Slow cooker slowly making some **phở đuôi bò** (oxtail broth), I had run out of yellow onion, so used red onions instead. Photo by PattyCooks.

Pho Broth + Options

Making your own Pho broth and choices of soup types

5 from 2 votes

Print Rate

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: Vietnamese

Keyword: Pho, Pho and Ramen, Pho Soup

Servings:

Calories: 450kcal

Author: Patty

Equipment

Parchment lined baking sheet
Tongs
Slow Cooker
Sieve
Pan with lid for noodles
Knife and veggie station for herbs, veggies, etc.

Ingredients

Broth

1 Beef knuckle
1 # Larger oxtails
8 C Water
1 Yellow onion Use skin, roots, and all quartered
3 Elephant garlic Use skin and all halved
6 Shitaki Mushrooms Slice, but use stems and caps for broth
3 star anise
1 t peppercorns
1 t chili garlic paste
1 T fish sauce
1 T worstershire sauce
1 Inch Fresh ginger Sliced lengthwise as many as you can
1 Scallion Use white and green parts
2 T tamari

Dinner options involving noodles

8 packet Ramen Noodles
8 Servings Veggies

Instructions

Mise en Place

Set oven to 475F, and prep a baking sheet with parchment
Set slow cooker on high, add 4-8C water to heat up.

Meat Prep

Salt and pepper beef knuckle and oxtails on both sides, thenplace on the parchment lined baking sheet and place in the oven. The goal here is to get the char flavor and to render some of the fat so the broth is not too fatty.
Cook 1hr, fliping them over midway.
Once done, using tongs add the meat to slow cooker, but not any of the rendered fat.

Veggie Prep

Use the baking sheet again (with the fat) and add the quartered onion (skin, roots and all) and the halved elephant garlic (skin and all).
Cook 30-45 minutes until veggies are charred a bit. Add the veggies to the slow cooker, but again do not use the fat. At this point the parchment paper and fat can cool down and then trow away.
Slice Shitake mushrooms and stems and add to the broth, and cook for another hour.

Tastify the broth

At this time period we should taste the broth, and most likely you will find it is a bit bland. We will now add spice and other flavor enhancers.
Add peppercorns, star anise, and sliced ginger to the broth. Let it cook for another hour, adding water to keep the slow cooker filled to the top and thus making sure the meat is submerged.
In hour 6, taste the broth again and while better you will still need to add enhances. Add Tamari, fish sauce, worsertershire sauce, and the chilie/garlic sauce. Mix well and continue to slow cook.

Finishing the Broth

Finally, in hour 8 taste the broth again and if it is good you are done.
If it still needs something, add more sauces and cook for another 30 minutes to make sure the additions are fully incorporated into the broth.
If done, and yummy tasting, remove the meat and bones from the broth, and set aside to cool. Use the beef meat, fat and gristle for dog treats. Save the oxtail meat for the Pho dish.
Pour the broth through a sieve. Toss all the spice and veggie materials in the soup and keep the broth. If you want, this is the time to put the broth into containers to cool down for freezing.

Options for Dinner

RAMEN DISH: Cook a packet of ramen noodles, sliced scallion (green and white), Thai basil, sliced jalapenos, and bean sprouts. Add some of the oxtail meat.
SOUP DISH: Add some rice noodles with sliced scallion, brocolli, and thinly sliced carrots. Add some cubed tofu or the oxtail meat.
DIFF SOUP: Put julienne spinach at the bottom of a bowl, add noodles, top with a cup or two of broth. Then add thinly match-sticked carrots, fried thinly sliced broccoli stems, and some of the oxtail meat.

Notes

Options for dinner are ramen based, or veggie with some noodles.

1) Ramen dish: Add a packet of ramen noodles per person, and once cooked place in a bowl. Top with 1-2C broth, and sliced scallion (green and white). On the perimeter of the soup, add Thai basil whole leaves, thinly sliced jalapeños peppers, and fresh bean sprouts. Additionally, place ~2T of the shredded oxtail meat.

I should note there are gluten-free Ramen noodles, mainly from Lotus. I generally use these, even when not serving someone who needs to avoid glutten. The cost in my area is ~$1.19 per Ramen noodle serving alone.

2) Soup dish: Add some cooked rice noodles in the bowl with sliced scallion, fried broccoli, and thinly sliced carrots. Then the broth and top with some cubed tofu or the oxtail meat.

3) Another version: Put julienne spinach at the bottom of a bowl, add noodles, top with a cup or two of broth. Then add thinly match-sticked carrots, fried thinly sliced broccoli stem, and some of the oxtail meat.

The nutrition count used in this recipe above includes noodles and veggies/herbs. The broth alone is just ~21c per serving.

Nutrition

Pho Broth + Options