PH, H TIÊU, AND MÌ HOUSES
Soup is regarded by some people as a prelude to a much larger meal, a teaser before the real eating begins. But the Vietnamese embrace the idea of having an entire meal in just one single bowl of soup. Some of the most celebrated Vietnamese dishes are soups made of long rice or egg noodles, served in rich beef, pork, or chicken broths. Pho, pronounced fuh, is the most popular of these. The Chinese-style soups of hu tieu and mi complete the triumvirate of Vietnamese noodle soups. Not only are these three types of soups a quintessential part of Vietnamese cuisine, but they are also fresh, nutritious, and cheap—a bowl of pho in Little Saigon still averages $4.00.
In this country pho, hu tieu, and mi houses outnumber any other type of Vietnamese restaurant. In fact, some of the first Vietnamese business establishments were pho houses, opened before the Vietnamese even established Little Saigon. Pho houses can be found in every major city in the world, with more than a hundred in Southern California alone. In Little Saigon it is impossible to walk from one block to another without seeing a pho, hu tieu, or mi establishment. Most of the venerable favorites are concentrated on Bolsa Avenue, Westminster Boulevard, and Brookhurst Avenue.
Popular noodle houses often have lines out the door at breakfast and lunchtime (they’re not so crowded at dinner). The atmosphere is always casual, with minimal decor. Napkins, chopsticks, and big plastic soup spoons stay in the center of the tables, in addition to condiments such as Sriracha chili paste, hoisin sauce, vinegar, whole Thai bird chiles or chopped jalapeños, and fish sauce.
The soups served in the Little Saigon noodle houses vary in types of broths, noodles, herbs, textures, and presentation. They also vary from one noodle house to another. For instance, some cooks prefer sweeter broths, while others make spicier broths. The locals know exactly where to go to satisfy a craving for a specific type of noodle soup, such as bun rieu or banh canh gio heo. One popular pho house is rumored to simmer the beef bones for three days, giving the broth its deep brown color. A hu tieu house right off Bolsa Avenue is known for its spectacular hu tieu, but if you come at the right hour (late afternoon), you can have a bowl of the stock bones for free (many enjoy savoring the melt-in-your-mouth meat that falls off the bones as well as the succulent marrow).
Eating noodle soup is a performance in itself. Each table provides just enough elbow room for slurping. Your head is perched just inches above the bowl. Your elbows are out as your hands alternate between wadding up noodles with chopsticks in one hand and sipping broth from the spoon in the other. You tear up herbs from the salad platter by hand and add them directly to the soup.
In this chapter you’ll find a variety of soup recipes, all of which mirror what you’ll find on a menu at any pho, hu tieu, or mi house in Little Saigon. Asian grocers now sell ready-made seasoning packets to make pho, however, I prefer to make pho from scratch, giving me the ability to control the spice blend. Try using different noodles, different broths, different garnishes. You’ll learn to appreciate how noodle size, shape, and texture work together, and as a result you’ll learn to create your very own Vietnamese noodle soup recipe.
A few important points to remember about making pho:
• These are slow-cooked broths. They should be allowed to simmer slowly, for hours, at the back of the stove before being served hot, straight into individual serving bowls. Pho ga requires less cooking time than pho bo.
• My aunt Minh tells me she likes to make pho with both chicken and beef bones because beef bones make for a rich broth, while chicken bones sweeten it.
• The charred onion and ginger play a crucial role in adding to the fragrance of the broth. Don’t ignore the charring step.
• Be sure to wrap the spices in cheesecloth, or a large mesh, tea leaf strainer—which I prefer.
• When pho broth is fully cooked, it should run clear, so keep a fine strainer handy to help clear the broth.
Pho originated in Hanoi, and each region of Vietnam has its own slight variation on the soup. It is said that the broths get sweeter and sweeter as you travel south through Vietnam. Pho from northern Vietnam is not served with any herbs and is not made with fish sauce. You will find this on the menu as pho bac (pho from the North). The people in the city of Hue in Central Vietnam like to make their pho broth a little bit spicier and a tad sweeter. In the South, where pho broth is the sweetest, it is made with fish sauce and served with plenty of herbs on a platter.
