Now, I did lots of research on this dish because it is a favorite in our household; both Christopher & I are fans of the dish and are always up for a good bowl of Phở. After what I felt to be sufficient research, I came up with my take on the dish.
The first thing I did was go directly to Viet Hoa which I like to refer to as a city within a store. If you have not been there, go because they have everything imaginable plus then some.
This is what I had after my first trip to Viet Hoa; notice I even bought the right bowls, tea cups, tea ball infuser & strainer. (the small bags to the left are meatballs)
Here is a better view of all my main ingredients from the second time around. On the left back are beef bones, then oxtails, thinly sliced sirloin (that they kindly sliced paper thin for me), beef tendon & chuck. In the middle the herbs are Thai basil, mint, cilantro and those little hot things in the front are Thai chilies.
These are the necessary spices and are best toasted first. Starting clockwise from the top we have: star anise, cloves, cardamom pods, black peppercorns, coriander seeds, fennel seeds & cinnamon sticks in the middle.
So here go the actual ingredients:
5-6 lbs beef bones
4-6 lbs oxtails
1 lb chuck (or you can also opt for brisket)
2 lbs beef tendon
1/2 lb sirloin, sliced paper thin
3/4 - 1 cup fish sauce
1 pkg meatballs (these are in the frozen section)
1 rock Chinese yellow sugar
2 large yellow onions, unpeeled & cut in half
2 medium-sized ginger roots, split down the middle
Tea infuser ball -OR- mesh herb bag (I liked the bag better, size wise)
8 star anise
1/2 tsp cloves
2 cinnamon sticks
1 Tbsp whole black peppercorns
1 Tbsp coriander seeds
1 Tbsp fennel seeds
4 cardamom pods (smashed)
2 lbs rice noodles
2-4 sprigs green onions, chopped
1-3 limes cut into wedges
Thai Basil
Mint
Cilantro
Bean Sprouts
Thai chilies or jalapeños, sliced
1 onion, cut in half & sliced paper thin
Sriracha
Hoisin Sauce
Preparation:
Place your onions & ginger, cut side up, on a baking sheet and broil in your oven until nice and charred (black is good). Prep your spices by toasting each individually in a pan until the start to smell nice; and crush slightly using a mortal & pestle (or as we latinos say, molcajete) & place in your bag or tea ball (except the cinnamon sticks).
You will need a very large stock pot to boil your bones & build your stock. Rinse your beef bones add to the stock pot along with your oxtails and your chuck or brisket, and fill the entire pot with water; bring to a boil. Don't get freaked out but a whole lot of nasty scum will accumulate at the top which you will need to skim. After 15-20 min, drain your bones & meat, rinse very well and also wash your stock pot to clean all the mess out of it. Return the bones & meat the pot, fill with water, add your onions, ginger, fish sauce, herb bag or tea ball, rock sugar and cinnamon sticks. Bring to a boil and turn down to a simmer; cover and simmer for 8-10 hours (yes, very long but so worth it). Periodically skim off any scum and/or fat; make sure to keep at a simmer or you will lose a lot of broth. ***Remove the chuck after 2 hrs, let cool down & refrigerate***
Here is a very important thing you need to know about beef tendon: it is hard and if not cooked properly will be hard and chewy. My trick is to boil for 2 hours in my Dutch Oven with a piece of ginger & 1/2 onion. After 2 hrs, turn off the heat and put the lid on and leave it alone for 3-4 hrs. I then come back, rinse it very well and am now able to get my knife through it; I cut it to the size I want and return to the pot with water and boil, with the lid on, for another hour. This makes for an incredibly buttery, melt-in-your-mouth texture to the tendon!
Once your are done boiling, strain your broth into another pot; I use a cheese clothe in a strainer to make sure I have an extra clean broth. Remove the meat from your oxtails and put aside. (keep your broth on a very low simmer because it needs to be hot when you serve). At this point, do a taste test: you made add a touch of salt but mostly we have found that a tad bit extra fish sauce may or may not be needed.
Prep your herbs:
For the onion here, slice paper thin and place in a bowl with water and ice for 30 min; this will ensure nice, crispy onions. For the rice noodles, follow the directions on your package; for the meatballs, boil in the broth to heat through, remove & set aside.
What I do is set small bowls out with the tendon, cut chuck chunks, shredded oxtail meat, meatballs and the raw, paper thin sirloin (your broth must be super hot so that it will poach the meat cooked; trust me it will cook and be super tender)
To serve: place about 1/2 cup noodles into a bowl, allow each person to add the meats they prefer, and ladle broth on top to cover the meats. Top with your favorite toppings. Oh yeah Sriracha is a must add!!
My babe is a super happy camper!
This is how I like my bowl!
Phở party with family and what a success it was!
I totally hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we do; it was fun getting the ingredients down to exactly the flavor we liked.
If you're ever in Houston, you really must try out Phở Saigon in Midtown on Milam street; they have by far the best Phở we have found in Houston so far.
Les Givral's is pretty decent also, but they have super awesome Banh Mi!!
If you're in Pearland, you definitely need to head over to Pho Anh Asian Bistro on Broadway. They have kick ass Phở, spring rolls and a wide variety of flavored teas.
Enjoying the Phở at Pho Anh
I love their Phở Ga
Okay enough about Phở. If you love it, try these places out and the recipe; if you've never had it, try it cuz you'll love it!
Until next time, Happy Eating!!!
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