Pho {Vietnamese Beef Noodle Soup}

If you love this pho recipe and want more, be sure to check out our Leftover Turkey Pho and Turkey Meatball Pho.

There’s no other way to put this: Pho {Vietnamese Beef Noodle Soup} is my favourite food in the world. Simply put, there’s no other food I crave more than this.

Fragrant beef broth made aromatic by simmering with toasted spices, ginger, and scallions poured over paper thin slices of beef on top of rice noodles are good enough by themselves. It’s dreamy.

But with the traditional Pho recipe toppings of bean sprouts, fresh cilantro and basil, thin slices of hot peppers (if you’re brave), and a squeeze of lime, you’re absolutely in another world.

It’s world where every bite is a taste explosion! No noodle soup will ever be able to compare again after jumping on the Pho train.

When I’m celebrating, I want pho. If I’m sad, I want pho. When I’m horribly sick, this soup -THIS PHO RECIPE- is what my cells NEED to feel better.

Easy Beef Pho Recipe

You could argue that the best pho starts with homemade, slow-simmered beef broth and I wouldn’t disagree with you, but I’m going to say that the KEY to this is the right combo of toasted spices: coriander seed, star anise, cinnamon stick, and clove.

Saaaaay WHAH? Yep, you heard me. What makes you think “CINNABON!” is exactly what you want here.

Don’t worry! You’ll strain it out before you finish your soup.

Our pho recipe may even smell cinnabon-y while it’s simmering, but I guarantee all association with cinnamon rolls will flee when you taste it poured over the paper thin slices of raw beef atop your rice noodles. Please don’t look at me like that.

Yes, raw beef. You make the slices as thin as humanly possible and put them on hot noodles then top them with boiling broth. They’re plenty cooked when it comes time to slurp the works up, and slurp you will.

The final assembly of the pho recipe is a wonder of kitchen alchemy and a thing of beauty. Rice noodles go down in the bowl.

If you want, throw a couple thin slices of  fresh jalapeno into the bowl first. Impossibly thin slices of flank steak are draped over the noodles.

Boiling pho broth is poured over the beef, noodles, and jalapeno slices. Give it a quick stir with your spoon, a fork, or chopsticks to help the beef along.

Top it with fists full of fresh bean sprouts, sliced scallions, cilantro, and basil. Squeeze some lime wedges over the top and -please- a little squirt or five of sriracha. Then swoon.

Looking for another amazing soup? Try our Instant Pot Ramen!

Beef Pho

Flank steak is ideal, but in a pinch, you can substitute top or bottom round sliced super thin. Speaking of slicing beef super thin, you’ll find it’s a lot easier if you do two things: a) have a VERY sharp knife and b) stick your steak in the freezer for 15 minutes or so before attempting to slice it. That will make it more firm which translates to easier to slice.

And if you’re worried about frozen beef cooking in the boiling broth, don’t be. Remember… this is super thin stuff. It’ll probably thaw before you’re even ready to put it on the noodles!

Aaaaand speaking of noodles, these pho noodles rock.  Rice noodles are the most traditional (and tastiest) choice.

They have the added convenience of not needing to be boiled. You can soak them in super hot water for 10 minutes in a bowl while you’re simmering the stock or prepping the rest of the ingredients.

Broth: Yep. Homemade is best.

If you can’t do it, though, use a good quality, low-sodium canned beef stock or broth. You’re going to be giving it a major boost in self-confidence anyway with the spices.

Toasted spices: Watch ’em. Oh please watch them. Don’t walk out of the room. The second you smell them you add that stock or broth pronto and watch out for the sputtering!

This honestly is a meal in one bowl. You don’t need side dishes with this pho recipe. You could definitely accompany it with a Vietnamese Iced Coffee, though!

Be generous in your servings! Pho is traditionally served in bowls about as big as your head. Fill it up!

Use these tools to make your pho recipe

• fine mesh strainer
• stockpot
• pho bowls

Pho Recipe

Here is a synopsis of the steps needed to make your Pho recipe. For the full printable recipe, scroll down.

