Back from Vietnam where I spent an incredible gustatory stay in Saigon (Ho Chi Minh), I offer you the recipe for ph\u1edf. There are of course plenty of variations of this delicious dish between northern, central and southern Vietnam. I asked dozens of questions to lots of Vietnamese for the best method to obtain a very tasty ph\u1edf. I ate it almost every day of my stay (for breakfast or dinner), I stuffed myself with spring rolls and I tasted many other delicious things, which I will invite you to discover during my report that I will put online very soon. It is a country rich in a very healthy and particularly delicious culinary culture. I will also post new very traditional recipes soon. I give you here all the elements that I collected. Each cook has his own recipe (like pancakes in Brittany) and I noticed that the ph\u1edf that I tasted in Saigon, is not exactly identical to that of Hanoi and that of the center of the country. So I give you the recipe for the broth, and it’s up to you to add the herbs and other things you want! In any case, this recipe is perfect: a complete and very healthy dish. A spiced broth with fine and very tender meat in which aromatic herbs are added and depending on the version, nuoc m\u00e2m, hoisin sauce and a few mung bean sprouts. Perfect for a balanced dish with friends!! <\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Ph\u1edf recipe:
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\nFor the Ph\u1edf broth:<\/strong>
\n-2 large onions<\/strong>
\n-1 ginger root<\/strong>
\n-2kg of beef bones (knee or others that contain cartilage…)<\/strong>
\n-30g of sugar (palm or semolina)<\/strong>
\n-2 tablespoons of nuoc m\u00e2m<\/strong>
\n-6 star anise (star anise)<\/strong>
\n-2-3 cinnamon sticks<\/strong>
\n-1 tablespoon of coriander seeds<\/strong>
\n-5 cardamom pods<\/strong>
\n-6 cloves<\/strong>
\n-4 to 5 liters of water<\/strong>
\n-1 small fillet of beef<\/strong>
\n-3-4 Chinese chives<\/strong>
\n-1 bunch of Thai basil<\/strong>
\n-1 bunch of long coriander<\/strong>
\n-1 nuoc mam bottle<\/strong>
\n-1 bottle of hoi-sin sauce<\/strong>
\n-2 to 3 limes<\/strong>
\n-1 packet of rice paste<\/strong>
\n-1 or 2 red or green peppers not too hot<\/strong>
\n-500g mung bean sprouts
\n<\/strong>
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\nPut the meat in the freezer for at least 3 hours before cutting it into thin slices. It’s up to you to see when it will be the most opportune. The principle is to slice it half frozen.
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\nStart by cutting the onions in half and the ginger in slices.
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\nPut everything under the grill of the oven until the onion is well grilled on the surface.
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\nHere are the beef bones. Some people add meat to the broth, some don’t. I didn’t and the broth was just as tasty as in Saigon.
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\nPlace the bones in a large pot with 4 liters of cold water.
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\nBring to a boil and cook for 10 minutes.
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\nGet rid of the water, which at this point does not seem very appetizing. Wash the pot, cleaning the sticky parts well and also wash the bones.
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\nPut the bones back in the clean pot with another 4 liters of fresh water, the grilled onions and the ginger. I found my ginger a little dry because it cooked with the onion), so I added a slice or two of fresh ginger. The fat on the surface is bone marrow. I removed part of it but I still leave some for the taste. We can degrease the broth afterwards.
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\nHere are the spices for the ph\u1edf: cinnamon stick, star anise, cloves, cardamom, coriander seeds. I also added the sugar for the photo.
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\nPut the spices in small cloth ballotins. I looked everywhere for my cotton canvas which I couldn’t find, so I went to the pharmacy to buy some gauze for the bandages. It’s perfect and especially not expensive at all !!
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\nBernard’s tip:
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\nFor even more flavour, you can lightly toast some spices in the pan…
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\nClose the ballotins (I needed two) with string. The cinnamon does not need to be boxed.
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\nHere is the nuoc m\u00e2m sauce. The most important thing when you buy nuoc m\u00e2m is the number on the bottle. This gives the salt concentration. 35\u00b0 is perfect!
