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These banh mi smash tacos are a light, refreshing, flavorful and just really freaking GOOD. Juicy, lemongrass-and-ginger-packed ground chicken gets smashed onto tortillas until seared until golden and crispy, then loaded up with quick-pickled veggies, avocado, crunchy toppings and sriracha mayo. Every bite is a flavor and texture explosion, and the whole thing comes together in about 30 minutes. Yep. Easy dinner winnnn.

Close-up of banh mi smash tacos topped with pickled vegetables, avocado, crushed peanuts, herbs, sriracha mayo, and sesame seeds.
small photo of the author, Erica

Banh Mi meet Smash Taco.

If you’ve been around for a minute, you know I’m alllll about a fusion moment. Especially tacos. I’ll legit put anything in a tortilla and call it a taco.

‘Smash tacos’ are having a particular moment on social media, and frankly, I wanted to join the party. I’ve seen a lot of ‘big mac’ smash tacos and chicken Caesar smash tacos, both of which I’m sure are good. But an Asian-y fusion-y taco was calling my name.

We’re taking classic Banh Mi sandwich fillings like seasoned meat, pickled veggies and spicy mayo and making them into a taco. Banh Mi is traditionally made with pork, but I use ground chicken in this recipe. Could you use ground pork? Absolutely. I personally prefer ground chicken.

If you don’t already have a julienne peeler, that’s a great tool to snag and makes easy work of the daikon radish and carrots (if you don’t already have them pre-shredded). And I’m lazy and buy the garlic, lemongrass and ginger pastes in the produce section near the fresh herbs as a very clutch shortcut. 

This is truly a flavorbomb dinner that my whole family loved. My littlest (4yo) devoured them as written, and for my more selective eater (6yo), I served hers with lettuce and cheese on the inside instead of the pickled veggies, more like a ‘regular’ taco, and she ate it right up!

signature of Erica

What Ingredients You’ll Need to Make Banh Mi Smash Tacos:

Labeled ingredients for ground chicken banh mi tacos, including tortillas, daikon radish, carrots, vinegar, aromatics and toppings.
  • Quick-pickled vegetables: Daikon radish, carrots and red onion get a quick pickle in white wine vinegar, water, sugar and salt. If you don’t have white wine vinegar, apple cider vinegar or unseasoned rice vinegar would work.
  • Protein: I use ground chicken for these smash tacos, but ground pork or turkey would also be delicious.
  • Flavor boosters: Fish sauce adds savory, umami flavor, while mayo adds moisture to the chicken mixture. Garlic, ginger, lemongrass and green onions bring all the aromatic goodness. I use garlic paste, ginger paste, and lemongrass paste to keep things easy. You can find all of these in the refrigerated produce section next to the fresh herbs.
  • Flour tortillas: Street taco-sized tortillas make about 10 tacos. You can also use fajita-sized tortillas for 8 larger tacos.
  • Toppings: Fresh avocado, crushed peanuts, green onions and/or cilantro, sriracha mayo, sesame seeds and a fresh squeeze of lime juice. Use them allllll.

How to Make These Banh Mi Smash Tacos:

Julienne the daikon radish and carrots (if not using pre-shredded) and thinly slice the red onion. I use a julienne peeler for the radish and carrots and a mandoline for the onion, but a sharp chef’s knife works too. Add everything to a medium bowl or mason jar.

Using a julienne peeler to cut daikon radish into thin strips on a wooden cutting board.
Julienned daikon radish next to a jar of julienned carrots on a wooden cutting board.

Combine the vinegar, water, sugar and salt in a liquid measuring cup and microwave for 45-60 seconds. Whisk until the sugar and salt dissolve, then pour the mixture over the veggies. Press everything down so the vegetables are fully submerged and let them pickle while you make the tacos.

Vinegar pickling mixture in liquid measuring cup being poured over shredded veggies in a glass jar.
Glass mason jar filled with julienned daikon radish, shredded carrots and thinly sliced red onion for quick pickling.

Add the ground chicken to a large mixing bowl with salt, pepper, garlic, lemongrass, ginger, fish sauce, mayo and the white/light green parts of the green onions. Mix until everything is evenly combined.

Ground chicken in a mixing bowl with garlic, ginger, lemongrass, fish sauce, mayo and sliced green onions.
Ground chicken mixture combined with flavor-boosting ingredients by hand in a white mixing bowl.

Divide the chicken mixture between the tortillas, using about 3 tablespoons per street taco-sized tortilla. Use your fingers to spread the chicken into a thin, even layer all the way to the edges.

Hands spreading seasoned ground chicken in a thin layer across small flour tortillas.
Uncooked ground chicken mixture spread evenly to the edges of five street taco-sized flour tortillas.

Heat a nonstick griddle pan over medium heat with a swish of avocado oil. Once hot, place the tacos chicken side down and cook for 4-5 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through with a golden brown crust.

Flip and cook tortilla side down for about 1 minute. Work in batches to avoid overcrowding the pan, adding another swish of oil if it gets dry.

Two ground chicken smash tacos cooking tortilla-side up on a nonstick griddle.
Golden brown ground chicken smash tacos cooking chicken-side up on a green griddle pan.

These tacos cook FAST once they hit the skillet, so have your avocado, peanuts, herbs and sauces ready to go.

Ingredients for banh mi smash tacos toppings, including jar of quick-pickled veggies, avocado, green onions, crush peanuts, sriracha mayo, and lime wedges.
Crispy chicken smash tacos topped with quick-pickled vegetables and sliced green onions.

Top with plenty of pickled veggies, sliced avocado, fresh herbs, crushed peanuts, sriracha mayo and sesame seeds. YUMM!

