Pho For Four in 45

Growing up in the midwest, I had never heard of Pho.  So when I moved to New York, this was a strange concept to me - noodle soup that was neither bland chicken noodle or an oversized bowl of wonton soup?  Blasphemy!  But you know what, Pho is a delicious part of Vietnamese culinary heritage, and I became addicted to as soon as I knew what it was.  A hearty, filling, spicy, rich, yet light soup that offers a huge amount of complexity, but is basically served on tap in Vietnamese restaurants, is cheap, and just makes you happy about life.  Whenever I am sick, the first thing I do is get a huge bowl of Pho, and that starts me on my road to recovery.  And when I'm not sick, it's even better.

Don't be fooled about a few Pho-related things.  First, it's not pronounced like "faux", it's pronounced like "fuh".  As in, the pun "pho on the floor" is technically improper, while the pun "what the pho" is valid.  I realize my title is therefore off, but it's the best I got.  Second, don't think you can wander into a Pho shop and just order anything on the menu.  It turns out the Vietnamese people eat a lot of strange cuts of beef (technically, I believe they usually use water buffalo), including 'tendon' and tripe (stomach).  But not me!  We're using top round, so don't give up on me, reader.

This recipe requires very little special equipment, though it can be helped by a meat slicer if you happen to have one (which you don't).  The premise of the dish is to get the broth rocket hot and then cook the thinly sliced beef at the last instant, so it needs to be as thin as possible.  My version uses meat sliced on a deli slicer, but you could partially freeze and slice by hand, or buy it thinly shaved at most Asian grocers.

The defining component to the Pho broth is anise seeds - don't omit these!  They taste like licorice and look like starfish, and without them the broth won't taste at all like it should.  For the record, I hate licorice, yet love this broth.

Star anise - the key ingredient in Pho broth

Most recipes for Pho call for making stock from beef bones for 4-6 hours, which I didn't want to do.  To make this soup at home, I was prepared to cheat slightly, but not to the point where I was buying Pho soup powder.  My version can be made in 45 minutes, which I feel is a significant improvement, and still tastes fairly authentic.  If you really want to, go ahead and take a day off to make this soup - it will be much better, and you'll feel like something was accomplished.  But if you don't feel like wasting a day, just try this recipe, which I have fused from 2 online recipes and my own observations.  The results are about 95% as good, plus you will have 5 extra hours of your life back.

Fast Pho

Adapted from Pleasures of the Vietnamese Table and Recipelink

Makes 4 servings.

• 1 cup thick-sliced onions, about 1 large
• 2 inches peeled fresh ginger, sliced into 1/3" thick rounds (skin on)
• 10 star anise pods
• 6 whole cloves
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 5 cups non-fat, reduced-sodium beef broth
• 5 cups water
• 4-6 Tbsp. Asian fish sauce, or to taste

• 3 oz. dried rice stick noodles
• 6 oz. fresh bean sprouts
• 3/4 lb. lean beef (I used top round), sliced about 1/16" - 1/8" thick
• 1/4 cup each finely-minced packed fresh cilantro, basil (preferably holy basil), and/or mint leaves
• 1/4 cup finely minced green tops of scallions
• Sriracha (Thai / Vietnamese hot sauce, aka 'Rooster' sauce based on the label on the bottle)
• 4 lime wedges
• Hoisin sauce
• 1 jalapeno, sliced into thin rounds (optional)

Over a gas burner (your grill or stovetop), char the onions and ginger over an open flame, turning to get a good char on both sides.  Remove from heat, cool enough to handle, and peel skin from edges of ginger.  In a small dry pan, lightly toast the anise seeds and cloves.

Charring the onions on the stove

Place broth and water to a large pot and add the ginger and onion slices, as well as the anise, cloves, and sugar.  Simmer uncovered for 30 minutes while you prepare the remainder of the ingredients.

Simmering the aromatics in the broth.  I have since doubled the broth recipe, so pretend the level is higher

Boil enough water to cover the dried rice stick noodles, and place in a large bowl or shallow dish to cover.  Allow the noodles to reconstitute for 15-20 minutes, or as indicated on the package of noodles.  This can vary significantly depending on what size noodles you use, so be careful not to oversoak or the noodles turn to mush.

While noodles are cooking, prepare the beef - slice thinly, either with a slicer or with a knife.  If you need to slice by hand, freezing the beef for up to an hour will make the job significantly easier.  You want to get this as thin as possible without chopping off fingers by accident.

Slicing the beef paper thin.  Note that all of my fingers are still firmly attached

As noodles are finishing soaking, stir the fish sauce into the broth, and allow it to simmer for a few minutes.  Strain the broth through a strainer (potentially lined with cheesecloth if you're really inclined, which I wasn't) to remove the onions, ginger, and whole spices.  Return stock to pot and bring back to a boil.  Drain rice noodles, and portion into four serving bowls.

Strain the broth and return to a boil

Now here's where I diverge from most recipes.  To be safe, I like to throw the beef into the large pot of boiling broth rather than cooking in the serving bowls, which would otherwise seem like a recipe for disaster at home.  But seriously, don't leave the beef in for more than about 30 seconds.  Just toss it in, stir it around, and when there's no more raw color (pink is fine), you are DONE.  Serve immediately.

I added the beef for about 30 seconds and stirred it until I was sure it wouldn't be raw (NOT until it was fully cooked)

To serve, put 1/4 of the sprouts in each bowl over the noodles.  Ladle broth and beef mixture into individual bowls.  Garnish bowls with herbs (I used Thai basil and cilantro), green onions, jalapeno slices, Sriracha, lime wedges, and hoisin sauce.  If you want to let people have fun, put all of these condiments out at the table, and let everyone garnish as they see fit.  Now enjoy!  You've just made an easy Pho soup in 45 minutes - aren't you the lucky one.

The finished Pho, garnished the way we like it.  The meat is barely cooked, the broth is light and flavorful, and it didn't take 6 hours to prepare