuna in oil—drained

1 scallion (spring onion)—finely chopped

2 teaspoons fish sauce

1 tablespoon mayonnaise

1 light-textured baguette (or 2 small baguettes)

2 tablespoons jarred pickled jalapeño slices

A handful of cilantro (fresh coriander) sprigs

MIX the vinegar, sugar and salt together in a bowl. ADD the carrot, cucumber and bean sprouts, toss well to combine, then let stand for at least 20 minutes while you prepare the remaining ingredients. MASH the tuna thoroughly with a fork, then stir through the mayo, scallion and fish sauce to combine. WARM the baguette in the oven to lightly crisp the outside, then cut in half lengthways (leaving one side of the bread as a hinge) and remove some of the soft bread from the center of each half to hollow out a little. SPREAD the tuna mix evenly on the base of the baguette. DRAIN the lightly-pickled carrot, cucumber and bean sprout mixture, then evenly place it over the tuna mix. PLACE the sliced jalapeño peppers then the cilantro on top. CLOSE the baguette, cut in half, and serve.

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