Preparation time: 180 minutes
Number of servings: 4
Pho is the national noodle dish of Vietnam. A big bowl of rice noodles with a beef broth that has been simmering for hours. The result is a rich and strong taste. Super tasty when you combine it with fresh herbs, such as coriander, mint, basil, pepper and lime.
INGREDIENTS
Beef broth:
- 2 big onions
- 4 cm ginger
- 500g beef stew
- 2 beef shanks
- 2 marrow bones
- 6 liter water
Pho spices:
- 1-2 whole cardamom
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 5 whole star anises
- 6 whole cloves
- 1 Tbsp coriander seed
- 1 Tbsp fennel seed
- 4 Tbsp fish sauce
- 2 Tbsp sugar
- 2 tsp salt
Garnish:
- Rump steak, thinly sliced
- 1 pack beef balls
- 1 pack mint leaves
- 1 pack coriander
- 1 pack Thai basil
- 2 limes
- 2 chili peppers
- 500g bean sprouts
- 400g Pho noodles
- 1 bottle hoisin sauce
- 1 bottle sriracha sauce
Kitchen tools:
- 1 cotton soup bag
HOW TO MAKE IT
Beef broth
Ingredients for a delicious beef broth:
Preheat the oven at 200 °C. Slice the onions and ginger in two and roast them for 15 minutes until they are soft and golden brown.
Bring 3 liters of water to a boil. Add the beef shanks and marrow bones. Cook the bones for 10 minutes and drain the water. Then rinse the bones under running water.
Add 6 liters of cold water in a clean soup pan and add the bones and beef stew to it. Bring it to a boil, then turn down the heat and simmer. The broth will starting foaming a bit. Use a fine skimmer to remove the foam and fat that floats on the surface.
Pho spices
Roast the pho spices briefly in a pan without oil for 3 minutes.
Then add the ginger, onions and pho spices in the soup bag. Cook the bag along with the broth.
Then add the fish sauce, sugar and salt. Simmer the broth for 90 minutes. Take out the beef stew and put it aside. Taste the broth and add fish sauce, salt and sugar to your preference. Cook the broth for another 90 minutes. The longer you simmer the soup, the more flavor the beef broth gets.
Garnish
To ease the slicing of the rump steak, it’s best to put the meat in the freezer for about 30 minutes. Slice the beef in thin slices to make sure it stays tender.
Cook the noodles according to the instructions on the package. Slice the limes into pieces, the chili peppers into thin bits and present it on a plate together with the mint leaves, the coriander, basil and bean sprouts. Bring the broth back to a boil.
Fill four bowls with rice noodles, beef balls, beef stew and slices of raw rump steak. Once the broth is boiling again, you can pour the broth into the bowls. The hot broth will make sure the raw beef slices are done. Guests can garnish their own soup and season it with hoisin sauce and sriracha sauce to their liking.
