3-Hour Rare Beef Pho with Charred Onion & Toasted Spice Broth

By Sprig Originals ✓ · cooked up in Sprig

A weekend-realistic pho tai: beef bones and a chunk of chuck give the broth body in three hours instead of overnight, while broiler-charred onion and ginger plus a dry-toasted spice sachet do the heavy aromatic lifting. Paper-thin raw sirloin goes into the bowl raw and cooks to rosy in seconds under boiling broth — the whole point of pho tai.

Ingredients

• 3 lb beef marrow and knuckle bones, cut into 2-3 inch pieces
• 1 lb beef chuck or brisket, in one piece
• 4 quarts cold water, plus more for parboiling

• 2 large yellow onions, halved through the root
• 4 inch piece fresh ginger, halved lengthwise
• 4 whole star anise
• 1 stick cinnamon (about 3 inches)
• 4 whole cloves
• 1 tbsp coriander seeds
• 1 tsp fennel seeds
• 2 pods black cardamom (or 4 green cardamom pods)

• 1/4 cup fish sauce, plus more to taste
• 1 oz yellow rock sugar (or 1 tbsp granulated sugar)
• 2 tsp kosher salt, plus more to taste

• 12 oz beef sirloin or eye of round, well trimmed
• 14 oz dried flat rice noodles (banh pho), small or medium width
• 3 scallions, thinly sliced
• 1/2 small white or yellow onion, shaved paper-thin
• 1/4 cup cilantro leaves, roughly chopped

• 2 cups mung bean sprouts
• 1 bunch Thai basil
• 2 limes, cut into wedges
• 2 jalapeños or Thai chiles, thinly sliced
• Hoisin sauce and sriracha, for dipping

Instructions

1. Parboil the bones (this is what makes a clear broth). Put the bones and the whole piece of chuck in your largest pot, cover with cold water by 2 inches, and bring to a hard boil over high heat. Boil 10 minutes, skimming nothing — let the gray foam rise. Drain everything into the sink and scrub each bone and the meat under running water to remove clinging scum. Scrub the pot too.
2. Return the bones and meat to the clean pot, add 4 quarts cold water, and bring to a bare simmer over medium heat (about 30 minutes). Once it simmers, adjust the heat so only a few bubbles break the surface — around 195°F. Never let it boil again or the broth will cloud. Skim any foam for the first 20 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, char the aromatics. Set an oven rack 5 inches under the broiler and heat the broiler to high. Place the onion halves cut side up and the ginger on a foil-lined sheet pan. Broil 12 to 16 minutes, turning once, until the surfaces are blistered and blackened in patches and the kitchen smells sweet. (Gas stove alternative: char them directly over a burner flame with tongs, 6 to 8 minutes.) Scrape off any fully burnt papery skin, then add the onion and ginger to the pot.
4. Toast the spices. In a dry skillet over medium heat, toast the star anise, cinnamon, cloves, coriander, fennel, and cardamom for 2 to 3 minutes, shaking constantly, until fragrant and one shade darker. Do not let them smoke. Tie them in a piece of cheesecloth or drop them in a tea ball, and add the sachet to the pot.
5. Simmer gently, uncovered, for 2 hours total from the time it first came to a simmer. At the 1-hour mark, fish out the chuck, plunge it into a bowl of ice water for 10 minutes (this keeps it from graying), then refrigerate it — you'll slice it for the bowls. Remove the spice sachet at the 90-minute mark so the anise and cinnamon don't turn medicinal.
6. Season the broth: stir in the fish sauce, rock sugar, and salt. Taste and keep adjusting — pho broth should taste assertively savory and faintly sweet on its own, because the noodles will dilute it. Strain the broth through a fine-mesh sieve into a clean pot; you should have 10 to 12 cups. If you have less, top up with water and re-season; if more, boil to reduce. Skim the surface fat, leaving a thin golden slick for flavor. Keep the broth at a hard simmer until serving.
7. While the broth finishes, freeze the sirloin. Wrap it tightly and put it in the freezer for 45 to 60 minutes, until firm at the edges but not frozen solid. Slice against the grain as thinly as you possibly can — 1/16 to 1/8 inch, nearly translucent. If any slices look thick, lay them between plastic wrap and press gently with the flat of a knife. Arrange on a plate, cover, and refrigerate. Slice the chilled cooked chuck thinly as well.
8. Cook the noodles. Soak the dried rice noodles in hot tap water for 20 minutes, then boil in a separate large pot of unsalted water for 30 to 60 seconds, until just tender with a slight chew. Drain well and divide immediately among four large warmed bowls — cold bowls kill the dish.
9. Assemble fast. Over each portion of noodles, fan the raw sirloin in a single layer (overlapping slices won't cook through) and add a few slices of cooked chuck. Scatter with sliced scallions, shaved raw onion, and cilantro.
10. Bring the broth to a full rolling boil, then ladle 2 to 2 1/2 cups of it straight over the beef in each bowl, aiming at the meat. The slices will turn from red to rosy pink in about 15 seconds. Serve immediately with the sprouts, Thai basil, lime, and chiles on a platter, and hoisin and sriracha in small dishes on the side for dipping the meat rather than dumping in the bowl.

Chef's tips

Nutrition (per serving, estimated)

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