This beef pho features a comforting, richly-seasoned meat broth ladled over rice noodles and thinly sliced sirloin. Serve with hoisin, Sriracha, green onion, cilantro, bean sprouts, basil, and lime.
Pho History
Pho got its start in northern Vietnam around the beginning of the twentieth century. The exact circumstances are unclear, but Vietnam’s signature noodle soup resulted from cultures rubbing shoulders. There are many theories about the original pho but one good explanation points to a glut of beef parts – bones, offal, and tough cuts leftover from French colonialists slaughtering cows for their tender steaks. Locals were enjoying a water buffalo-based rice vermicelli noodle soup.
Street vendors began tweaking their water buffalo soup by using beef and changing the rice noodles from round ones to the flat ones you see today. Such old-school pho with delicate broth, rice noodles, and thin slices of cooked beef is wonderful but over time, vendors and diners dolled things up with lots of add-ins (herbs, condiments, vegetables!). Cue slices of raw beef. And when beef wasn’t available, people made pho with chicken. From there, cooks got creative and now there are pho banh mi, cocktails, dumplings, cookbooks, and more!
Beef Pho
Ingredients
Broth
- 5 pounds beef soup bones
- 1 tablespoon salt divided
- 2 gallons water
- 2 medium onions quartered
- 1 4 inch piece fresh ginger root
- 2 pounds beef oxtail
- 1 white daikon radish, sliced
- 2 ounces whole star anise pods
- ½ 3 inch cinnamon stick
- 1 teaspoon black peppercorns
- 2 whole cloves
- 1 tablespoon white sugar
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce
- salt to taste
Other
- 1 ½ pounds dried flat rice noodles
- ½ pound frozen beef sirloin
Instructions
- Gather all ingredients.
- Make broth: Place beef bones in a 9-quart (or larger) pot; season with 1 teaspoon salt. Pour water into the pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer broth for about 2 hours.
- Meanwhile, set an oven rack about 6 inches from the heat source and preheat the oven’s broiler. Line a 10×15-inch roasting pan with aluminum foil.
- Place onions and unpeeled ginger onto the prepared roasting pan and cook under the preheated broiler, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are charred, 10 to 15 minutes.
- Cool slightly. Chop onions, then peel and slice ginger; set aside separately.
- Skim fat from surface of simmering broth. Add oxtail, radish, and charred onions to broth. Tie charred ginger, anise, cinnamon stick, peppercorns, and cloves in cheesecloth to make a bouquet garni; add to broth. Stir in sugar, fish sauce, and remaining 2 teaspoons salt. Simmer over medium-low heat for at least 4 hours (the longer, the better). Season with salt.
- Strain broth. Discard bones and bouquet garni. Reserve meat from bones for another use. Chill broth in the refrigerator, 8 hours to overnight.
- Skim and discard fat from the top of chilled broth. Pour broth into a pot; bring to a boil. Reduce heat and keep hot until ready to serve.
- Bring a pot of water to a boil. Turn off heat. Stir in rice noodles and let sit until noodles are tender yet chewy, 6 to 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, cut frozen sirloin into paper-thin slices.
- Drain and divide noodles among bowls, about 1 1/2 cups per serving. Top each with a few sirloin slices. Ladle hot broth over sirloin and noodles.
- Serve and enjoy!
