NOTE: An updated version of this recipe appears in my cookbook, The Ancestral Table.
Pho, often considered the national dish of Vietnam, is a rice noodle dish that uses a beef bone broth. It’s hard to describe the basic, yet complex taste that comes from this unique mix of broth, beef, spices and herbs – I recommend just going to your local pho joint and trying it for yourself. You’ll be hooked. I had my first bowl right after moving to Hawaii in 2001, and ever since then I’ve been slightly obsessed with figuring it how to make it at home. After several dozen ho-hum attempts I finally settled on this, which I consider my definitive, recipe.
This dish emerged from Hanoi in the early 20th century, and was brought to the US in the 1970s by refugees after the fall of Saigon. The inclusion of beef in the dish is reflective of its French influence; prior to French colonialism, cows in Vietnam were mainly used for labor and not as a food source. I’ve read a few different histories of the word “phở” itself, and my favorite is that it came from the French word “feu” (fire), and that pho itself is Vietnam’s take on the popular French beef stew, pot au feu.
You’ll Need: (serves four)
1/2 pkg small beef brisket (2 lbs)
1 pkg beef oxtail (1 lb)
1 pkg beef knuckle bone (1/2 lb)
1 large yellow onion
1 parsnip, peeled
1″ piece of fresh ginger
1 pho tea bag
2 tbsp fish sauce
1 tsp salt
16 oz rice noodles
typical garnishes:
lime, cilantro, thai basil, onion slices, fresh jalapeño slices, bean sprouts, hoisin sauce, sriracha sauce
Concerning the meat, what’s important for this dish is a couple pounds of meaty bones and a couple pounds of brisket or flank steak. There’s a little bit of wiggle room here, and there are varying opinions on what tastes best. In my opinion, oxtails are the only absolutely necessary part of getting that perfect broth. For this particular recipe I used brisket, oxtail, and knuckle bone from US Wellness Meats, and it was definitely a winning combo. Marrow bones or beef shanks would also be great choices.
The parsnip may seem out of place, but it’s the perfect way to bring a little sweetness to the dish without using the more common method – rock sugar or sweetened fish sauce (nước chấm). Lastly, while you could make your own spice blend using whole star anise, cloves, cinnamon sticks, fennel, coriander, and green and black cardamom pods. I prefer to use these easy and convenient pho tea bags so I don’t have to tie together all of my spices (I’ve also seen DIY “spice packs” complete with their own tea bags).
Put the bones in a pot and fill it with cold water. Bring it to a rolling boil and let it continue to boil for about 10 minutes. It will foam up a lot, that’s fine.
After ten minutes, drain and rinse the pot and bones. This step removes the impurities from the bones and results in a clearer broth. Return the bones to the pot and refill it with cold water again. Bring it to a boil and reduce heat to low, and let it simmer for one hour; skim any fat or foam that accumulates on the top.
As the bones simmer, let’s get the rest of the ingredients ready. First, char your onion (remove the outer skin and cut off its ends) and ginger on the grill for about five minutes per side, or broil in the oven for about 8 minutes.
After the bones have been simmering for an hour, add the seasoning/tea bag, fish sauce, brisket, parsnip, onion, and ginger. Once it starts simmering again, start your timer for another hour.
After the hour is up, remove and discard the onion, ginger, parsnip, and seasoning/tea bag. Remove the brisket and put it in cold water for 10 minutes. This step prevents the meat from turning dark brown and drying out. After 10 minutes, place the brisket on a plate and cover it with plastic wrap and put it in the fridge for later.
Meanwhile, let the bones continue to simmer for an additional three hours, skimming the fat off the top as needed.
30 minutes before your three-hour simmer is done, soak the rice noodles in cold water for a half hour. This is also a good time to pull your brisket out of the fridge and slice thinly.
You can also get your garnishes chopped and ready to go, too.
After the noodles have soaked for 30 minutes, bring another pot of water to boil and blanch the noodles for about 15 seconds, until softened (but not mushy). Strain and rinse with a little cold water, and place the noodles in each bowl.
Strain the bones in a colander lined with a cheese cloth that’s on top of another pot (I used the pot I had just blanched the noodles with). Put the pot with the strained broth back onto the stove, and bring to a boil on med/high heat. Meanwhile, pull all of the meat and cartilage from the bones, which should fall off the bone at this point.
Arrange the meat on top of the noodles so that you impress your date with your meat-arranging skills.
Ladle your now-boiling broth on top of your noodles and meat, and serve with the garnishes.
That’s it! Squirt some hoisin or sriracha sauce on top and go to town.
If you have any leftover broth, be sure to save it (I freeze mine) for a quick meal idea in the future.
Reblogged this on MAD seuwichi foodie.
LikeLike
This looks absolutely delicious! Will have to try this out for myself :)
LikeLike
Thanks, let me know how it turns out!
LikeLike
It looks legit. I’m half-Vietnamese, so I can attest to the fact that you did it right! Although I would skip the teabag and make the spice mix myself. You don’t need to make a bouquet garni out of it, just drop in the water. My mother always took whole cloves and stuck them into the onion. It looked like a anti-submarine mine, and it added great flavor. I also put a few fennel seeds, green onion, fish sauce, and a little sugar is okay. The parsnip is not a bad touch though.
LikeLike
Thanks Spencer! That’s a good idea re: the cloved onion.
LikeLike
wow, I’m Vietnamese and I’m totally impressed that you did it right ^^ lovely post and beautiful pictures btw, have a nice day :)
LikeLike
Thank you!
LikeLike
Haha, oh man, meat-arranging skills…
This looks fantastic, of course! We have a lot of (apparently) good Pho places in Toronto, but I’ve heard a lot of them are using MSG…looks like it’s another case of ‘we can make it better at home’!
LikeLike
Yeah, the pho place near my house is great, but then I figured something was up one day when I saw them hauling in a 20lb bag of ajinomoto… :(
LikeLike
yeah I had to stop eating at those places when I started being totally wiped out after .I knew it had to be something like that
LikeLike
Looks delicious! And thanks for the tip about starting the bones and then draining and making the broth to help with clarity – perhaps I’ll have any easier time getting nice, clean broths now!
LikeLike
Thanks Erin, happy to be of help!
LikeLike
do you know exactly what is in the pho spice tea bags ??
LikeLike
Hey Shannon, the ingredients in the pho spice bags are star anise, cloves, cinnamon, ginger, and Chinese allspice.
LikeLike
thanks !!
LikeLike
Stunning presentation!
LikeLike
Always love your posts and love Pho. I am going to give this a try and will let you know how it goes. Wondering if there is a way on your blog to simply print your recipes for easy use? Have a great day and thanks for another great post.
LikeLike
Thanks! I definitely have plans to create some sort of pdf/printable format at some point, I just need to find the time to sit down and convert everything :)
LikeLike
Excellent! Thanks for the reply. Best. David
LikeLike
This is just wonderful! Can’t wait to make it!!!!!!!!
LikeLike
Thanks for this recipe!! Ever since I found out just how much msg is in typical Vietnamese restaurant-made pho, I am too concerned to go get pho anywhere. Now I can make it at home. :)
LikeLike
Haley, thanks for sharing – I hope you like it. Definitely one of my favorite recipes!
LikeLike
If I’m making a much larger pot, I assume I have to use multiple tea bags?
LikeLike
Ashley, you could use more tea bags or leave them in the pot for longer.
LikeLike