Pho Bowl Phonatic

For the broth:

3-5 lbs. beef bones

1 whole onion, peeled and cut in half

1 large carrot, peeled and cut in thirds

1 fat 4-inch ginger, thickly sliced

3 tablespoons fish sauce

2 teaspoons sugar

1 tsp kosher salt

9-10 cups of water (enough to cover the ingredients in the pot)

Spices:

• 1 cinnamon stick
• 3 cardamom pods
• 5 star anise pods
• 12 cloves
• 2 tsps whole coriander seeds
• 1 tsp fennel seeds
• 4 garlic cloves, smashed and peeled

1/2 lb. flank or sirloin or eye of round steak

1/2 sweet or yellow onions, thinly sliced

A handful of fresh Thai basil

A handful of fresh cilantro

1 lime, cut into 4 wedges

1 whole jalapeno, sliced thinly

8 ounces fresh pho noodles

Fill a large pot with cold water, set on high, and bring to boil.  Add beef bones and let boil for 10 minutes.  Drain and quickly rinse the bones in running water.  Add bones to crock pot.

While the bones are boiling, heat a frying pan on medium-low heat and add the pho spices to toast.  Be careful not to burn them.  Shake the pan while toasting for 2-4 minutes, or until fragrant, but not burnt.  Add the spices to the crock pot.

Return frying pan to high heat and add 1 tablespoon oil.  When oil is hot, add the onion halves and the ginger slices and cook until the ginger slices are browned but not burned on each side and the onion halves are caramelized.  Add to crock pot.

If you’re feeling lazy, skip this step altogether and just add all ingredients to the crock pot.  If you prefer the spices neatly bagged, you may use a cheesecloth and kitchen strings to hold all the spices together.  Since I use a strainer when ladling the broth into the bowls, the cheesecloth step is unnecessary.  The strainer will catch all the little seed spices and stubborn scum from the bones.

Add carrot chunks to crock pot and fill the pot with clean, cold, water, enough to cover all the ingredients in the pot.

Add fish sauce, sugar, and salt.

Cover the crock pot and set on low for 8-9 hours.  Taste and adjust seasoning as needed.

Sometime while the broth is simmering away in the crock pot, wash the basil and cilantro and dry out as much of the water as you can.  Discard unusable leaves and wrap the good ones with a damp paper towel, put inside a resealable bag, and store in the fridge.  That way, they’re ready to be pulled out and dropped in the bowl when eating time is near.

 A few notes:

1. Broth.  Oxtail and beef marrow are expensive.  No point making homemade food in an effort to save money if you end up spending $15 on your broth alone.  My local Asian store carried beef bones for $1.08 a pound.  That’s a steal of a deal, compared to $4.30 per pound of oxtail or beef marrow.  Usually, a whole bone weighs anywhere between 3-5 pounds and they cut it for me too, a very good convenience I’m grateful for.  Imagine me whacking at a whole cow’s bone in my kitchen without a good whacking tool or a sturdy butcher’s block!  Ha!
2. Spices.  There are some exotic spices called for in the recipe that I’m convinced cannot be replaced by ground versions or substitutes.  If you live in a metropolitan area, finding the spices for pho bowl is not a problem even at your local grocery store, but it could add up to a hefty sum.  Better to buy the spices in bulk at an Asian store, perhaps even places like Whole Foods or Trader Joe’s.  If you live in a not so metropolitan area, hunt for small Asian/Indian/Mediterranean shops, often tucked in the most inconspicuous places.  They should carry most, if not all of the spices used in this recipe.  The initial cost of spices could be pricey but once you’re stocked, you won’t have to buy anymore for at least a couple months.
3. Crock pot.  You should know how your slow cooker works.  A new one should cook the broth to a tasty finish in the amount of time recommended by the recipe.  Mine cooks the broth to a better flavor between 12 and 15 hours.  As for size, consider using one no smaller than 6.5 quarts.
4. To Toast Or Not To Toast.  If you have time and prefer a deeper layer of flavor this step adds to your broth, do toast the spices and char the ginger and onions.  But if you’re short on time and just want to put things together fast, you may skip the toasting and charring.  Your broth will still come out quite flavorful.
5. Topping (or Filling or Garnishes).  You can be as creative as you want to be on this one.  My usual go-to’s include thin sweet onion slices, thai basil, cilantro, lime wedges, jalapeno slices, very thinly sliced steak meat, pho noodles, sriracha (hot chili paste), and hoisin sauce.  Some other options to consider are sliced beef meat balls, scallions, and bean sprouts.  A friend mentioned adding whatever meat she has on hand to the broth.  You may also skip the meat and go with an all-veggie bowl.  For crunch, add some steamed baby bok choy or simply boil it in the broth for a minute before adding all the other garnishes.  Be creative!
6. Meat.  Special mention on this because of our experience.  My Hubby is a huge steak fan so that is our preferred meat for our pho bowls.  Both recipes mention to add the meat to the piping hot broth, which should sufficiently cook the thinly sliced steak meat.  However, both my Husband and our friend-guest for lunch one day were concerned that the meat may not be cooked to doneness.  So to eliminate that concern the next time I made pho, I ladled some of the broth into a saucepan and brought that to a boil, added the meat slices, and let it cook for a minute.  The meat was perfectly cooked, not overdone, and for some reason (which I’m sure somewhere lies an explanation) the one-minute cooking brought out the beef flavor of the steak more.  Not only was my Hubby able to enjoy his pho bowl worry-free, he also liked the more beefy flavor of the steak.  It’s a win-win for us.
   

   The keys to achieving thinly sliced meat is to have a really sharp knife, a stable cutting board, and a slightly frozen meat.

7. Pho Noodles.  Steamy Kitchen and Wandering Chopsticks both provide sufficient information on what to look for.  I personally prefer the fresh noodles because it’s less fuss and time to prepare.
8. Heat.  Be careful adding sriracha sauce or jalapeno slices to your bowl if you’re not so keen on super-spicy foods.  If you want a mild spice level, skip the jalapeno altogether and add just a drop of sriracha and go from there.  If you LOVE spicy hot pho bowl, drop 2-3 jalapeno slices, ribs and seeds included, and add a couple drops of sriracha sauce.  Be sure to have plenty of kleenex or napkins nearby.