Breaking Down Phở
I posted a recipe for chicken pho a while back. Now it's time for beef pho, its more common big sister.
Pho is the most popular Vietnamese dish in the world. There are several remixes of it out there - Pho-stuffed burrito, Pho burger, etc. There are also a million recipes on the web.
Every family/person in Vietnam makes pho slightly different. Variations exist for the type of beef bones, mix of spices, cuts of beef, and preparation for the broth. Three aspects remain consistent, though. The broth must be clear, it has to have a rich yet light flavor, and it takes a really long time to brew the perfect broth.
With that said, I'm happy to share my family's recipe. Give it a whirl during your holiday break when you have 5-6 hours to spare. Allow a hot bowl of pho to warm you up in this frigid weather (the temps in CT are between 0 and 20 this week...).
Beef Phở
Ingredients:
4 lbs of beef soup bones, marrows and knuckles
1 medium onion, cut in half
4” piece of ginger (keep the skin)
2/3 of phở spice packet (or make your own below)
Salt
Pepper
1 lb sirloin or round eye beef, thinly sliced
1 packet of beef tendon balls, cut in half
Fish sauce
2 packs of phở noodles, dry or fresh
Eggs (optional)
Toppings: Thai basil, culantron (the flat green herb), bean sprouts, chopped cilantro, chopped green onions, chilies, thinly sliced onions, lime, hoisin sauce, and sriracha.
Directions:
Soak the bones in cool water for an hour. Change the water after 30 minutes. Then, put them in boiling water for about 5 minutes. Remove and rinse them with cold water.
Char the onion and ginger on a hot skillet. It shouldn’t be burnt, just slightly charred. Set aside.
Put the bones in a large pot of water. Use about 1.5-2 cups more water than you need to serve everyone because most of that will simmer off. Bring the water to a boil then lower the heat to simmer. Add the charred onion, ginger, and about two tablespoons of salt. Skim off any scum. Simmer for at least five hours. Continue to skim off scum and fat that rise to the top while the broth brews.
In the meantime, prep the rest of the ingredients. Thinly slice the beef, wash the toppings, and chop the green onions and cilantro.
Four hours into the cooking time, toast the spices from the spice packet in a skillet for about 5 minutes or until you can smell their aroma. Once they’re toasted, put them in the provided spice bag and drop the bag into the broth pot. Leave it in for the last hour.
If you want to make your own spice pack, use 1.5 tsp coriander seeds, 1.5 tsp fennel seeds, 1 tsp cloves, 5 star anise, and 1 cinnamon stick. Use a cheesecloth or a large mesh tea ball in lieu of a spice bag.
Taste the broth when you put the spice bag in. Add more salt and fish sauce to the broth to your taste. A tip, after adding salt and fish sauce each time, give the spot a big stir and let it sit for about 15 minutes before tasting it again.
After making this countless times, I still fret about the broth and worry that it would not taste right. Trust in time and fish sauce, and your broth will be delicious.
When you’re ready to eat, boil a small pot of water to cook the pho noodles. Follow instruction on the package. Add beef balls to the broth.
To assemble your perfect bowl of phở: put noodles in a semi-large bowl, top with thin slices of beef, ladle broth and meatballs over it, and garnish with sliced onion, chopped cilantro and green onions. Add a dash of black pepper. Squeeze a bit of lime over it. To your taste, add sriracha, hoisin sauce, chili peppers, more fish sauce, bean sprout, culantro, and Thai basil.
If you want to serve phở with eggs, put a yolk in a small bowl and with hot broth. Garnish with cilantro and green onion.