✓ Kitchen-Tested Recipe🍽 4 Servings
YIELD: 4 to 6 servings | PREP TIME: 10 minutes | STOVETOP: 5 minutes
• 3 to 4 quarts Pho Broth (2 cups (480 ml) per serving)
• 1¼ pounds flank steak, sliced very thin
• Sliced oxtail and beef shank from the pho broth
• 1 (6-inch) daikon, peeled and made into noodles with a julienne peeler or spiral slicer
• 1 to 2 green onions, sliced
• Several sprigs fresh cilantro, mint, and/or Thai basil
• 1 to 2 serrano chiles or jalapeño peppers, sliced
• 6 to 8 cups (1920 ml) cooked rice noodles, tapioca noodles, or zucchini noodles
FOR SERVING:
• Sriracha
• Fish sauce
• Lime wedges
1. Heat the broth until steaming.
2. Meanwhile, prepare a platter with the sliced flank steak, oxtail and beef shank, daikon noodles, green onions, fresh herbs, and chiles.
3. Divide the broth and noodles among four to six serving bowls.
4. Serve with the platter of steak and other ingredients to be added to the bowls of broth and noodles. Provide Sriracha, fish sauce, and lime wedges for people to add to their soup as they wish.
Chef’s Tips: To make slicing easier, pop the flank steak in the freezer for 30 minutes. The steak will cook once it’s added to the piping-hot broth.
If you make the pho broth more than 3 days before making this soup, freeze the sliced oxtail and beef shank until needed.
Lower-Carb Modification: Use zucchini noodles instead of rice or tapioca noodles.
Classic beef pho is a DIY table experience: steaming hot broth poured over paper-thin flank steak that cooks in the bowl itself. Daikon noodles stand in for rice noodles, and the platter of herbs, chiles, and lime lets everyone build their own bowl. It is a restaurant-worthy soup assembled in five minutes of active cooking.
Pro Tips for Success
- Pop the flank steak in the freezer for 30 minutes before slicing. Semi-frozen meat is the only way to get the paper-thin slices that cook instantly in hot broth.
- The broth must be genuinely hot when it hits the bowls — it is doing the cooking, and tepid broth will leave the steak gray and chewy.
- Slice the oxtail and beef shank saved from the pho broth and add them back to the bowls; they are the cook's reward for making proper broth.
- Freeze the sliced cooked meats if the broth was made more than three days ahead, as the recipe advises — it keeps the whole assembly fresh.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is classic beef pho paleo?
Served with daikon or zucchini noodles instead of rice noodles it is grain-free and paleo, and the broth itself is pure bone-deep goodness.
How do I keep the flank steak tender in pho?
Slice it as thinly as possible and let the boiling broth cook it for just 30-60 seconds in the bowl. Overcooked steak turns tough quickly.
What herbs should I serve with beef pho?
Fresh cilantro, mint, and Thai basil are the classic trio, along with sliced green onions, serrano chiles, and lime wedges for squeezing.
How much broth do I need per serving?
About 2 cups per bowl, so plan 3-4 quarts of pho broth for 4-6 servings. Leftover broth freezes perfectly for the next pho night.
- 3 to 4 quarts Pho Broth (2 cups per serving)
- 1¼ pounds flank steak, sliced very thin
- 1 (6-inch) daikon, peeled and made into noodles with a julienne peeler or spiral slicer
- 1 to 2 green onions, sliced
- Several sprigs fresh cilantro, mint, and/or Thai basil
- 1 to 2 serrano chiles or jalapeño peppers, sliced
- 6 to 8 cups cooked rice noodles, tapioca noodles, or zucchini noodles
- Sriracha
- Fish sauce
- Lime wedges
- Heat the broth until steaming.
- Divide the broth and noodles among four to six serving bowls.
Sliced oxtail and beef shank from the pho broth
Lower-Carb Modification: Use zucchini noodles instead of rice or tapioca noodles.
