Faux Pho

A few months back I posted a recipe for pho broth. I wouldn't say it's authentic. It is however delicious and resembles an authentic pho. Thus the name "faux pho". Great alternative if you don't want to leave the house for a bowl of Vietnamese soup. I took it a bit farther tonight and made my own noodles. (Mainly because I was too lazy to leave the house to buy noodles)

 

Faux Pho

makes 2 LARGE servings

 

For the broth:

1 quart beef broth or 1 quart or water and 2 heaping tablespoons of beef base.
1 medium onion, quartered
2-inch piece of fresh ginger, halved lengthwise
1 cinnamon sticks or 1 tsp five spice powder
1 tablespoon coriander seeds, or 1 tsp of ground
1 tablespoon fennel seeds
3 star anise or 1 teaspoon of the seeds
A few whole cloves
1 1/2 tablespoons salt
A few dashes of fish sauce(optional)

 

In a large pot add all ingredients and simmer for 30-45 minutes on medium low. Strain all ingredients and add broth back to pot and let it simmer away on low while you prep the other ingredients. 

 

For the noodles:

1c white flour-plus about 1/4 cup for dusting

2 eggs

 

Mix ingredients in a bowl until mixture forms a ball.  Dust surface with a little bit of flour and knead until the dough springs back when you push your finger in to it, about 5 minutes. Let rest in the fridge for about 10 minutes or so. I have the Norpro Hand Crank Pasta Machine that I bought on amazon. It cost about 30 dollars and we use it on a weekly basis. Probably one of the most used gadgets in our kitchen. It's easy to use and really sturdy. I flatten the pasta, keeping it dusted with flour, making my way to the number 6. Then run through the spaghetti press.  Keep noodles coated in flour ensuring they will not stick together. Dump noodles into the broth and let sit for 1 minute. Remove the noodles. BE SURE NOT TO DUMP THE BROTH DOWN THE SINK. I usually put a strainer in a large bowl, dump my noodles in the strainer and then pour the broth back in the pot to simmer. If you don't have a pasta press, you could probably roll the noodles out with a rolling pin as flat as you would like and then hand cut. I like the uniformity of the pasta press but hand cut noodles are just as delicious.

 

Other fixings:

2 cups of spinach

Thinly sliced raw steak. I used a meat slicer to slice 2 small sirloin steaks. Cut them when they are frozen! You will get a cleaner cut.*

 

* Feel free to add bean sprouts, jalapenos, cilantro, wontons, shrimp or whatever your heart desires. I like keeping it simple though. If you add too many things, it takes away from the flavor of the broth.

 

For assembly:

Add spinach to a serving bowl, top with HOT noodles and then add raw beef. The heat off of the noodles will help wilt the spinach.  Pour boiling broth over the beef. It will instantly cook the beef since it is thin and the broth is really hot.