Four banh mi smash tacos on white plates with pickled vegetables, fresh herbs, avocado and crushed peanuts.
Hand holding a folded banh mi taco with sriracha mayo and sesame seeds on top.

FAQs

What is banh mi?

Bánh mì is a Vietnamese street food sandwich, kind of like a sub, traditionally served on a baguette with pork, pickled veggies, fresh herbs and condiments. These smash tacos have all that same goodness, just with ground chicken and tortillas!

Can I make these ahead of time? How do I store and reheat leftovers?

You can make the pickled veggies 1-2 days ahead and store them in the fridge. For leftovers, keep the cooked tacos and toppings separate in airtight containers in the fridge for up to 4 days. Reheat the tacos in a skillet or griddle pan over medium heat until warmed through and crispy, then add your toppings just before serving.

Can I use a different protein?

Ground turkey or ground pork are the best subs here.

I can’t find daikon radish, what should I use instead?

I’d probably use cucumber or finely shredded cabbage. It won’t have the same flavor, but will still be yummy! You could use regular radish, but 1) those are harder to julienne and 2) they have a stronger, more peppery flavor than daikon radish, so you’ll probably want to use less.

Overhead view of two crispy banh mi chicken tacos loaded with pickled carrots, avocado, fresh herbs and spicy mayo.
Four banh mi smash tacos topped with pickled vegetables, avocado, crushed peanuts, cilantro and sriracha mayo.

I mean, COME ON.

If you try and like this recipe, please don’t forget to leave a comment and star rating down below! For more lifestyle, behind-the-scenes and ‘eating in real life’ type of content, come find me over on Instagram, TikTok, Pinterest, Facebook, or Youtube – I love connecting with you all there!

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Banh mi smash tacos topped with pickled vegetables, avocado, crushed peanuts, cilantro and sriracha mayo.

Incredible Banh Mi Smash Tacos

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  • Author: Erica Baty
  • Prep Time: 15 minutes
  • Cook Time: 6-18 minutes, depending on how many tacos you can cook at a time
  • Total Time: 21-33 minutes
  • Yield: 10 street taco-sized tacos or 8 fajita-sized tacos
  • Category: Tacos
  • Method: Assemble, Stovetop
  • Cuisine: Vietnamese
  • Diet: Dairy-Free
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Description

One ridiculously flavorful dinner! Savory ground chicken gets smashed onto tortillas until golden and crispy, then topped with tangy pickled veggies, avocado, peanuts and sriracha mayo.

Ingredients

Quick-Pickled Veggies

  • 1 daikon radish (8oz), julienned
  • 1 cup shredded carrots
  • ¼ red onion, thinly sliced
  • ½ cup white wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar
  • ½ cup water
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 1 teaspoon salt

Chicken

  • 1lb ground chicken (can sub ground pork or turkey)
  • pinches of salt and black pepper
  • 1 tablespoon garlic paste or 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 tablespoon lemongrass paste
  • 1 tablespoon ginger paste or 1-inch knob ginger, peeled and grated
  • 1 tablespoon fish sauce
  • 1 tablespoon mayo
  • 2 green onions, white parts only, reserve the green for topping

Assembly

  • 10–12 street-taco-sized flour tortillas
  • avocado oil, for searing
  • avocados, sliced
  • For topping: crushed peanuts, green onions and/or cilantro, sriracha mayo, sesame seeds, lime wedges

Instructions

  1. Julienne the daikon radish. I do this with a julienne peeler, but you can also use a chef’s knife to cut the radish into thin planks and then into very thin strips. Thinly slice the red onion, I use my mandoline for extra thin, uniform slices.
  2. Combine the radish, carrots and red onion in a large mason jar or bowl. In a liquid measuring cup, combine ½ cup apple cider vinegar, ½ cup water, 2 tablespoons sugar and 1 teaspoon salt. Place in the microwave for 45-60 seconds and whisk until the sugar and salt dissolve. Pour over the veggies, pressing them down so they are fully submerged in the vinegar mixture. Set aside to let the veggies pickle while you make the tacos.
  3. In a large bowl, combine 1lb ground chicken, pinches of salt and pepper, 1 tablespoon EACH garlic paste, lemongrass paste, ginger paste, fish sauce and mayo and the white parts of 2 green onions. Stir or use your hands to make sure everything is evenly mixed.
  4. Divide the chicken mixture evenly among the tortillas, about 3 tablespoons each for street-sized tortillas, and use your fingers to spread it evenly to the edges.
  5. Heat a nonstick griddle pan over medium heat and add a swish of avocado oil. Add the tacos chicken-side-down and cook for 4-5 minutes, until the chicken has a nice golden brown crust. Flip and cook tortilla-side down for another minute. You’ll need to work in a few batches until all of the tacos are cooked, or you can use two pans to cook more at once.
  6. Fill the smash tacos with pickled veggies, avocado slices, crushed peanuts, sriracha mayo and sesame seeds.Wowowow. Like literally, just wow.

Notes

Refer to the above blog post for ingredient information, step-by-step instructions and answers to frequently asked questions.

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Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 2 street-taco sized smash tacos with toppings
  • Calories: 470
  • Sugar: 8.4 g
  • Sodium: 1040.7 mg
  • Fat: 27.7 g
  • Carbohydrates: 34.5 g
  • Fiber: 7 g
  • Protein: 23.6 g
  • Cholesterol: 7.2 mg

More fusion-y goodness to try next time:

Ahi Tuna Smash Tacos

Lemongrass Tofu Noodle Bowl

Korean Chicken Tacos with Caramelized Kimchi

Gochujang Beef Lettuce Wraps with Asian Pear Slaw

Meal Prep Power Bowls with Garlic Ginger Chicken

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