What the Pho?!
I’ve been working hard perfecting the techniques and recipe for Vietnamese Beef Noodle Soup, or Pho, just for you. It’s taken years of kitchen experiments, eating out and scouring for good recipes. Of all the cookbooks that I own, the best recipe that I’ve found for Pho is from:
Andrea Nguyen’s 
Into the Vietnamese Kitchen, which is one of the most comprehensive books on the cuisine of Vietnam. The book also won nominations for a James Beard Foundation award and two International Association of Culinary Professionals (IACP). Definitely a must-have book for Asian food lovers.
So, let’s get right to the Vietnamese Beef Pho Recipe!
The dish is pronounced “fuh” and not “foo” or “foe” or “puh”
Yeah, Pho is cheap eat out…but to be able to make a home made version? Pretty Pho-king amazing, if you ask me.
Pho Spices
It’s best if you can get each spice separately, but I do find that the spice packets are pretty convenient. They cost less than $2.00 and even come with a mesh bag to put all the spices in. Spices include cinnamon sticks, cloves, coriander pods, star anise and cardamom. Whatever you do, don’t use the Pho spice paste that comes in a jar or can. Nasty stuff, that’s Pho-sho’.
Best Bones for Pho
Leg and knuckle bones are the best to make the stock. See that wonderful yellow marrow below in the photo? That’s pure flavoring that makes your Pho taste full, meaty and rich. But let’s say that you can’t find leg/knuckle bones. Go ahead and use whatever beef bones your supermarket has and just supplement with some oxtail bones or a pound of beef meat (rump, chuck, brisket, etc.) for extra flavor.
Bones are parboiled first for a good 10 minutes in rapidly boiling water – this gets rid of the yucky impurities like blood particles and extra fat. You’ll see gray foam float up to the surface as you boil. After 10 minutes, dump out all of the water, rinse out your pot, rinse the bones, and refill with clean, cool water. I know it’s an extra step, but this will give you the pure, clean-tasting broth.
This is just after blanching – the golden gelatinous goodness is where all the flavor and body is.
Charring Onions and Ginger
Charring or roasting the onions and ginger gives you a wonderfully mellow and naturally sweet flavor. I used to char over an open flame on my stovetop with a pair of tongs, but that got pretty tiring. Plus, metal tongs + long time over flame = very hothothot hands. So now, I just raise my oven rack to the highest position and turn my broiler on. See how golden the ginger gets?
Damn Scumbag!
So here is my broth boilin’ away with the mesh bag of spices, charred ginger, charred onions and beef bones. You can see floating bits of fat and the damn scumbag.
Fat & marrow bits = good eats. Try to keep that in the broth!
But gotta get rid of the scum! I use a very, very fine mesh strainer designed just for scum. heh. A scumbag strainer. Can you imagine if I had a line of cookware and tools – “Steamy Kitchen Scumbag Strainer.” Straining the scum keeps your broth pure and clean. The lower the simmer, the less scum you have.
A note on broth simmering time – I simmer the broth for 3 hours. According to both Andrea Nguyen and Corinne Trang (author of Authentic Vietnamese Cooking and former editor and director of Saveur’s test kitchen) – all of the flavors in the bone have been extracted after 3 hours.
Thin Sliced Meat
You can use a thinly sliced flank steak, london broil, sirloin, eye of round or tri-tip. Instead of beef slices, you could use beef balls (Bo Vien) found in the freezer section of your Asian market. The secret to cutting meat is to cut across the grain. You want your beef slices as thin as possible, and I always throw the whole chunk of meat in the freezer for 15 minutes to make it easier to slice thinly.
Pho Noodles
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Vietnamese Beef Noodle Soup typically uses rice noodles. You can buy them dried or fresh. I love the slippery softness of fresh noodles (look in the refrigerator or freezer section) Most restaurants will use dried, flat rice noodles. Look for ones that are medium thickness and flat like these. |
Pho-tastic Condiments
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On the tables of every Pho restaurant, you’ll see these two condiments, Cock Sauce (Sriracha hot chili sauce) and Hoisin Sauce. You can squirt and slather as much of these two condiments as you want…but I’m a purist.If I’m going to spend a couple of hours carefully crafting a rich, flavor-packed, clean soup – I better taste every damn drop. Condiment sauces just get in the way.
Sometimes, I’ll squirt a bit of each sauce in a little dish and dip my meat in the sauce as I take a bite. You ask….why do we call it Cock sauce? See that rooster on the bottle? |
Pho Vegetables and Herbs
Fresh mint, cilantro, basil, bean sprouts, limees, sliced chili peppers are just some of my favorite accompaniments. Set a plate at the table and your guests can pick and choose what they like.
