Vietnam · Soups · Gluten-free
Pho Bo (Vietnamese Beef Noodle Soup)
Vietnam's most iconic dish — a crystal-clear, deeply aromatic beef broth simmered for hours with charred onion, ginger, and whole spices, served over rice noodles with paper-thin beef, fresh herbs, lime, and chili. The broth is everything.
210 min 400 kcal 4 serves Advanced🌾Gluten-free🇻🇳Vietnam★★★★★4.8· 5 reviews
Ingredients
ServingsMetric
- 1.5 kgbeef bones
- 500 gbeef
- 400 grice noodles
- 2 onions
- 1 ginger, piece 7-8 cm
- 2 star anise
- 4 cloves
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1 tspcoriander seeds
- 1 tspblack peppercorns
- 2 tbspfish sauce
- 1 tbspsugar
- 1.5 tspsalt
- 1 bunch scallion
- 1 bunch cilantro
- 1 bunch mint
- 1 lime
- 1 chili
- 100 gbean sprouts
Method
- Rinse the bones, cover with cold water, bring to a boil, drain and rinse the bones and pot clean. Cover with 3 liters of fresh water and bring back to a boil.
- Char the onion and ginger halves directly on a dry skillet or open flame until deeply blackened. Add to the broth along with star anise, cloves, cinnamon, coriander seeds, and peppercorns. Simmer on the lowest possible heat for 2.5-3 hours, skimming foam regularly. Never let it boil.
- About 1 hour before the end, add the whole piece of beef. Simmer until cooked through, then remove and slice thinly when cooled.
- Add fish sauce, sugar, and salt to the broth. Strain through a fine sieve, discard bones and spices.
- Cook rice noodles according to package instructions. Divide into deep bowls, top with thinly sliced raw or cooked beef. Ladle boiling broth over — the raw beef will cook instantly in the bowl.
- Serve with green onion, cilantro, mint, bean sprouts, lime wedges, and chili on the side.
FAQ
Cloudy broth is the most common beginner mistake. The causes: skipping the parboil, or simmering at too high a heat. Blanch the bones first — cover with cold water, boil for 5 minutes, drain and rinse everything. Then simmer on the lowest possible heat with barely a bubble, skimming regularly.
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Comments (2)
Бульон для фо — это 6-8 часов у плиты. Кто варит его два часа, тот готовит просто суп с лапшой, а не фо. Звёздчатый анис и корица обжариваются на сухой сковороде до аромата — если пропустить этот шаг, бульон будет плоским как доска.
Bring this pho bo to a full boil first, then drop it to the gentlest simmer your stove can manage. Aggressive boiling turns the beef bones mushy and makes the broth cloudy. Patience here means clarity and texture.