I find it hard to pronounce the name of Vietnam’s national dish: an aromatic herb-laden soup called pho. To be sure, it’s just a one-syllable word. But when said out loud – as I’ve heard Vietnamese people say it – it leaves me hanging. 

Most online resources tell us to rhyme pho with “duh.” But “duh” stretches to a nice hard stop, while pho (“fuh”) is uttered as a short, unresolved pop. Happily, despite challenges of pronunciation, pho appeals to most palates, and is also ridiculously easy to make. 

Like many Asian dishes, pho comes together fast. (Long simmers and braises seem to be more of a northern-clime European thing.) But unlike Western fast food, pho is healthy and complex, with its brilliant balance of sweet, sour, salty, spicy and umami accented by copious amounts of fresh green herbs.  

To make it, you need to have a few key ingredients that may not be in your pantry, like fish sauce or nam pla—Vietnam’s sourer and funkier version of Worcestershire sauce—star anise and cinnamon sticks. It also calls for fresh ginger, garlic, cilantro, and mint. If you can find Thai basil, great—use it. Same for culantro, a skinny distant cousin of cilantro. 

Surely, every soup is improved by starting out with a homemade broth. But have I ever made pho with a base of Better-than-Boullion? Absolutely. I also got a tub of suspiciously yellow paste labeled “pho base” at an Asian market, that seems, from the ingredient list, to be chicken broth with the addition of fish sauce. I’ve used that, too. 

As with any national dish, there are many variations of pho—some with braised beef, beef stock, bok choy, and shitake mushrooms. The recipe I offer is simple. Other than boiling the rice noodles in advance, it’s one (pot) and done. For a vegetarian version, substitute tofu for chicken, and add sliced bok choy and shitake mushrooms to the broth.

Vietnamese pho

(serves 4)

Broth:

• 5 cups chicken broth, homemade or Better than Bouillon 
• 3 tablespoons Asian fish sauce (Nam Pla)
• 5 medium garlic cloves, smashed with the side of a knife, then peeled. 
• 1 2-inch piece of gingerroot, peeled and cut into 1/8-inch rounds 
• 3 scallions, sliced thin on the diagonal
• 3 cinnamon sticks
• 5 pods star anise
• 4 lime leaves (available at Asian markets)
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1-2 Thai chilis (opt)
• 1 thinly sliced oyster mushroom (opt)
• 12 oz. skinless-boneless chicken breast, cut into 1″ pieces 
  

Noodles

• 2 oz. flat Vietnamese or Thai rice noodles 

Toppings

• Bunch of cilantro—leaves and tender stems coarsely chopped
• Small bunch of fresh mint—leaves only, torn
• 4 scallions, white and green parts, sliced thin on the diagonal
• 2 cups mung bean sprouts
• 1/4 cup Thai (or regular) basil, torn (opt)
• 3-4 cilantro leaves (opt)
• Lime wedges, for serving

Directions: 

1. In a medium-sized pot, bring all broth ingredients to a simmer over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to low and cook gently, partially covered, about 20 minutes.
2. While soup is cooking, boil noodles in a pot of water for 4-5 minutes, then drain and transfer to a bowl. 
3. Taste the soup for its balance of sweet and sour. It’s okay to add more sugar, more fish sauce. Raise heat slightly and add the chicken. Cook until opaque inside.
4. Ladle strained soup into bowls, adding five or six small pieces of chicken. Add the rice noodles, then top generously with bean sprouts, cilantro, torn mint, scallions and Thai basil and culantro is you have them.  
5. Serve with lime wedges and the bottle of fish sauce for those who simply can’t get enough.
   
   
   Photos by Carolyn Swartz