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How to Make Pho
Pho is a Vietnamese soup made of beef or chicken broth and rice noodles. Its origins stem from the early 1920s in Hanoi, Vietnam, where the first Pho restaurant documented in Vietnamese history opened.
Thin slices of beef or chicken are one of the main ingredients in the soup. The soup is served in a large bowl along with chopsticks and a spoon. Accompanying the soup dish are peppers, cilantro, basil, lime, chopped onions and bean sprouts. These side items are served on a platter to the diner in their raw form and can be added to suit the diner’s taste. Other sauces like Hoison or Sriracha sauce can be added by the diner to give the dish a flavor suitable for the diner’s palate.
Pho Preparation with Beef
How to Make Pho
Select a beef with lots of marrow to create a thick and flavorful soup stock. Beef knuckle, neck, or leg bones are good choices because they are rich in marrow and add the desired thickness and flavor to the broth.
Place 5 pounds of the salt seasoned beef knuckle in a 9 quart stock pot or larger. Fill the pot with 2 gallons of water. Allow the mixture to reach a boiling point. Then lower the heat and simmer for 2 hours. Fat will accumulate at the top of the broth during the simmering process. Skim the fat from the surface of the soup before the next stage.
Next add 2 onions (chopped), 2 lbs of oxtail, and 1 sliced radish to the beef knuckle stock. If the preparer wants a spicier dish, additional spices can be added. It is recommended to wrap a slice of ginger, a teaspoon of peppercorns, a half of a cinnamon stick, 2 cloves, and 2 ounces of anise pods into a piece of cheesecloth. Tie the top of the cheesecloth at the top with a string and place it into the pot. At this point the preparer can also add fish sauce, sugar, and salt to taste.
For 3 hours, continue the simmering process. The longer the mixture simmers the more flavorful it will become as the flavors meld together. Strain the broth into another pot. Remove all the bones and spices. Continue to allow the stock to simmer.
Next, prepare 1.5 pounds of rice noodles in a large pot filled with water and seasoned with salt. Before placing the noodles in the pot filled with water, soak them for 20 minutes. After soaking the rice noodles, place them in boiling water until the noodles are soft. Then remove the rice noodles from the heat and strain the water from the rice noodles.
Select the beef for the soup. The choices for the beef may include sirloin, flank steak, brisket, or any other desired cut of steak. Once selected, thinly slice the preparer’s beef selection while still frozen. The slices should be thin enough to be cooked almost immediately when in contact with a hot substance.
How to Serve Pho
To serve the dish, place some noodles in each bowl. Add the raw beef slices. Next, take the hot boiling broth and pour it onto the raw beef and noodles. The beef should instantly cook. Now, the Pho is ready to be served to your guests.
Prepare a platter for each guest with a combination of lime, chopped onions, basil, and bean sprouts so that the diner can add the ingredients to their tastes. Include the Hoison sauce and Sriracha sauce on the side for additional flavor.
Preparing Pho Variations
There are many variations of Pho. The preparer can substitute the beef with chicken, seafood, or clams to accommodate the diner’s palate. Additionally, there is a vegetarian version that features a non-meat broth.
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