Easy Pho Broth:

Place a heavy-bottomed soup pot over medium low heat. Add all of the spices and stir them until fragrant, about 1 to 2 minutes.

Carefully add the beef broth; it will sputter quite a bit. Turn the heat to high and add the remaining broth ingredients.

When it reaches a boil, reduce heat to low and simmer, uncovered for 20-30 minutes. Strain the broth through a fine-mesh sieve into another saucepot or soup pot. Keep it at a simmer while you assemble your bowls and garnishes.

To Serve Pho:

Lay desired amount of jalapeno slices in the bottom of each bowl. Top with a generous amount of rice noodles. Drape the beef evenly over the noodles and pour the boiling broth over top.

Give a quick stir to help cook the beef, then pile on bean sprouts, sliced scallions (green onions), basil, and cilantro. Squeeze a couple of lime wedges and let them rest in the broth to lend to the flavour.

Serve with sriracha and/or hoisin sauce. It’s best to serve this the traditional way: with chopsticks AND a soup spoon. You can use a fork in lieu of chopsticks if you wish. Slurping is encouraged!

Pho {Vietnamese Beef Noodle Soup}

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Rebecca Lindamood

Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Total Time 30 minutes mins

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Fragrant beef broth made aromatic by simmering with toasted spices, ginger, and scallions poured over paper thin slices of beef on top of rice noodles are good enough by themselves, but with the traditional Pho toppings of bean sprouts, fresh cilantro and basil, thin slices of hot peppers (if you’re brave), and a squeeze of lime, you’re absolutely in another world; a world where everything is a taste explosion! No noodle soup will ever be able to compare again after jumping on the Pho train!

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

For 1 quart of the Broth:

• 2 tablespoons whole coriander seeds do not substitute ground coriander here. It will not work.
• 1 cinnamon stick roughly broken
• 4 whole star anise
• 4 whole cloves
• 1 quart beef broth
• 1 piece of ginger 3-inch size, roughly chopped
• 1 bunch of scallions or green onions reserve the green parts for garnishing the soup, white parts only
• 1 tablespoon fish sauce
• 2 teaspoons brown sugar

For assembling and garnishing each bowl of Pho:

• 1-5 slices fresh jalapeno pepper depending on your spice tolerance
• 1 handful pho rice noodles soaked or cooked according to package directions
• 1/8-1/4 pound flank steak sliced paper thin
• 1 generous handful bean sprouts
• sliced scallions or green onions to taste green parts only
• several sprigs of fresh basil
• sprigs of fresh cilantro
• 1-3 lime wedges
• sriracha and/or hoisin sauce to taste

Instructions

 

• Place a heavy-bottomed soup pot over medium low heat. Add all of the spices and stir them until fragrant, about 1 to 2 minutes. Carefully add the beef broth; it will sputter quite a bit. Turn the heat to high and add the remaining broth ingredients. When it reaches a boil, reduce heat to low and simmer, uncovered for 20-30 minutes. Strain the broth through a fine-mesh sieve into another saucepot or soup pot. Keep it at a simmer while you assemble your bowls and garnishes.

To Assemble and Garnish Each Bowl of Pho:

• Lay desired amount of jalapeno slices in the bottom of each bowl. Top with a generous amount of rice noodles. Drape the beef evenly over the noodles and pour the boiling broth over top. Give a quick stir to help cook the beef, then pile on bean sprouts, sliced scallions (green onions), basil, and cilantro. Squeeze a couple of lime wedges and let them rest in the broth to lend to the flavour. Serve with sriracha and/or hoisin sauce. It’s best to serve this the traditional way: with chopsticks AND a soup spoon. You can use a fork in lieu of chopsticks if you wish. Slurping is encouraged!

Nutrition

Calories: 320kcalCarbohydrates: 53gProtein: 16gFat: 4gSaturated Fat: 1gCholesterol: 34mgSodium: 958mgPotassium: 390mgFiber: 2gSugar: 2gVitamin A: 180IUVitamin C: 22.5mgCalcium: 59mgIron: 2.3mg

Nutritional information is an estimate and provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe using your preferred nutrition calculator.

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This post originally published June 2014. Updated November 2018 and March 2023.