Hue Noodle Soup Recipes

BúN Bò HUế - SPICY VIETNAMESE BEEF & PORK NOODLE SOUP

Steps:

• Clean the meat: Add all meat to a stock pot and enough water to submerge it, bring to a boil. Drain and rinse thoroughly under running water.
• Add the meat, broth, lemongrass and onions to the pot and fill with water almost to the brim. Bring to a boil then drop the heat to medium-high to maintain a low boil. Add the seasoning.
• Let it simmer and periodically check the meats for doneness and remove them as they finish cooking. The pork should be done after about an hour, the beef can vary between 2-3 hours.
• After all the meat has removed, let it cool, then slice it. Adjust seasoning and add water to the broth pot if necessary.
• Make the aromatics & coloring then add it to the pot.
• Boil noodles according to package instructions.
• Assemble your bowl, and serve with herbs and veg on a side platter.
• Sauté seeds in oil on medium heat until the seeds give up the bright red color, then remove the seeds.
• Add shallots and garlic, sauté until brown.
• Add all of this to the pot of broth for color.
• The easiest thing to do is just buy it already cooked and boil just to heat it up. If you use the raw type like we did for this recipe, cut into 1" cubes and boil for 30-45 minutes
• Prepare a bowl of about 2 cups of water, mixed with the juice of 1 lemon.
• Thinly slice the banana flower and add to the water mixture to sit for about 30 minutes.
• Avoid adding little fronds (that look like mini bananas), removing them as you encounter them. They taste bitter!
• Weigh out the dried Thai chiles, then soak in just enough warm water to cover the chiles for 20 minutes. Drain the water.
• Add all sate ingredients to a pan on medium heat and stir continuously to brown, cook, and slightly reduce the chile paste, about 30-40 minutes. If at any point it becomes too dry, you can add more oil, up to 50% of the amount we started with. Taste and reseason with sugar or salt as desired. See photo for how the final product should look.
• Let cool and transfer to a sealed jar stored in the fridge . You can add ~2 tbsp of the final product to the soup pot for a boost in flavor and color, or simply and let each person add to their bowl to make it as spicy as they'd like!

VIETNAMESE SPICY BEEF NOODLE SOUP (BUN BO HUE)

Steps:

• Clean the bones and meat: To a large stockpot, add knuckles, boneless shanks and tendon. Add water to cover and bring the pot to a boil. When the pot reaches a rolling boil and impurities float to the top (about 5-7 minutes after boiling), turn off the heat. Place a colander in the sink and drain the contents of the pot into the colander. Thoroughly rinse bones/meat under cold running water and drain dry. Wrap up boneless pork shank into a tight bundle with twine for easier slicing later.
• Wash the used pot thoroughly and return it to the stove. Transfer parboiled bones/meat to the pot and fill with 5 quarts of water. Smash the lemongrass stalks and tie them with twine. Peel the shallots/onions and slice the ginger into thick coins. All all to the stockpot. Bring the pot to a boil then lower heat to cook on a low simmer, covered, for 2 hours. Occasionally skim the surface of the stock to keep it clear.
• After one hour of cooking, pork knuckles should be done first. Check the knuckles for doneness by piercing it with a chopstick. When chopstick pierces through easily without resistance, knuckles are done. Remove and set aside. After 1-½ hours, beef and pork shanks should be done too. Check for doneness by piercing them with a chopstick. If there is no resistance and water runs clear, shanks are done. Remove and set aside with the knuckles. Beef tendons will cook the longest (about 2 hours). Once done, transfer tendon, shanks, and knuckles to the refrigerator to cool. For quicker cooling, place them in an iced bath. Chilling will firm up the meat and make it easier for slicing. Once chilled, cut knuckles into bite-size pieces if they are too big, and thinly sliced the shanks and tendon. Set everything aside as meaty toppings.
• Remove all remaining solids (onions/shallots, ginger, lemongrass, and pineapple) from the stockpot. Season stock with chicken stock powder, fish sauce, sea salt, rock sugar, and fermented shrimp paste. Add a little at a time to your liking. For the fermented shrimp paste, it's best to whisk it together with a bit of stock water to prevent clumps then pour it into the stockpot.
• Sate sauce: In a small saucepan, heat up vegetable oil on medium-low heat. Add shallots and lemongrass. Pan fry for 10 seconds or until fragrant. Add garlic, your desired amount of chili peppers, and Bun Bo Hue seasoning packet next. Pan fry for 5 seconds then turn off the heat to prevent burning. If you can't find Bún Bò Huế seasoning powder, substitute with paprika or similar red pepper powder. Season with fish sauce and sugar. Add sate sauce to the stock. For those with children or anyone who can't handle spicy food, divide the stock before adding sate sauce, or simply add sate sauce to individual bowls instead.
• Cook the noodles for 20 minutes or until soft (disregard package instructions as I typically find that it's never long enough). Place a colander in the sink and drain noodles into the colander. Rinse with cold water to prevent sticking.
• To assemble, place a handful of noodles into a bowl. Add desired amount of sliced boneless shanks, pork knuckles/hocks, sliced Vietnamese ham (Cha Lua/Gio Lua) and pork blood cubes (if using). Ladle in hot broth. Garnish with sliced green onions and cilantro. Serve with a platter of fresh vegetables and lime/lemon wedges. You can also serve with a small bowl of shrimp paste and sate sauce on the side for further individual customizations.