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\nAdd the nuoc m\u00e2m and the sugar to the broth.
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\nSo ! The hardest thing is done !! Now bring to the boil, then lower the heat to moderate to low and simmer for 4-6 hours… No need to take care of it. During this time I went to take my nap!
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\nThe slower and longer the broth simmers, the tastier it will be. There are also ready-made ph\u1edf bouillon cubes, you can add a cube to the liquid, but I don’t recommend replacing a homemade broth with this cube. But it brings flavor to the ph\u1edf.
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\nIt is now necessary to remove all the elements from the broth. Don’t make the mistake of emptying the contents into a colander and seeing your broth go to the bottom of the sink… It is the opposite that must be done. I say that because I almost did (a gesture that we do so often when we cook pasta!!).
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\nWe see here that there is a bit of fat (little in the end compared to the 4 liters of broth) on the surface. If you really want to get rid of it, then you have to let the broth cool completely and then remove the fat that will have frozen.
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\nHere is the broth once rid of most of the fat (I took the picture the next day). If your broth seems too concentrated, add a little water.
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\nHere is the meat (a fillet of beef) half frozen.
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\nThis way, it will be easier to cut it into very thin slices.
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\nPrepare all or part of the meat (if not all eaten the same day).
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\nFor rice noodles, two options: fresh noodles, which must be cooked, or dry noodles, which just need to be left in lukewarm water for 15 minutes. You will have understood, I chose the dry ones…!
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\nFill a bowl with lukewarm to very hot water. On the package it is explained that lukewarm water is enough, but I prefer very hot water (from the tap) because in this way the pasta will already be hot when it is added to the broth.
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\nWash and prepare your fresh herbs: Thai basil, and coriander in long leaves. Cut the lime into pieces. Also cut the Chinese chives into small pieces.
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\nTwo options again for the meat: if your bowls are large, as you will be adding a lot of hot broth to them, you can arrange it raw directly in these. Also add the Chinese chives in pieces.
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\nAdd the boiling broth. The meat cooks instantly and it will be very tender.
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\nThe other option is to have a pan of boiling water nearby and plunge the meat into it for 15 seconds before putting it (well drained) in the bowls. This way, you won’t have cooked blood in your bowl, which will result in a clearer broth, and the meat will be piping hot and won’t make your broth lukewarm.
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\nAdd the hot, drained rice noodles and, if desired, a little sliced red or green chilli.
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\nFor the ph\u1edf of Saigon, also add mung bean sprouts…
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\nFor seasoning:
\n<\/u>
\n<\/strong>
\n add a little nuoc m\u00e2m, the juice of a small piece of lemon, add a little hoisin sauce and all the herbs you want.
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\nHere are the ph\u1edfs you can have: Hanoi pho, which is concentrate more on the broth, just composed of broth and meat, or even rice noodles.
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\nFor the ph\u1edf of Saigon, add more herbs with Thai basil and flat cilantro in pieces to the bowl.
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\nAnd for a more decorated ph\u1edf, add bean sprouts, even more herbs. I added a tiny bit of grated banana flower for the visual. It’s less traditional, it brings almost no flavor, but it gives a nice bowl. I ate some like that in Saigon.
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\nIn any case, it’s easier to put everything in the middle of the table and everyone puts in what they want. The base is broth and meat.
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\nFor seasoning:
\n<\/u>
\n<\/strong>
\nadd a little nuoc m\u00e2m, the juice of a small piece of lemon, add a little hoisin sauce and all the herbs you want. Taste very hot by mixing all the elements together… A wonder…
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<\/p>\n
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$\"\"$ <\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Pho<\/h2>\n
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<\/div>\n
This recipe is perfect: a complete and very healthy dish. A spiced broth with fine and very tender meat in which aromatic herbs are added and depending on the version, nuoc m\u00e2m, hoisin sauce and a few mung bean sprouts. Perfect for a balanced meal with friends! <\/span><\/div>\n
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