Great Pho-tograph of fresh vegetables and herbs
PrintVietnamese Pho: Beef Noodle Soup Recipe
Pho-Shizzle, My Bowl-o Noozle!!
Adapted from my favorite Vietnamese cookbook: Into the Vietnamese Kitchen
serves 8
Sometimes, I omit the 1lb of beef meat in the broth (you’ll see I’ve made it optional) – as I’ve found that as long as I have good bones, the broth will have enough flavor to not need the extra beef meat.
THE BROTH
2 onions, halved
4″ nub of ginger, halved lengthwise
5-6 lbs of good beef bones, preferably leg and knuckle
1 lb of beef meat – chuck, brisket, rump, cut into large slices [optional]
6 quarts of water
1 package of Pho Spices [1 cinnamon stick, 1 tbl coriander seeds, 1 tbl fennel seeds, 5 star anise, 1 cardamom pod, 6 whole cloves - in mesh bag]
1 1/2 tbl salt
1/4 cup fish sauce
1 inch chunk of yellow rock sugar (about 1 oz) – or 1oz of regular sugar
THE BOWLS
2 lbs rice noodles (dried or fresh)
cooked beef from the broth
1/2 lb flank, london broil, sirloin or eye of round, sliced as thin as possible.
big handful of each: mint, cilantro, basil
2 limes, cut into wedges
2-3 chili peppers, sliced
2 big handfuls of bean sprouts
Hoisin sauce
Cock sauce (Sriracha)
Char: Turn your broiler on high and move rack to the highest spot. Place ginger and onions on baking sheet. Brush just a bit of cooking oil on the cut side of each. Broil on high until ginger and onions begin to char. Turn over and continue to char. This should take a total of 10-15 minutes.
Parboil the bones: Fill large pot (12-qt capacity) with cool water. Boil water, and then add the bones, keeping the heat on high. Boil vigorously for 10 minutes. Drain, rinse the bones and rinse out the pot. Refill pot with bones and 6 qts of cool water. Bring to boil over high heat and lower to simmer. Using a ladle or a fine mesh strainer, remove any scum that rises to the top.
Boil broth: Add ginger, onion, spice packet, beef, sugar, fish sauce, salt and simmer uncovered for 1 1/2 hours. Remove the beef meat and set aside (you’ll be eating this meat later in the bowls) Continue simmering for another 1 1/2 hours. Strain broth and return the broth to the pot. Taste broth and adjust seasoning – if you want a little more flavor, add a few dashes more of fish sauce, large pinch of salt and a small nugget of rock sugar (or large pinch of regular sugar).
Prepare noodles & meat: Slice your flank/london broil/sirloin as thin as possible – try freezing for 15 minutes prior to slicing to make it easier. Remember the cooked beef meat that was part of your broth? Cut or shred the meat and set aside. Arrange all other ingredients on a platter for the table. Your guests will “assemble” their own bowls. Follow the directions on your package of noodles – there are many different sizes and widths of rice noodles, so make sure you read the directions. For some fresh rice noodles, just a quick 5 second blanch in hot water is all that’s needed. The package that I purchased (above) – needed about 45 seconds in boiling water.
Ladling: Bring your broth back to a boil. Line up your soup bowls next to the stove. Fill each bowl with rice noodles, shredded cooked beef and raw meat slices. As soon as the broth comes back to a boil, ladle into each bowl. the hot broth will cook your raw beef slices. Serve immediately. Guests can garnish their own bowls as they wish.
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Crock Pot/Slow Cooker Pho Recipe
Don’t have time to man a stove? Use your crock pot or slow cooker!
Vietnamese Chicken Pho (Pho Ga) Recipe
Vietnamese Chicken Noodle Soup (Pho Ga)
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Pho-Lovers Pho-Ever
{ 219 comments… read them below or add one }
The Pho step-by-step is a work of art, Jaden! You are amazing:)
I thought that pho broth was supposed to simmer for more time (maybe 6 hours). Is it not always the case?
Hey Ricky,
According to both Andrea Nguyen and Corinne Trang (author of Authentic Vietnamese Cooking and former editor and director of Saveur’s test kitchen) – 3 hours is sufficient. All of the flavors have been extracted after 3 hours.
Jaden
Crrrraaaaaazy! I’ve had people ask me when I’m going to make this, because I am a big fan of pho. But there are such wonderful pho places here in Denver that have the benefit of economy of scale.
I’ll order a medium bowl to go for $5, which includes a huge container of broth and another container full of bean sprouts, the meat, basil, sawtooth herb, limes, jalapenos and two kinds of sauce. That’s enough for two dinners! To make the same at home would cost me way more, both in ingredients and time.
