This is something I’ve been meaning to try cooking in a long time. I mean, almost 6 years long. That’s when I was first introduced to Vietnamese food and of course, the first thing I had was the big bowl of beef noodle soup, with all the fixings. I was instantly a fan. Hot soup, lots of noodles, lots of meat, and the tasty bits (tripe and tendon, maybe not so tasty to most) is hard to beat on a cold winter night. Well, unfortunately (or fortunately in some eyes), it was the middle of July.
But anyway, I kept asking some of my Vietnamese friends about making Pho but the hours of preparation and the list of ingredients had my mind spinning and eyes glazed right from the start. So I put it off for a year, then another five. But finally, about a month ago, I was in an ambitious and productive mood, so I figured, what the heck, I’ll give it a shot. 6 hours later, I had my Pho, and was dozing on the couch.
It ended up tasting pretty close to what I’ve had in restaurants and I felt that, with a few adjustments, I might be able to get the taste of the broth closer. I used some beef neck bones (with meat) instead of some of the leg bones (My stock pot wasn’t big enough) and they turned out pretty good (not to mention all of the extra meat that ended up in the soup). I did take the beef brisket out a little early, it was still a little tough when I got around to eating it. Ended up feeding 5 people healthily (If I followed the recipe exactly I could’ve probably fed the 6-8 that was mentioned) but unfortunately, I couldn’t fit anything else in the stock pot.
The recipe’s from Andrea Nguyen’s Into the Vietnamese Kitchen. It’s a very well detailed book (although I’d like it if there were more pictures…actually, I wish every cookbook would have at least 1 picture of each dish that’s listed) and I found it really easy to follow. Andrea also has a blog at Viet World Kitchen and I try to keep up with it whenever I have the time.
Anyway, enough with the chatter, onto the recipe!
Vietnamese Beef Noodle Soup (Pho)
Serves 6-8
Time: 5-6 hours
Ingredients:
Broth:
- 2 medium yellow onions
- 4-inch cube of fresh ginger
- 5-6 pounds beef leg bones (in 2-3 inch pieces)
- 6 quarts water
- 5 star anise
- 6 whole cloves
- 3-inch cinnamon stick
- 1 ½ pounds beef brisket
- 1 ½ tbsp salt
- ¼ cup fish sauce
- 1-inch chunk of yellow rock sugar (1 oz)
For the bowls:
- 1 ½ to 2 pounds thin rice roodles
- ½ – 1 pound thinly sliced beef eye of round, sirloin, or tri-tip
- 1 yellow onion, sliced paperthin
- 3-4 scallions, chopped
- 1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
- Black pepper
Garnishes:
- 3 cups bean sprouts, rinsed and drained
- 10-12 sprigs thai basil
- 2-3 thai chillies, thinly sliced
- 2 limes, wedged
Method:
1. Char the onions and ginger directly over the cooking grate (or you can grill them). After 10-15 minutes, they should soften and become fragrant. Peel off the charred skin after rinsing.
2. Put the beef bones in a stock pot and add water, just covering the top of the beef bones. Bring to a boil to release the impurities. Dump out the water and rinse the bones.
3. With the beef bones still in the stockpot, pour in 6 quarts water, bring to a boil over high heat, then lower the heat and simmer. Add the onions and ginger to the pot. Wrap the star anise, cloves, and cinnamon stick in cheesecloth or a cloth tea bag and add. Add the beef brisket, salt, fish sauce, and rock sugar. Cook uncovered for 1 ½ hours.
4. Sample the beef, it should not be too tough but it should still be a little chewy. Remove and let cool. It can be set aside in the refrigerator if you like. Meanwhile, simmer the broth for another 1 ½ hours.
5. Strain the broth through a fine-mesh sieve or cheesecloth to catch the bones and spices. Remove any bits of tendon (my favorite part) from the bones and add to the cooked beef on the side. Taste and adjust the flavor with salt, fish sauce, and rock sugar. There should be about 4 quarts of broth. Bring the broth back to a simmer.
6. Meanwhile, cook the rice noodles and drain. Slice the cooked beef and set aside, along with the tendon bits and the raw beef slices. Ready the onion, scallions, cilantro, and pepper as well as the garnishes. Set the garnishes on a plate separate from the bowls.
7. Add some noodles to each bowl, then place some of each type of beef on top of the noodles. Place some yellow onion on top and drizzle some scallion and cilantro. Finish with a sprinkle of pepper.
8. Bring the broth to a boil, make any last minute adjustments and ladle the broth over the noodles. Serve immediately.
Notes:
- Other types of goodies can be added, beef tripe, beef/fish/shrimp balls, wontons, etc.
- Serve extra Sriracha and Hoison sauce on the side.
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