Pho is considered Vietnam's national dish, and it has many regional variations. To produce a broth with the flavor and complexity of the traditional broth in less time, we start by blanching ground beef in water. To the broth, we add fish sauce, ginger, cinnamon, sugar, star anise, cloves, salt, and peppercorns to bring complex spice notes. To serve, we add cooked rice noodles plus wafer-thin slices of strip steak, which cook in the hot broth. We also included the traditional garnishes: bean sprouts, basil sprigs, lime wedges, hoisin, sriracha, and extra fish sauce.
Notes
- Use a Dutch oven that holds 6 quarts or more.
- An equal weight of tri-tip steak or blade steak can be substituted for the strip steak; make sure to trim all connective tissue and excess fat.
- One 14- or 16-ounce package of rice noodles will serve four to six. Look for noodles that are about 1/8 inch wide; these are often labeled “small.” Don’t use Thai Kitchen Stir-Fry Rice Noodles since they are too thick and don’t adequately soak up the broth.
Ingredients
- 1 pound 85-percent lean ground beef
- 2 onions - quartered through root end
- 12 cups low-sodium beef broth
- ¼ cup fish sauce - plus extra for seasoning
- 1 4-inch piece ginger - sliced into thin rounds
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 2 tablespoons sugar - plus extra for seasoning
- 6 star anise pods
- 6 whole cloves
- salt
- 1 teaspoon black peppercorns
- 1 1-pound boneless strip steak - trimmed and halved
- 16 ounces 1/8-inch-wide rice noodles - such as "A Taste of Thai" Thin Rice Noodles, Straight Cut
- ⅓ cup chopped fresh cilantro
- 3 scallions - sliced thin
- bean sprouts - to serve
- fresh Thai basil - or Italian basil, to serve
- lime wedges - to serve
- hoisin sauce - to serve
- Sriracha sauce - to serve
Instructions
Prepare the ground beef:
- Break the ground beef into rough 1-inch chunks and drop into the Dutch oven.
- Add water to cover by 1 inch.
- Bring the mixture to a boil over high heat.
- Boil for 2 minutes, stirring once or twice.
- Drain the ground beef in a colander and rinse well under running water.
- Wash out the pot and return the ground beef to the pot.
Make the broth:
- Place 6 onion quarters in the pot with the ground beef.
- Slice the remaining 2 onion quarters as thin as possible and set aside for garnish.
- Add the broth, 2 cups of water, fish sauce, ginger, cinnamon, sugar, star anise, cloves, 2 teaspoons of table salt, and peppercorns to the pot and bring to a boil over high heat.
- Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, partially covered, for 45 minutes.
Finish the broth:
- Pour the broth through a colander set in a large bowl. Discard the solids.
- Strain the broth through a fine-mesh strainer lined with a triple thickness of cheesecloth.
- Add water as needed to equal 11 cups of broth.
- Return the broth to the pot and season with extra sugar and salt (the broth should taste overseasoned).
- Cover and keep warm over low heat.
Prepare the steak:
- While the broth simmers, place the steak on a large plate and freeze until very firm, 35 to 45 minutes.
- Once firm, cut against grain into 1/8-inch-thick slices.
- Return the steak to the plate and refrigerate until needed.
Prepare the noodles:
- Place the noodles in a large container and cover with hot tap water.
- Soak until noodles are pliable, 10 to 15 minutes; drain noodles.
- Meanwhile, bring 4 quarts of water to a boil in a large pot.
- Add the drained noodles and cook until almost tender, 30 to 60 seconds.
- Drain immediately and divide the noodles among individual bowls.
Finish and serve:
- Bring the broth to a rolling boil over high heat.
- Divide the steak among individual bowls, shingling slices on top of the noodles.
- Pile reserved onion slices on top of the steak slices and sprinkle with cilantro and scallions.
- Ladle hot broth into each bowl.
- Serve immediately, passing bean sprouts, basil sprigs, lime wedges, hoisin, Sriracha, and extra fish sauce separately.