This is actually a pretty elaborate process to make this delectable broth well worth the trouble to find the actual whole seed/pod spices and beef cuts because they are what makes this unique flavor. Definitely needs more salt like another reviewer i seriously up the fish and soy sauces. My daughter is a pretty picky eater but this is one recipe she says You can make this Again! And i have and we always have seconds! (and leftovers fortunately for all the work...)
I took a lot of liberties with this recipe but absolutely love this spice combination! This my favorite recipe for making soup base. I used 2 qts beef broth 1qt vegetable broth as I didn t have ingredients on hand to start from scratch. I sautéed the onion in a bit of oil and broth then added the spices until fragrant. I put the onion and spices in the crockpot then added the remaining broth. I put it on high for an hour then turned it on low overnight. In the morning I added the liquid seasonings and sugar and since we had a snow day returned the crockpot to high for an hour then back on low for the rest of the day. My add-ins were rice noodles jalapeños bean sprouts & cilantro. (Alas I forgot the basil - but it was totally yum anyway)
I made the broth yesterday as written and am having this for dinner tonight. As is it's pretty good but it's lacking a major ingredient... SALT! It's just a spiced up water otherwise. I added some beef bouillon and some salt. With that addition it's an inexpensive way to enjoy pho anytime. With just a little planning that is.
I added about 5 more table spoons of fish sauce and another couple of soy sauce then it was perfect. I also throw in beef tendon.
I cook the broth for ten hours and it was unbelievably good
Pretty darn good! I didn't have any of the seed spices so I used ground spices instead. I grated two inches of ginger into the broth and added grated carrot to the bowl before serving.
Very non-traditional way of making Pho (which by the way is pronounced "Fa"). Browning of the meat is not done spices are supposed to be toasted as well as the onion. Bay is not generally used. Though it was creative it should have simply been called beef soup. As the chef stated more beef generally is better and the longer the cooking time the better. I made this recipe and and found it somewhat bland and the flavor itself did not reflect that traditional Pho flavor.
I added additional fish sauce & soy sauce along with a little beef broth. It was excellent. Tasted like what we had in a Pho restaurant.
