A Deliciously Tasty Pho Soup Recipe
One of the most delicious Vietnamese dishes is the noodle soup, Pho. Packed full of flavor, broth, noodles, and fresh herbs, this deliciously tasty Pho soup recipe will be one of your staples in no time. This soup originated in Vietnam but has made its way to Western culture as the number one requested dish in Vietnamese shops everywhere.
So, What is Pho?
You are truly missing out if you have never enjoyed a Pho soup recipe. It has been a staple dish in the country with the natives for hundreds of years and is used as one of the primary dishes to serve families and keep them from getting sick. It is believed that the Pho was more of an infusion of Vietnamese and French cuisine when the country was a colony of France hundreds of years ago. Some of the marinating of the bone broth and blending of certain spices has a bit of French flair.
The Pho soup recipe is only as good as the broth, so this is the soup where the best quality broth should shine. Traditionally, before quality pre-made broths were available, it would take hours for a Pho soup recipe to cook and be ready to enjoy.
This dish is cooked in layers, even when you coke in a short time, like 45 minutes. This soup captures the meat’s long-term cooking and embraces the freshness of herbs, limes, and other ingredients in a delicious balance. It is important to note that this soup is naturally a gluten-free dish, which is great if you have diners visiting who need that type of dish. You can also remove the meat option and only use eggs, making it vegetarian.
Gathering Your Ingredients
Fresh and flavorful is the best way to describe the ingredients you need for your Pho soup, so make sure you grab the following when you head to your local supermarket.
- One diced white onion
- Four-inch chopped ginger
- Four cloves of garlic, diced
- Five star anise
- Three small cinnamon sticks
- One tablespoon of coriander seeds
- Eight cups of quality bone stock
- One teaspoon of fish or oyster sauce
- One tablespoon of brown sugar
- One pound of your preferred protein, sliced
- Six ounces of dry rice noodles
- One tablespoon of fresh cilantro
- Two wedged limes
- Sriracha sauce
- One cup of sliced jalapenos
- One cup of bean sprouts
- Chopped green onions
Substitutions
If you cannot find any of these fresh ginger, garlic, or cinnamon that are needed, you can substitute ground versions. You can also choose the stock of your choice when making your broth, choosing either beef, vegetable, or chicken. In some rare cases, seafood broth is available, but that taste will overpower the Pho soup recipe.
Toppings
Of the list above, you will need the following toppings for your Pho to make it your own and allow your diners the same option.
- Chopped green onions
- Bean sprouts
- Lime wedges
- Sriracha sauce
- Sliced jalapenos
Build Your Pho Soup Recipe
Once you have gathered your soup ingredients, you want to start building your broth and embracing that flavor. You will build this soup in different stages, but it can all be done in under an hour.
1. Chop and Prepare Your Ingredients
Your veggies and spices need to be cut up, cleaned, and prepared for the soup in this step. Once everything is chopped and ready, sit to the side and start with your broth.
2. Head to the Oven
Take your cut-up onion, ginger, and garlic on a baking sheet and put them in the oven at 400 degrees for about ten minutes. You want them to get good and charred to elevate the flavor of the Pho.
3. Build Your Broth Base
While they are in the oven, grab your large soup pot and put it on the stove at medium-high heat. Toss in the star anise, coriander, and cinnamon so that it starts to cook and get fragrant. Grab your baking sheet from the oven and add the contents directly to the pot so that they can start blending. You can also add in your broth at that point to keep everything from burning. Turn off your oven and turn your attention back to the pot.
4. Simmer For a While
Once this reaches a rolling boil, turn your burner to a simmer, put on the lid, and let it cook together for about 30 minutes. While cooking, you can prepare your rice noodles in a separate pot to be ready once the broth is complete. You should follow the package ingredients, which will heat some water in a boiling pot first and then add the noodles for a while. Make sure you do not overcook your noodles because you need them to have some texture in this soup.
5. Prep Your Protein
While the noodles are cooking and the broth is simmering, you need to slice and cook the chicken or beef that you opted for in this dish. For pre-cooked meat, you must ensure it is sliced up and ready.
If you need to cook your meat, gently sear it on each side until it is cooked, then flip. Once it is cooked, please remove it from the heat and set aside until you are ready for it in the Pho soup recipe.
6. Strain Your Broth
By this time, your broth is ready to be strained. Remove all the chunks from the broth until it is clear and only liquid is left. Put it back on the burner and add the brown sugar and fish sauce, stirring it well. You should also strain your noodles at this time and rinse them with cold water to stop the cooking process. Your hot broth will be enough to bring it back up to temperature once the soup is assembled.
7. Time to Assemble
Go ahead and turn off your stove and get your soup bowls ready. This Pho soup recipe takes advantage of an assembly line, and you must first add your noodles to the bowl, then your protein. Once these have been distributed evenly, add your Pho broth to the bowl and pass it to your diner. They will have the option to add whatever toppings they like to the broth to fit their preference.
Store Your Leftovers
This is not a freezer-friendly soup, but if you have Pho leftovers, you can easily put them in the fridge for up to four days and reheat them. The freshness of the herbs will break down in the freezer, and the taste will not hold over time.