BEEF PHO
Phò Bò
Pho bo, the most popular pho, is more than just a simple beef consomme. The aroma is captivating and the taste is a deliberate collision of salty, sweet, and umami all in one. The Vietnamese learn to appreciate pho by understanding its methodical, complex preparation. Derived from beef bones and cooked with aromatic spices such as cinnamon, star anise, coriander, roasted onion, garlic, and ginger, a pho broth is clear with a deep, multilayered aroma and taste. The intense, boiling broth is then added to servings of mounds of slippery rice noodles and paper-thin slices of rare eye-round beef that immediately cook in the broth. Do be sure to use the oxtail. After being cooked in the broth, it is deliciously flavored and tender. The anise seeds and pods are essential, too. They give the stock a nuttier and slightly smoky flavor. To enhance the finished dish, well-done flank, brisket, tendon, or tripe are sometimes added as well.
3 pounds beef knuckles or neck bones, with meat
2 pounds beef oxtail
10 cups water (or enough to entirely cover meat)
3 large yellow onions, peeled
1 gingerroot, ½ size of small palm, roughly peeled
4 whole star anise, with pods
½ tablespoon whole cloves
1 tablespoon black peppercorns
4 cloves garlic, smashed
1 daikon, peeled and cut into 3 pieces
1 cinnamon stick
3 small shallots
2 6-ounce packages flat rice noodles (pho)
½ cup rock sugar, roughly palm size
1 cup fish sauce
2 tablespoons salt
¾ pound sirloin or top round steak, sliced paper-thin
6 scallions, chopped into rings
PHO SALAD PLATTER:
Sriracha chili sauce
Hoisin sauce
Fresh cilantro leaves
Green limes, quartered
Fresh mung bean sprouts
Fresh Thai basil leaves
Fresh perilla leaves
Fresh long coriander leaves
Fresh whole red or green chiles
1. Put the beef knuckles, bones, and oxtail in a very large stockpot, and cover completely with water. Bring to a boil and keep boiling while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.
2. Cut two peeled yellow onions in half. Char each onion half by holding it with tongs over the open flame of the gas stove or place it directly on the electric burner for about 3 minutes. You do not need to light the onion on fire, but the charring will bring out the aroma and deepen the flavor of the broth. Repeat the process with the ginger. Putting the onion or ginger under a broiler will also work. Set aside.
3. In a small skillet or saucepan, lightly toast the anise pods. cloves, peppercorns, and garlic for about 5 minutes, or until fragrant. Set aside to cool. Then wrap them in a piece of cheesecloth or put them in a spice bag or tea strainer.
4. Check on the bones in the stockpot and skim off any scum that has accumulated. (If this is your first time making a beef stock from scratch, you may be surprised by the amount of scum that builds up from the meat. It’s important to skim the top of the simmering broth in the first few hours of cooking.)
5. Add the spice bag, charred onion and ginger, daikon, cinnamon stick, and shallots to the stock. Boil for 15 minutes, and then bring down to a simmer.
6. Add the rock sugar, fish sauce, and salt, and stir well. Continue to simmer for 2½ hours, uncovered. Check the pot periodically and skim off any scum or fat as it accumulates.
7. Though the broth wi
ll be flavorful after 2½ hours and you may think it’s done, continue cooking on very low heat for up to 10 hours, covered. The broth will only get better.
8. Once the broth has finished cooking, remove the pot from the heat and let it cool a bit. Then remove all the solid ingredients from the broth. Do not discard the bones; set them aside to remove any meat remaining on them. Pour the broth through a fine mesh strainer to remove any scum and fat, then return the broth to the pot or a new pot. The broth should be clear.
9. About 15 minutes before you would like to serve the pho, bring the broth back to a boil. While you are reboiling, fill a large bowl with hot tap water. Soak the rice noodles in the water for about 10 minutes. They should soften just slightly: the hot pho broth will cook them the rest of the way.
