As well as being my main focus here on Vocal I would also like to include how to make the best homemade pho. So let's get started!
Homemade Pho & Soup (Recipe)
Image by Vu Pham Minh from Pixabay
A simple recipe for making the best-quality beef broth
I have made this recipe before. It is just an example of what your own family can make at home too! You can find it in one of many other recipes from my blog.
Also as long as you are using raw beef or mutton as ingredients in your recipe then they will taste amazing!
I’ve left out some things. If you don’t see them then just leave them out. Some things that I didn't test are: - Coconut rice - No onions - No garlic - Red wine - Chillies (I used coriander which does not agree with me) - Sugar-free coffee powder - Garlic salt - Creme de Leche - Kale leaves
The same goes for the sauce. As mentioned I tried cooking with red wine but there wasn't any success as it did not go very well with the vegetables. Again leaving these away for now but I’m sure they will work quite nicely!
Pho is a great meal to bring to your family on Christmas Day; you’ll want to serve both vegetables and Beef broth.
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp sugar (or more if you prefer)
- 4 slices dry cooked beef steak or 3kg piece of minced pork or chicken (or equivalent)
- One large bag of curry powder (or more for less spice)
- 12 cups water
- 1 tbsp coconut milk or any dairy-based alternative
- 6 slices of dried mushrooms
- 5 slices of fresh or frozen carrots
- Two medium chopped carrots
- Three small pieces of green onions sliced (or 8–10, depending on the size of your vegetables)
- A handful of basil leaves or two sprigs of basil stalks
- Freshly harvested corn flour
- 3 cloves garlic finely chopped
- 50g shredded cabbage
- One slice of broccoli, cut into small chunky chunks for garnish
- Half cup white pepper
- Salt and black pepper
- Four tablespoons of tomato puree
The first three ingredients I mentioned are easy enough to do at home. For the vegetables (or extra vegetables if you decide) I’d recommend going online. Most vegetable shops sell these in most varieties at no additional cost.
My vegetable shop has some ready-to-cook recipes just click here to order online.
It takes about 10 minutes to prepare everything
- Boil the vegetables or extra vegetables if you prefer. This can be done anywhere that has a good heat source such as a boiling hot pot, microwave, or gas cooker. Just avoid cooking every time (and don’t overdo it either!)
- The vegetables need to be cut in half length-wise and width-wise. Leave whole pieces, cut into cubes (or smaller pieces if they don't fit into their container), or slice them into larger chunks. Either way works.
- Once you are sure that vegetables are ready then place them in a pot with water over low heat. This means nothing else, this is about the only time where adding more water is needed.
- Now the tricky part. Stir together all of the vegetables, spices, and salt/pepper. Don't worry you don't need to use a lot of this. Just add up to you amount of each, if you can (or however much you feel like eating).
- Add a couple tablespoons of vegetable puree - I used a spoonful of this in the mix but have found it doesn't affect it very much.
- Add the greens and onions. In my case, this was chopped spinach and onion but you could add any vegetable of your choice (or even just spinach).
- Pour the rest of the veg into the pot then cover. Do not overcrowd the pot. Cover with foil if needed. Cook until vegetables are soft. Drain the vegetables and return them to the pan with a lid so they are not in direct flames. They should still be warm when taken out of the cold.
- Repeat this until all the vegetables are gone.
- Place in a bowl and keep warm until then served.
- Serve vegetables covered in gravy and vegetables topped with ketchup and sesame seeds for added flavor (or salad leaves if preferred)
- Garnish with herbs, and lots of lime wedges if you wish
- Serve by portion because you don’t have to
- I've given mine in the shape of bowls and bowls, just don't forget to fill the bottom with vegetables.
- The finished product is usually a bit thicker and more robust than it is when made at home but you would never notice.
(I hope this helps)
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