Pho:

I had this epiphany around a week ago or so that maybe I should make my own Pho broth as my bank account had reached a monetary low of unheard proportions. This was a humorous mistake.

Pho is a Vietnamese soup comprised of rice noodles, some form of meat, usually pork or beef, and broth. Pho’s etymology can be traced to Northern Vietnam, more specifically the Hanoi region, during French colonization at the beginning of the 19th century. Historians suggest the name pho was slang-fully extracted from the French soup “Pot au feu” or “Fire Pot.” French colonization not only brought forth the etymology of pho but changed Vietnams culinary landscape indefinitely. Before French colonialism, water buffalo and cows held value for their manual labor in rice fields. The French obsession with Pot au feu changed this prompting marrow bone usage in pho stock to be nothing but habitual.

Globalized by Vietnamese refugees, exact entrance to the United States date wise is somewhat hard to tell. The first pho shops in America can be traced back to Little Saigon in Orange County, California, during the late ’70s to early ’80s. Expatriates and Vietnam veterans fueling the underground demand, Pho didn’t reach mainstream triumph till the 1990s. My somewhat jaded pho research led me from dissimilarity to dissimilarity on what a proper pho broth should look and taste like. Much like my geniously title article “Cooking Steak isn’t so Steak-Phisticated,” there are many recurring similarities engraved of a culture shimmering with absolutism.

Regional heterogeneity of pho is funny. If to comprise regional pho into three categories you have Northern Pho, Southern Pho, and Saigon Pho. All undeniably delicious, the subtle differences in soup composure are apparent in the finalized soup. Americans are generally exposed to more of Southern Pho than either of its counterparts. Southern Pho is undoubtedly the more herbaceous pho of the three. Pared with that of bean sprouts, Thai basil, Thai chilies, cilantro, and lime, these stringent flavors somehow act harmoniously when compiled together. Northern Pho is typically garnished with chopped onions, cilantro, hoisin, and chili sauce. All holding the same merits of gastronomic enjoyment, it’s a matter of preference when deciding upon a true victor. Condiment garnishing, on the other hand, is preferential, because of course it is. Some put chili and hoisin on a side plate and dip noodles to maintain broth integrity. Others ignore such a draconian approach.

I live in Connecticut. Pho is surprisingly not common spread. I say that somewhat hyperbolically of course. In Connecticut, especially in the area of Fairfield country in which I call home, there happens to be a desolation of anything outside of pub food. Why, I’m not exactly sure? Still, this leaves room for an opportunity of experimentation or mainly, in my case, culinary failures. I can’t, however, claim failure to the Southern style pho broth I concocted around a week ago, even if it did take 17 hours.

Now for your inconvenience, I think measurements are rudimentary. I’m sorry, but pho is more of a taste and adjust type of broth. Nevertheless creating a baseline ingredient list should be more than helpful for you, the reader, to experiment.

Beef Bones Fennel Seed

White Onion Cardamom

Ginger Cinnamon

Star Anise Shallots

Clove Galangal

Galangal isn’t necessarily traditional, but it imparts a great deal of citrusy undertones that would be absent without its addition. Again this is not traditional.

Step 1: Char white onion, galangal, ginger, and shallots over heat, skin on. Pull off heat once gently colored, then place in bowl. Put plastic wrap over the bowl. This will be beneficial for skin separation.

Step 2: Boil beef bones for 20 minutes or so to remove that classic “funk” in boiling water. Strain water, scrub bones, and rest aside.

Step 3: Toast spices until floral. Tie in cheesecloth to create spice sachet which will later be placed into stock.

Step 4: Remove skin still attached to white onion, ginger, shallots, and galangal, to maintain a clear broth. This can be quickly done with the back of a spoon for the galangal and ginger.

Step 5: Introduce all physical food items into a stock pot with enough water to cover. Put on simmer.

Step 6: Simmer for what seems like centuries.

Step 7: The equivalent of centuries is at least 8 hours with 24 hours being ideal.

Step 8: Strain

This is just a broth recipe as I didn’t feel like going through any other steps such as proper rice noodle cookery or even that or meat selection. -Enjoy