There are some dishes that are simply dinner, and then there are dishes that become an entire day’s project.

Today’s beef pho definitely belongs in the second category.

After our recent travels through Vietnam—and more than a few memorable bowls of noodles along the way—it seemed only right to try bringing some of those flavours home. Pho looks deceptively simple when it arrives at the table: clear broth, noodles, slices of beef and a colourful collection of fresh herbs and accompaniments.

However, creating that deeply flavoured broth from scratch requires a substantial pot, a collection of beef bones, plenty of patience and the willingness to have the house smelling like a Vietnamese noodle shop for most of the day.

Frankly, there are worse ways to spend a day.

The Recipe Behind Today’s Experiment

For today’s pho, I followed Nagi Maehashi’s traditional Vietnamese beef pho recipe from RecipeTin Eats. There a hundreds of recipes out there on the internet and every Vietnamese household has their own variation, this one though made the process simple, and had pictures…

The recipe makes approximately six generous meal-sized bowls and takes a little over three hours, although most of that time involves leaving the broth to simmer while occasionally checking that everything is behaving itself.

The key lesson is that an excellent pho broth needs both beef bones and beef meat. The bones provide richness, while the brisket gives the stock the strong beef flavour it needs.

What Went into the Pot

Aromatics

• 2 large onions, halved
• 150 g ginger, split lengthways

Whole spices

• 10 star anise
• 4 cinnamon quills
• 4 cardamom pods
• 3 whole cloves
• 1½ tablespoons coriander seeds

Beef and broth

• 1.5 kg beef brisket
• 1 kg meaty beef, we used ox-tail pieces
• 1 kg marrow bones, preferably cut so the marrow is exposed
• 1kg pork bones (maybe not traditional, but I’m making bacon so had the bones left from trimming the side of pork we got from our butcher)
• 3.5 litres water

Seasoning

• 2 tablespoons white sugar
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 3 tablespoons fish sauce

For each bowl

• Approximately 50 g dried flat rice noodles, or 120 g fresh noodles
• Approximately 30 g very thinly sliced beef fillet or tenderloin (or the meat shredded from the ox-tail)
• 3–5 slices of the cooked brisket

To serve

• Bean sprouts
• Thai basil
• Fresh coriander
• Lime wedges
• Finely sliced red chilli
• Hoisin sauce
• Sriracha or another chilli sauce

Starting with Smoke and Spice

The first job was to prepare the ingredients that give pho its distinctive fragrance.

The onion halves and ginger went cut-side down into a very hot, dry pan. They were cooked until their surfaces became deeply charred. This adds a gentle smokiness and complexity to the finished broth. I did get slightly worried that the smoke coming off them would trigger the smoke-alarm.

There is a moment during this stage when the onions appear to be burning and every cooking instinct suggests rescuing them. For once, the blackened edges are intentional.

The star anise, cinnamon, cardamom, cloves and coriander seeds were then lightly toasted in the dry pan for around three minutes. Heating the spices releases their aromas before they enter the broth.

Within minutes, the kitchen was filled with the unmistakable scent of cinnamon, star anise and toasted spices.

The Five-Minute Boil That Makes a Difference

Before beginning the actual broth, the brisket and bones needed a preliminary clean.

They were placed in the stockpot, covered with water and boiled for five minutes. This released an impressive—and slightly alarming—amount of foam and residue from the meat and bones.

The pot was then drained, and every piece of brisket and bone was rinsed thoroughly under running water. The stockpot also received a quick clean before the ingredients were returned.

It may seem like an unnecessary extra step, but removing these impurities helps produce the clear, clean-looking broth that is characteristic of a good bowl of pho.

Today’s observation

The layer of scum that appeared was thick and gooey looking, it clung to both the bones and the sides of the pot. I’ve never rinsed bones like this before when making a stock but will for sure from now on. A simple step that looks like it will improve the final outcome in leaps and bounds.

The Long Simmer Begins

With the bones and brisket cleaned, 3.5 litres of fresh water were brought to the boil.

The brisket, meaty bones and marrow bones were added, followed by the charred onion, ginger and toasted spices. The sugar and salt went in as well, and the water only just covered the collection of ingredients.

The pot was covered and left to simmer gently for three hours, well that’s what the initial recipe called for. We went with more like 6 hours, other recipes I’ve seen call for even longer.

This is the point when pho becomes less of a recipe and more of an exercise in patience. There is no frantic stirring or complicated technique. The ingredients simply need time to release their flavour into the broth.

