Hello! And welcome to the 38th post of Pizza Rat's Paradise.
Recipe:
Ingredients:
Bouillon Powder
Water
Chinese Five Spice Powder
Sriracha Sauce
Hoisin Sauce
Cilantro
Lime/Lemon Wedges
At the end, turn off the heat and add in flavorings:
A squirt or two of Sriracha sauce (one can add in Hoisin Sauce, if they so wish)
Freshly chopped cilantro
Freshly squeezed lime/lemon wedge
Directions:
In a pot, add bouillon powder (or make any broth you want), bouillon is all I happened to have at the time, to water and bring to a roiling boil.
Add about 2 pinches of Chinese 5 Spice (there are many variants, but the one that I currently have contains white pepper) into the broth.
While the broth is boiling (or simmering, however you like to deepen the flavors), I freshly chop some cilantro and my lime/lemon into wedges for easy squeezing, and to extract as much juice from the fruit.
Squirt some Sriracha into the broth, then mix thoroughly.
Turn off the heat, add cilantro, and squeeze citrus (lemon/lime) juice on top for a garnish.
Enjoy!
In no way is this truly authentic, but inspired by authentic pho-broths I've had in Vietnamese restaurants, that sourced extremely fresh, and healthy ingredients, and made excellent, high-quality food affordable, as well as had supremely excellent service. One of the things I noticed about this take was that the capsaicin in the Sriracha can help with soothing one's throat during colder months. What really makes it great is the fresh cilantro, citrus juice, beefy broth, and heat of the broth -- a mix of complex flavors that caress the tongue and warms the heart.
One thing I especially loved doing (and learned somewhere) in pho restaurants, was taking slices of the meat in the broth, and dipping it into sauces of Hoisin and Sriracha, eating it, and enjoying the noodles separately. Highly recommend you give it a try if you like pho and want to explore different ways of enjoying it!
If you have made it this far, thank you for reading! 💚
Appreciate any suggestions on what I should do next. If you would like to collaborate or support, feel free to comment, share, like below.
Accompanying Song: Ode To The Mets by The Strokes