Hats off to you! That looks sooo delicious. I think I’ll go get me some.
(Love the captioning, too.)
Jaden – Skimming the scum off of stock ranks pretty highly on my list of ‘least favorite activities.’ However, this pho looks delicious enough that I may have to compromise my principles – and beg my butcher for some bones!
yay! i was just looking for a good recipe for this! my daughter has become totally addicted to this, and she is ‘dragging’ me with her! (i admit, i go willingly!) i told her it looks pretty easy to make, but she insists it is so cheap, why bother? (she is not a cook, so she doesn’t get that part!)
Thank you! I really needed some visuals on making good pho broth. I just picked up a bag of star anise, but I didn’t run across bags of pho seasoning. I plan on making this broth Monday. I love a good pho. I have to drive an hour to the Korean market to get the ingredients, but it’s better than driving an hour to get pho and bring it back home. How well does the broth freeze? I was thinking of making a big batch and freezing the soup in quart bags. Instance late night snack!
In addition to the sauces you mentioned, our local Pho place also has a less spicy red chili sauce of some kind in an unlabeled little glass jar. We go there every week for their fried rice, which is awesome… and we haven’t been able to find anything like that sauce at the grocery store. Any ideas what it might be? We can’t get enough of it when we’re there… just the right level of flavor/spiciness!
Kudos on the book by Andrea ! Her book really is the best bet if you were only to have one Vietnamese cookbook. Good job and you cut the lime wedges correctly too!
We usually simmer our Pho for about 3-4 hours too. But we also let the bones sit in the broth overnight too to further finish it off to complete the flavor.
That’s one of my fave things to make!I’ve used beef ribs which are available in most grocery stores. They make good eating too. I like making it in the winter as I can leave the whole pot outside on the deck and skim off the congealed fat. In answer to Joanne, this soup keeps very well in the freezer. Here in the great white north, I leave mine outside for few days or till we finish it. Great comfort food!
*drool*
i love pho. i keep meaning to learn how to make some…a couple of summers ago i tried to embark on a Great Asian Cooking Experiment (aka learn how to make at least a few solid dishes from each asian country). i made summer rolls and promptly got lazy and gave up =P. you have re-energized my need to expand my repertoire of asian cuisine — or at least viet!
love to suck that yellow morrow
Yummy
Wonderful post, Jaden. A refreshing change from all of the chocolate (which I am currently up to my armpits in!). I love Pho, but as you know, there are very few restaurants that serve it around here. I will definitely have to set aside some time to try this.
It is funny i just saw today morning in a travel show this same soup and the presenter was saying how delicious it was and they have it for breakfast.
I have never been a vietnameese food fan except for the spring rolls.
This soup i would like to try .
Jaden, you rock! I want to have your children (or your leftovers).
Thanks for the great post on one of my absolute favorites. By the way, your photography is improving tremendously. Keep up the good work.
Phoa! It looks pho good!
Head off to you jaden! Not all Vietnamese have the heart to try pho at home (i think we treasure our little pho shops a bit too much).
Having said that, I don’t think the noodles u r using is right… It should be thinner and fatter in shape. Of course this is me being very picky
I have never made this or have tasted it before. It sounds delicious pho sure. Thank you for the step by step instructions as I really like that. It’s like you are there with me in the kitchen.
(how fun that would be!) I think you have gone to a lot of trouble to do this excellent post. Much appreciated. x
A lazy person’s tip on making the stock: Bring the stock up to a simmer on the stovetop, cover, and then place into a 250 degree oven. This will keep your stock at a simmer (boiling will emulsify the impurities and fat into the stock, making it cloudy and not so rich) without having to constantly adjust the heat under the pot.
You’ll still have to skim the scum frequently.
I’d argue that longer than 3 hours makes a better stock, but we’re making soup, not demi glace, so 3 hours should do the job.
Good lord. I wanted to lick the screen…
You kill me Jaden! I peed a little reading this.
Mmmmmmmmmmmm pppphhhhooooooooooooooooo…………………
“Can you imagine if I had a line of cookware and tools …” Gee, where would you have gotten such an idea?
Great pics once again. The new studio’s working well!
Wonderful post! I love pho, but I often make a quick version of the broth using store-bought and homemade beef and chicken broth combined. Now I really have to try this version — it looks so good!
Beef looks so delicious…. with the noodles and all the herbs… are just too perfect for a meal!
Excellent post! I think I’ll have to work my way up to this recipe. But it looks great!
Response to Anh – Not sure if there really is a “right” noodle. As long as it’s a flat rice noodle, every family or region has it’s own personal, noodle style preference. IMHO- it’s all about having a good, rich broth. With that you can serve it to me with almost any type of Pho noodle, I’ll eat it!
