Faux Pho

While visiting Seattle, I had some delicious Vietnamese Pho in a little place that was so pretty I wish I'd taken a picture of it. Orange trim, steamy windows with lettering stenciled on them... ah well, sometimes we have to take a picture with our senses rather than a camera.

Those of you who live in urban areas with diverse food cultures available night and day may not understand my preoccupation with Pho, but believe me, if you lived in culturally deprived Napa Valley, you would soon feel the same way. In San Francisco or Seattle, it is possible to whet your appetite for Pho on a whim, but out here in agricultural paradise, we sometimes have to make do. Or Pho, as the case may be. Here's my pretty quick and pretty delicious attempt to replicate Pho quickly at home. See what you think.

Pho at Home

For the broth

8 cups water

6 teaspoons Better than Bouillion vegetable stock base (this is slightly weaker than the recommended amount for other uses)

1 cinnamon stick

6 quarter-sized coins of peeled ginger (peel it with a teaspoon)

2 star anise (if you have it, if not, omit)

2 teaspoons rice or cider vinegar

2 green onions, sliced diagonally so they are pretty

1 pinch red pepper flakes

2 tsp fish sauce (if you have it- I did not)

A sprinkle of soy sauce or Bragg's Aminos

1-2 cups cabbage of any kind, sliced off the head into wide strips

For the garnish (these are not optional)

1 lime, cut into small wedges

1 bunch basil (Thai basil if you can get it), washed and dried

1 bunch cilantro, washed and dried

1 jalapeño or serrano pepper, thinly sliced

2 more green onions, sliced diagonally

1/2 c mung bean sprouts per serving, rinsed and drained

Condiments

Sriracha chili paste (the clear bottle with the white rooster and green cap)

Hoisin Sauce

Optional Protein of your choice, such as thinly-sliced rare beef, cooked chicken, pork or tofu, or even an egg

Noodles

1 package thick or thin "rice stick" noodles, cooked according to package directions until al dente, then returned to a covered pan with a little oil on the bottom to keep them from sticking.

Begin by preparing the broth:

Add all stock ingredients except the cabbage to a stock or saucepan big enough to hold them. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. You'll have to taste for balance: what you're looking for is a very delicately flavored stock with a tiny bit of tang and a tiny bit of savory. As the stock cooks, the ginger, anise and cinnamon flavors will become more prominent. Do not be afraid of the fish sauce! It smells funky, but it adds important depth and complexity. (DO NOT spill it.) Its flavor will also meld into the whole. Wait to add the chopped cabbage until near the end, when the meal is 10-20 minutes away, or it will lose its bright color.

If your noodles aren't cooked, then boil up some water and do that. If your noodles are already cooked, use your simmering time to prepare your garnishes and proteins. The last time I made it, I marinated boneless, skinless chicken thighs in soy (or Bragg's Aminos), agave, ginger, green onion and sesame, and then cooked them in the oven, in the marinade, for 40 minutes at 325, then chopped them up and put them on top of the noodles and broth. Fast and tasty. This would work for pork also. Alternately, you can drop an egg per person into the stock as it simmers, a few minutes before serving. I do not think that this is traditional, but it's good.

To serve, set out your plate of garnishes and your condiments. (Make sure you've cooked your cabbage in the stock until slightly tender and bright green.) Place a serving of noodles in a big, deep bowl for each person. Ladle in the stock and cabbage, and place your protein item on top. Each person doctors up the bowl to their liking at the table. I recommend using all of the condiments, as long as you're careful with the jalapeños.

If you don't already have a bottle of Sriracha at home, I urge you to purchase one and use it (sparingly at first!) on ramen, pizza (oh, especially pizza), mac and cheese, in peanut sauces, marinades, barbecue. It's our go-to sauce.

All of the recipes I found in books and on-line started with things like, "Boil 8 oxtail bones, skimming every 30 minutes". I don't mind homemade stocks, of course, but I think when one has a craving for Pho, one doesn't want to have it tomorrow, after the marrow bones are boiled, skimmed, and clarified, right? So I wanted to make this something that with all of the ingredients on hand, could be whipped up in 30-40 minutes and would be a little different.

Let me know how it goes!