Pho - Vietnamese Beef and Noodle Soup

Hubby and I have always been fans of Vietnamese Beef and Noodle Soup. Whenever we see a Viet restuarant in sight, we would immediately make a beeline for it and order this dish together with Vietnamese Spring Rolls.

I have actually modified the recipe slightly from my cookbook, as I do not have ready-made beef stock on hand. Thankfully the end result was still good. Makes an easy but stomach warming dinner.

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Vietnamese Beef and Noodle Soup
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Soup base:
2 litres water
2 Knorrs beef stock cubes
1 white onion
1 star anise
1 cinnamon stick

400gm tenderloin beef, sliced as thin as you could manage

300gm cooked rice noodles (kuay teow)

Accompaniments:
1 lime, sliced into wedges
1/2 small white onion, sliced thinly
30 mint leaves
150gm bean sprout, tailed
2 chili padi, sliced thinly
3 sprigs spring onion, sliced thinly

1. Make soup base by combining all the ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and let simmer for 20 mins. Discard solids.

2. Portion rice noodles into serving bowls and top with sliced beef. Pour hot soup over the beef to par-cook it. Garnish with accompaniments to serve.