← Nouns Cooking · Vietnamese

Ingredients

• 1 kg beef shank (shin) in one or two pieces
• 1 kg pork hocks or trotters, cut into chunks
• 3.5 l Water
• 5 lemongrass stalks, bruised and tied in a bundle
• 1 Onion, halved
• 5 cm piece Ginger, sliced and lightly smashed
• 1 tbsp Salt
• 1 tbsp rock sugar or sugar
• 2 tbsp fine shrimp paste (mắm ruốc), stirred into 125 ml water
• 3 tbsp Fish sauce
• 5 tbsp Vegetable oil
• 2 Lemongrass, white part, very finely chopped
• 2 Shallot, finely chopped
• 3 cloves Garlic, finely chopped
• 1 tbsp chilli flakes or Vietnamese chilli powder
• 1 tsp paprika (or annatto seeds, for colour)
• 600 g thick round rice noodles (bún bò Huế noodles)
• 200 g Bean sprouts
• ¼ white or red cabbage, finely shredded
• 1 bunch Mint
• 1 bunch Thai basil
• 3 Spring onion, thinly sliced
• 2 Lime, cut into wedges
• 2 Bird's eye chilli, sliced

Method

1. Put the beef and pork in a big pot, cover with cold water and bring to the boil. Boil hard for 10 min, then drain and rinse the meat and the pot to get rid of the scum. This keeps the broth clear.
2. Return the meat to the pot with the 3.5 litres of water, the lemongrass bundle, onion, ginger, salt and sugar. Bring to a simmer, skim, then add the shrimp-paste water, pouring it through a sieve and leaving any grit behind.
3. Simmer gently, uncovered, for 2½ hours. Lift out the beef after about 1½ hours, once a skewer slides in easily; drop it into cold water for 10 min so it stays moist, then slice thinly. Leave the pork in until it is very tender.
4. Meanwhile make the chilli oil: warm the oil in a small pan over medium-low heat, add the chopped lemongrass, shallots and garlic and fry for 3–4 minutes until golden. Take off the heat and stir in the chilli flakes and paprika; it should turn brick red without burning.
5. Strain the broth, discarding the aromatics, and return the pork. Stir in half the chilli oil and season with the fish sauce, then taste: it should be savoury, lemongrass-scented and slightly sweet. Add more salt or fish sauce if needed.
6. Cook the noodles following the packet (usually 10–12 minutes), rinse briefly in hot water and divide between deep bowls. Top with beef slices and a piece of pork, then ladle over the boiling broth.
7. Serve with the sprouts, cabbage, herbs, spring onion, lime and chillies, and the rest of the chilli oil so everyone can spice their own bowl.

Tips

• Contains shellfish (shrimp paste). Its funk mellows completely in the broth, so don’t skip it.
• In Huế the bowl often also holds Vietnamese pork sausage (chả lụa) and congealed pork blood; add slices of chả lụa if you can find it.

Sources

Written in our own words after cross-checking these recipes:

Vicky Pham Hungry Huy Marion's Kitchen