I’m gonna go ahead and say this and ready to take the beatings: I’ve had left over Pho broth, but no more pho noodles. So I’ve eaten my Pho with…ramen noodles! Yes, I’ve broken all Pho laws here and my ancestors are about to jump off the family altar and slap me silly, but it’s even more sacrilege to let good broth go to waste! I don’t call this Pho any more, but rather, Nemarohp (phoramen spelled backwards).
This looks wonderful! I don’t suppose you have a really good chicken version of this?!
Charlotte – absolutely I do:
http://steamykitchen.com/blog/2007/07/14/vietnamese-chicken-noodle-soup-pho-ga/
I am SO excited to see this recipe! I’ve been in love with pho for years, despite moves to several cities and states, and have finally reached a point where I can no longer find truly good pho…. but now I can make my own! Thank you so much for spelling it all out for me!
I am so glad to know what this dish is finally called. We have a restaurant here and there are only pictures and the Vietnamese symbols. I just sort of “point” to the beef soup picture.
I’m totally trying this!
Mmm…awesome photo tutorial! I love flank steak in pho. Brisket and tripe pho is also delicious, even though many people might turn up their nose at it.
Great pictures and captions. You make it look easy, but I think I’d rather got out and buy some. Good to know how it’s pronounced so I don’t sound like a dork when I order it!
I have always wanted to make my own Pho and recently I bought a book on Viet cuisine. Once i saw the recipe, I changed my mind. Looking at yours now seems like it’s not too difficult after all. Let me give it a try one weekend.
Thanks for all the directional photos Jaden. This soup is Pho#$@%& fantastic
I’m pretty sure Pho is the best stuff ever!
I love going out to eat it. They bring you bowls larger than a basketball filled with yummy goodness.
Thanks for the instructions and pictures!
Fabulous Jaden
I would love to try some pho but I do not eat beef. Do you think chicken would work here? The flavour would be tottally different of course…
Jaden,
Your appreciation for bone marrow rockz! Roasting and eating marrow straight is one of my recent obsessions. Lately I’ve been missing the abundance of pho I used to enjoy in SoCal . . . DC proper is severely lacking in good pho. Rumor has it there’s some good pho to be found in the suburbs of DC in Northern Virginia . . . but I don’t have a car and am generally not a fan of weekend trips into the burbs. So I’m gonna put your delicious looking and sounding recipe to use. Thanks!
What I would give for a bowl of pho right now. Love it for breakfast!
Jayden: I noticed the yellow peel or onion “skins” along with the onion in the broth. Never have done this in all my years of soup making. Does the outer skin enhance the flavor or merely color the broth? Also, I often quick roast the bones before I start the broth, seems to add more depth of flavor to the stock (as does charring onions, etc.). Have you ever seen the “marrow spoons” from probably the 1800’s, when eating the marrow as a meal course was a big event? In soup, yes — but off a spoon, I don’t think so. Anyway, thanks again for a wonderful recipe. It’s so hard to wait days between your posts! I check at least twice a day to see if there is something new from you. Wish there was a new post EVERY day. You ARE the best!!!! Happy trails once again……..
L.K.–what do you mean the 1800s???? Eating marrow as a meal course is still a big event! Check out my blog post from today. I just bought the cool spoon this weekend. I don’t think it was made specifically for marrow, but it worked very well. Cheers.
awww thank you LK!
You can skin the onions if you want, but every time I’ve seen Pho made, it’s with the skin on. Several of my Vietnamese cookbooks just say to leave the skin on.
xo, jaden
Pho Shizzle Mah Nizzle!! That stuff looks fan-pho-king-tastic!
I’ve always shyed away from making pho because of the labor intensity and because I’ve always heard it being so time consuming. Yipes! I may, in fact, need to give it a try before the cold weather goes away.
Man, I’m so susceptible to food suggestions. I had pho last night because of this.
Oh man, I made the same pho jokes in my pho post last month! I guess those goofy jokes never get old.
http://voodoolily.blogspot.com/2008/01/what-ph.html
You totally pwned me with your photography.
Wonderful step by step instructions, Jaden. I’m going to make this in a couple of day. It looks so delicious!
I eat this noodle at the Vietnamese restaurant here. Oh may, I just love it so much! thanks for sharing the recipe.
The Pho sounds really good and tasty. Bookmarked. Great photos!
Your modifications are great, Jaden. I think this is a keeper!
Pho, pho! I want a bowl now in this cold windy weather!
Happy Lunar New Year – it’s the 5th day today.
really helpful step by step guide for someone like me whos never tried making it before. Very very helpful post Jaden. The Pho looks incredibly delicious.