10. Drain the noodles and place them in six individual serving bowls. Slice the beef paper-thin against the grain, if your butcher has not done so. With your sharpest, thin-blade knife, try your best to slice paper-thin pieces. If the meat is very cold (even slightly frozen). it is easier to handle and to slice.
11. Slice the remaining onion paper-thin preferably with a mandoline. Arrange the raw beef and onion slices and scallions over the noodles in each bowl. Slice the oxtail and add it to the noodles as well in addition to any of the bits of meat taken from the bones.
12. When ready to serve, pour the boiling broth into the individual bowls. The broth will cook the beef as well as the noodles. Give it a few minutes to do so, then serve with the pho garnish platter. The herbs should be separated into their groups, not mixed together. Encourage your diners to take some fresh herbs, tear them with their hands, and throw them into the broth. A light squeeze of lime cuts the richness of the broth a bit. The hoisin sauce and Sriracha chili sauce can be added directly to the soup or poured into a side dish as a dip for the beef.
[SERVES 6]
One of the best hu tieu houses in Little Saigon is the tiny Trieu Chau, located on the corner of Bolsa Avenue and Newhope Street. It always has a line out the door. Trieu Chau has been around since Little Saigon started and remains a fine establishment for those wanting the very best in hu tieu or mi soups.
CHICKEN PHO
Phó Gà
Chicken pho is just as satisfying as beef pho, but it invigorates your palate in a different way-chicken pho has the zing of lemongrass but lacks the woody, spiced fragrance of the cinnamon and star anise found in beef pho. Chicken pho tends to be more commonly made at home, as the stock can be made with the chicken bones from a prior evening’s meal. Like most of the world, the Vietnamese think chicken soup is great to have when sick, but it is the lemongrass that many believe provides the curative element. Most pho restaurants serve mostly beef pho and that’s usually what’s ordered, but there is one chicken pho restaurant hidden off Ward Street that is famous for serving the best chicken broth in the town. The restaurant even has a chicken pho for which you can request the addition of chicken embryos.
3 pounds chicken and bones, skinless
Water for stock
3 large yellow onions, peeled
1 gingerroot (size of a small palm),
roughly peeled
1 large daikon, peeled and cut into
3 large pieces
2 stalks fresh lemongrass, outer layers
removed
3 shallots, peeled
3 whole cloves
1 tablespoon black peppercorns
4 cloves garlic, smashed
cup fish sauce
1 medium piece rock sugar ( size of a palm),
or ¼ cup granulated sugar
½ tablespoon salt
2 6-ounce packages flat rice noodles (pho)
6 scallions, chopped into rings
PHO SALAD PLATTER
Ginger dipping sauce
Sriracha chili sauce
Hoisin sauce
Fresh cilantro leaves
Green limes, quartered
Fresh mung bean sprouts
Fresh Thai basil leaves
Fresh perilla leaves
Fresh long coriander leaves
Fresh red or green chiles, chopped
1. Put chicken and bones in a very large stockpot, and cover completely with water. Bring to a boil and keep boiling while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.
2. Cut two of the peeled yellow onions in half. Char each onion half by holding it with tongs over the open flame of the gas stove or place it directly on the electric burner. Keep it in the flame for about 3 minutes. You do not need to light the onion on fire, but putting it to a flame or electric burner will bring out the aromas. Repeat the process to char the ginger. Putting the onion or the ginger under a broiler can also work. Set aside.
3. Add the daikon, lemongrass stalks, and shallots to the stock.
4. In a skillet, lightly toast the cloves, peppercorns, and garlic for about 5 minutes, or until fragrant. Set aside and let cool. Then wrap them in a piece of cheesecloth or put them in a spice bag or tea strainer.
5. Skim off any scum in the stockpot. Add the spice bag, fish sauce. rock sugar, and salt to the pot. Continue boiling for another 15 minutes, and then lower the heat to a simmer. Continue cooking for 3½ hours, uncovered. Check the pot periodically and skim off any scum and fat as it is produced.