Fortunately, the increasingly delicious aroma drifting through the house provided regular reassurance that something worthwhile was happening under the lid.

While the broth simmered

What else to do while the simmering occurs but make some bread, might even try for baguettes, what better to mop up the broth than a crusty bread!

Rescuing the Brisket

After three hours, the brisket was carefully lifted from the broth.

By this stage it was very tender, so it needed to be handled gently rather than enthusiastically grabbed with a pair of tongs. Once cool, some of the brisket can be refrigerated and sliced for serving in the pho. The rest may end up in rolls, did someone say banh mi?

There will probably be considerably more cooked brisket than is needed for six bowls. That is not a problem. Leftover brisket can be shredded and fried until crisp, added to a stir-fry, served over rice or used in another noodle soup. Or maybe brisket and cheese pies could be prepped for later in the week.

The remaining bones continued simmering in the uncovered pot for another 40 minutes, allowing the broth to reduce slightly and become more concentrated. The meat can be shredded from the ox tail pieces later, again some in the pho and some in the pies…

Straining and Seasoning the Broth

Once the final simmer was complete, the broth was strained into a clean pot. The bones, spices, ginger and onion had completed their work and could be discarded.

The finished quantity should be somewhere around 2.5 litres. When there is considerably more than this, the broth can be simmered for a little longer to concentrate the flavour.

The fish sauce was added at the end, and the broth was tasted before making any final adjustments with salt or sugar.

The goal is a broth that tastes strongly of beef, carries the fragrance of the toasted spices and has a savoury character with only a very slight sweetness.

This tasting stage may require several attempts.

Strictly for quality-control purposes, of course.

Broth verdict

Clarity:
Not a bad looking broth, a few glistening fat globules remain but otherwise it’s clear and ready to devour.

Strength of flavour:
The beef flavour comes through nicely, a rich warming taste in the mouth.

Balance of spice, salt and sweetness:
The beef dominates so a little balance is needed, fish sauce adds the umami that the wish needs and a squeeze of fresh lime juice finishes it nicely.

Preparing the Bowls

The rice noodles were cooked according to their packet directions shortly before serving. Pho noodles can soften quickly, so this is not a job to complete several hours in advance.

For the fresh beef topping, tenderloin or another tender cut works well. Partially freezing the beef for around 30 minutes makes it much easier to slice very thinly.

Each bowl was assembled with:

1. Cooked rice noodles
2. Very thin slices of raw beef
3. Several slices of cooked brisket
4. Plenty of steaming-hot broth

The broth needs to be properly hot because it cooks the thin slices of raw beef as it is poured into the bowl. Anyone who prefers the beef completely cooked can briefly dip the slices into the pot of simmering broth before serving.

The Best Part: Adding the Toppings

One of the pleasures of pho is being able to adjust each bowl at the table.

We served ours with a generous selection of bean sprouts, Thai basil, coriander, lime wedges and sliced chilli. Hoisin sauce and Sriracha were also available for anyone wanting additional sweetness, spice or both.

Another squeeze of lime brought freshness to the broth, while the herbs and bean sprouts added colour, fragrance and crunch.

This is also the point at which a carefully arranged bowl can quickly transform into a chaotic but delicious collection of noodles, herbs and sauce.

The Moment of Truth

After several hours of preparation, simmering, straining and tasting, it was finally time to sit down with our homemade pho.

The brisket is melt in the mouth tender and the broth is so full of flavour. Every mouthful is like being in Vietnam..

Was It Worth the Effort?

Homemade pho is certainly not a quick midweek dinner. It requires planning, a very large pot and an afternoon when there is no need to rush.

What it does not require is any particularly difficult cooking technique. Most of the work comes at the beginning, after which time and gentle heat take over.

The reward is a broth that is light in appearance but remarkably deep in flavour, along with the satisfaction of having created one of Vietnam’s most famous dishes in our own kitchen.

It also produces enough broth for several generous bowls, and any leftovers can be frozen for a future pho emergency.

Our final verdict

Would we make it again? For sure I’d say yes! I would tweak it next time, as we know Vietnamese family take years to develop their recipe. So for a first time this is good, but it can be improved.

Today’s cooking may not have transported us physically back to Vietnam, but the fragrance of star anise, cinnamon, ginger and slow-simmered beef brought a small part of Vietnam into our home.

For one afternoon—and one very satisfying bowl—that was close enough.

Our pho was prepared using Nagi Maehashi’s Vietnamese Pho recipe from RecipeTin Eats. Visit the original recipe for Nagi’s full instructions, video, technical notes and serving suggestions.