The craving for a warm bowl of pho can hit at any time or any place.

Pho takes about four or five hours to make if you do it the right way. And in all of my obstinacy, I will not go buy a bowl of pho to go from our local Vietnamese joint. So I decided to stop pho-cking around and create a faux pho…

I started reading about pho and its origins, and it truly is one of the most political foods I have ever heard of. It was popularized by Vietnamese refugees after the Vietnam War, and traditional pho vendors even wear special felt hats.

It’s listed as one of the world’s most delicious foods,and millions of American dollars per year are generated by pho sales.

What the pho?!

Anyway, here is the recipe:

Jenna and Brandon’s Easy Faux Pho

Ingredients:

Daikon radish, tamari sauce, sea salt, mung bean sprouts, Beef flavored Better Than Bullion, Beef Sirloin, Basil or Cilantro, Butter, Lime, Cinnamon stick, Anise stars (4), Cloves (4), Rice noodles, fish sauce, red Thai chili peppers, an onion, a big piece of ginger, cloves of garlic (2), mushrooms (whatever kind you want…we used shitake).

Process:

1. Cook the noodles as per the directions on the back. Divide them among the bowls you are going to put the soup in.

2. Slice the onion thinly. Chop the daikon, garlic,  and mushrooms. Cut the ginger into big slices.

3. Put some butter in the big pot you are going to cook the broth in.

4. Put the onion, ginger, and garlic, and mushrooms in the pot and cook until golden, stirring frequently.

5. Add the anise, cloves, 1/3 cup of fish sauce, and cinnamon stick. Immediately add 8 cups of water and broth paste.

6. Make 8 cups of broth with the Better Than Bullion. I just put the bullion paste in to taste. Bring the broth to a boil, and then turn heat down and let simmer for 20 minutes.

7. While the broth is simmering, cook the beef sirloin in strips with a little bit of sea salt, butter and some tamari.

8. Divide the beef strips up among the bowls.

9. Strain the broth, then divide it up among the bowls.

10. Put some basil, lime juice, mung sprouts, and fresh Thai chilies on top of each bowl.

11. Enjoy!

 

 

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Ed: Bryonie Wise