6. Remove the pot from the heat and let the broth cool.
7. Remove all the contents from the cooled broth and discard everything but the chicken. Pour the broth through a fine strainer to remove any scum or fat, and return the broth to the pot. It should be clear.
8. About 15 minutes before you would like to serve pho, bring the broth back to a boil.
9. Remove the chicken meat from the bones. Cut any large pieces of chicken meat into thin slices. Set the meat aside.
10. Fill a large bowl with hot tap water. Soak the rice noodles in the water for about 10 minutes. They should soften just slightly; the hot broth will cook them the rest of the way. Drain the noodles and put them into six individual serving bowls.
11. Slice the remaining onion paper-thin, preferably with a mandoline,
12. Place the slices of chicken and onion and a handful of scallions over the noodles in each bowl.
13. Just before serving, add the hot broth to the bowls. Present the noodle bowls with the garnish platter. Encourage your diners to take some fresh herbs, tear them with their hands, and throw them into the broth. A light squeeze of lime cuts the richness of the broth a bit. The hoisin sauce and Sriracha chili sauce can be placed directly into the soup or poured in a side dish as a dip for the chicken.
[SERVES 6]
Many theories exist as to the origins of pho. My brother, a biochemist at UCLA, and his Vietnamese classmates believe the Vietnamese wanted to blanch bones for decorative jewelry, and the residual broth from the boiled bones became food broth. A less far-fetched theory is that beef noodle soup first surfaced as a hybrid recipe born of French and Chinese influences in the nineteenth century in Hanoi, and that as people began fleeing the Communists in North Vietnam, they brought pho to the rest of the country. The word pho is said to come from feu of pot au feu or just plain feu, French for “flame.” The theory is that this described the flames of the pho street vendors.
EGG NOODLE SOUP WITH DUCK
Mì Vit Tiêm
Mi, or egg noodles, are wonderful served in rich, concentrated pork broths such as hu tieu. Mi vit tiem is one of the most popular variations served at mi houses in Little Saigon. Like hu tieu, mi is a Chinese-style soup; therefore, it is not served with a salad platter as pho is. Duck—braised. roasted, grilled—is delicious in soups. You can buy your own roasted duck in Little Saigon or even Chinatown, or follow the recipe for Five-spiced Chicken (substituting duck for the chicken) in this book. Additionally, you can substitute shrimp and squid for the duck for a seafood version (mi do bien), or add tofu. For a little variation, try xa xiu pork as a topping. It is a sweetened pork shoulder meat, with a bit of red coloring.
3 pounds pork bones, preferably k
nuckle
bones
2 large yellow onions, peeled and halved
1 gingerroot (size of a small palm), roughly
peeled
½ cup dried shrimp
5 shallots, peeled
4 cloves garlic, smashed
1 tablespoon black peppercorns
1 piece rock sugar (¼ size of a palm), or
3½ tablespoons granulated sugar
1½ tablespoons salt
10 cups water
1 pound boneless pork loin or another
lean pork meat
8 cups cooked egg noodles
1 whole roasted duck, cut into 6 parts
(purchased or homemade; see recipe
on page 129, substituting duck for chicken)
4 scallions, chopped into rings
½ cup fried shallots
Fresh mung bean sprouts
1. Rinse and scrub the pork bones. Put them into a large stockpot.
2. Char each onion half by holding it over an open gas flame with tongs for about 2 minutes or until it is fragrant. You can also place each onion directly on an electric burner. Char the ginger using the same procedure.
3. Add the charred onions and gingerroot, dried shrimp, shallots, garlic, peppercorns, rock sugar, and salt to the stockpot. Fill the pot with the water and turn on the heat to high. Add the pork loin to the pot. Bring the pot to a boil and cook for 30 minutes, uncovered. Lower the heat to a simmer and cook on low for another 2 hours. Remove the scum as it forms on the surface of the broth.
The Little Saigon Cookbook: Vietnamese Cuisine and Culture in Southern California's Little Saigon Page 8