Homemade Beef Pho

There's something so comforting about a piping hot bowl of beef pho (aka pho bo).  Whether it's the flavorful slices of meat, or the light, but hearty broth, there's just something about it that satisfy all my cravings all at once. That, and whenever I'm feeling a little down, this will always brighten up my day.

However, for some odd reason, I've never had the urge to make it. This fortunately changed a few days ago, and my patience, and hard work was rewarded with something that taste better than some of the ones I've had in the past.

I have a feeling this will be something I'll make a least once a month.

This is the recipe I used as a guide line. I changed a few things to suit my taste.

What I did differently:

- didn't add the cinnamon
- didn't add the soup bones
- added 5 more star anise
- used 6 more cloves
- added about 3 tablespoons of sugar
- used 4 lbs of beef chuck which I cut into four pieces, and parboiled for five minutes
- simmered the meat in the broth till it was tender, and took it out and let the broth continue simmering for about one hour
- added about 2-3 cups of water since the broth was a bit too salty for my taste

Tip:

If you don't like, or are allergic to fish sauce, try using soy sauce instead. (Like the recipe for the picture below).

Since I  forgot to take a picture of the soup, here's a picture that's a bit similar to what it looked like. (What can I say? It's hard to remember to take a picture of something yummy before I dig in..lol!)

Pho Bo