Bún Bò Huế | Spicy Beef & Pork Noodle Soup
Ingredients
Instructions
- Blanche the meats and beef tendon in a large pot of boiling water with ginger slices and onion scraps to clean.
- Boil for a few minutes, then drain and rinse under cold water to ice shock the meats. (this step tenderizes the meat)
- Discard the poaching liquid and clean the pot.
- In the cleaned pot, add the filtered and poached meats.
- add the lemongrass stalks, ginger slices, quartered onion, halved shallots, pineapple chunks, and coconut water.
- Pour the chicken stock and add the Bún Bò Huế seasoning (including five spices, and Chinese chili powder).
- Bring the mixture to a simmer.
- Add the blanched meats and tendon back into the pot.
- Simmer gently for about 2.5 hours, or until the meats are tender.
- Remove the meats and tendon from the broth and set them on a roasting rack to cool.
- Strain the broth and discard the solids.
- Return the strained broth to the pot.
- Season with fermented shrimp paste, fish sauce, Sa Tế, and sugar/salt to taste.
- Adjust the seasoning to your preference, balancing the savory, spicy, and sweet flavors.
- Green Cabbage: Thinly slice and place the green cabbage in a serving bowl.
- Banana Flower: Peel away the tough outer layers of the banana flower until you reach the tender, light-colored inner layers. Thinly slice the banana flower and soak the slices in water with lemon or lime juice to prevent browning. Drain before serving.
- Fresh Herbs: Prepare a mix of fresh herbs such as Thai basil, cilantro, and mint. Rinse the herbs thoroughly and set them in a serving bowl.
- Bean Sprouts: Rinse and drain fresh bean sprouts.
- Lime Wedges: Cut limes into wedges for squeezing over the soup.
- Thai Chili: Thinly slice Thai chili peppers for those who prefer extra heat. Place them in a small dish.
- Additional Garnishes: Provide small dishes of additional Sa Tế (Vietnamese chili sauce), Mắm Tôm (Fermented Shrimp Paste), and fish sauce so that diners can adjust the flavor to their liking.