Oxtail Pho

8 hours 30 mins Prep Time

4 hours 0 mins Cook Time

Written By

Nadia Boachie

Have you ever wanted to make your own pho? Well, why not try it now? Pho is a Vietnamese soup composed of a clean, clear broth, rice noodles, herbs, beef and sometimes chicken. Pho is very popular across Vietnam and has become a popular dish across various Canadian cities. With the second lockdown in full effect, you may have a bit of extra time on your hands, so why not try out this recipe. Making pho requires a lot of love, care and the freshest ingredients and dried whole herbs to make the stock delicious!

The stock is the hardest part. The rest is fairly easy and requires getting all the toppings necessary to finish off your pho. To make pho, first char onions and ginger, parboil the oxtail to get rid of excess debris and fat and simmer with charred ginger, onion, coriander, cinnamon, cloves and star anise. The broth is strained, meat is taken off the bone (actually, it falls right off) and set aside. The next day, the broth is brought to a boil before adding rice noodles and toppings.

Though you may not get the expertly developed subtle yet deep, layered flavours that home cooks and chefs who have been making pho for years achieve, it is exciting to try to use the same traditional techniques and ingredients to make this Vietnamese favourite. This recipe is from I am Food Blog with several added tips and tricks for the cooking process.

Ingredients

Stock

1 3"-4"-inch piece of ginger
2 white onions, halved
1 teaspoon whole coriander seeds
1 teaspoon whole cloves
4 whole star anise
2 pounds oxtail
5 quarts water
1 cinnamon stick
1 large carrot, peeled and cut into large chunks
1 small daikon, peeled and cut into large chunks
2 tablespoons fish sauce, or to taste
2 tablespoons sugar, or to taste

To Serve

1 package rice noodles
Scallions, thinly sliced
Cilantro, roughly chopped
Red chilis
Thai basil
Lime wedges
Hoisin sauce
Sriracha

Directions

Oxtail Pho

8 Steps

Step 1

Char ginger and onions in the oven on broil until everything is nicely charred. Peel the ginger and onions and set aside until you’re ready to start your broth.
Step 2

Toast the coriander seeds, cloves and star anise in a dry pan on low heat until spices are aromatic, about 2-3 minutes. Tie the spices up in cheesecloth for easy removal from your soup. If you do not have whole spices and you really don't want to buy whole spices, you can use a teaspoon of each dried spice. This may affect the final colour of your stock though.
Step 3

Put your oxtail pieces in a large pot with cold water and bring to a hard boil for 5-10 minutes to force the scum and impurities out. There will literally be foamy 'debris' at the top of your boiling water. Drain, rinse the oxtails and wash your pot.
Step 4

Fill your clean pot with about 5 quarts of water and add the oxtail, ginger, onions, spice packet, cinnamon stick, carrots and daikon. Bring to a boil and lower to a very gentle simmer, uncovered. Simmer for as long as you can; reducing it will intensify the flavour. Let the water reduce and simmer for at least 4 hours.
Step 5

After 4 hours, take out oxtails, set aside, remove everything else from the stock and strain the stock into a new clean pot and cool before putting in the fridge overnight.
Step 6

Remove the meat from the oxtails and discard the bones, cover and put in the fridge for the next day. The meat should fall off the bone.
Step 7

The next day, a large amount of fat will have coagulated on the top of your stock. The stock will also be gelatinous. Skim and discard the fat. Gently heat the stock up and season with fish sauce and sugar. Keep in mind that you will be adding hoisin to the stock later when eating, so the stock does not have to be that salty. Bring the stock to a roiling boil.
Step 8

Prepare your noodles according to the package, strain and place in a large bowl. Add a generous amount of oxtail meat (the stock will heat the meat up), top with broth and all the garnishes. Enjoy your homemade bowl of pho!