HUE NOODLE SOUP

Steps:

• Finely chop enough lemongrassstalks to measure 4 teaspoons. Cut remaining stalks in half. Place beef and stalks in large pot. Add broth and 8 cups water; bring to boil. Reduce heat; simmer 1 1/2 hours.
• Heat oil in medium skillet over medium heat. Add 1/3 of sliced onions and garlic; sauté 1 minute. Add 1 tablespoon sambal oelek, paprika, and chopped lemongrass; sauté 1 minute. Add sambal oelek mixture to soup; mix in fish sauce, sugar, shrimp paste, and salt. Simmer until beef is tender, skimming foam from surface, about 1 hour. Remove beef from soup. Skim fat from surface of soup. Simmer soup until reduced to 8 cups, about 10 minutes. Add more sambal oelek for spicier flavor. Trim off any fat from beef; cut meat into bite-size pieces.
• Bring large saucepan of water toboil. Add noodles; boil 1 minute. Drain; rinse under cold water and drain again. Using scissors, cut noodles crosswise. Divide noodles among 4 large bowls. Top with beef, remaining sliced onions, green onions, and cilantro.
• Bring soup to boil; ladle over noodles. Toss cabbage and rau ram in small bowl. Sprinkle over soup. Top with chiles, if desired; squeeze lime over.
• *Available at Asian markets.

BUN BO HUE (VIETNAMESE BEEF AND PORK NOODLE SOUP)

Steps:

• For the broth: Place a large colander in the sink. Place the oxtails, marrow bones, beef shin and pork hocks in a large (at least 8-quart) pot. Cover with cold water and bring to a boil over high heat. Let boil for a few minutes, then remove from the heat. Scoop out the bones and meat into the colander and discard the water. Wash the pot. Rinse off the bones and meat and put them back into the pot. Fill with fresh cold water to cover by 1 inch. Add the yellow onion halves and 1 tablespoon salt. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Periodically skim the foam and some, but not all, of the fat. Simmer until the meats are tender but not falling apart, 1 to 1 1/2 hours, then remove the beef shins and pork hocks. (Do not remove the oxtails or pork neck bones at this stage, if using.) When the meats are completely cool, wrap them in plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to serve.
• Meanwhile, cut the tops off of the lemongrass stalks, about 6 inches from the base, and discard. Smash 6 of the bottom stalks with a meat pounder to bruise and open up the lemongrass. For the remaining 4 stalks, peel off 2 or 3 layers until you reach the smoother, more tender core. Quarter the peeled stalks lengthwise and then slice thinly across. Reserve the sliced lemongrass for the satay.
• Add the bruised lemongrass stalks to the broth and continue to simmer until the broth has reduced by about 10 percent from its original amount, about 1 more hour, then strain the broth into a clean pot. If using, pick the meat from the cooled oxtail and pork neck bones (save the beef shins and pork hocks for later) and reserve; discard the bones, onion and lemongrass.
• Bring the shrimp paste and 2 cups water to a simmer in a small saucepan, then let simmer for 5 minutes. Skim off the foam. Remove from the heat and let sit for 15 minutes for the fine solids to settle to the bottom. Pour the shrimp water into the large pot of stock, leaving the fine solids behind.
• For the satay: Heat the vegetable oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add the annatto seeds and let the seeds infuse the oil and turn it red, about 1 minute. Scoop out the seeds with a spoon and discard. Add the shallots to the annatto oil and cook until starting to brown, about 2 minutes. Add the garlic, chile flakes and the reserved chopped lemongrass and cook until the garlic starts to brown, about 3 minutes. Add 2 tablespoons fish sauce, 4 teaspoons sugar and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Stir to incorporate and then cook, stirring occasionally, until the mixture is sticky and thickened slightly to the texture of loose jam. (The satay is done when a spoon dragged across the bottom of the skillet leaves a trail and the oil begins to separate from the solids.) Turn off the heat and remove half of the satay for serving. Add about 1 cup of the broth to the remaining satay in the skillet and bring to a simmer. Simmer for 5 minutes to infuse, then strain back into the pot with the broth.
• Add the remaining tablespoon fish sauce, teaspoon sugar and 2 teaspoons salt to the broth. Simmer for 15 minutes for the flavors to meld. Add the pork hocks back into the simmering broth to re-warm, and slice the beef shin meat . Before serving, taste the broth and add more seasoning, if necessary.
• Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook the noodles according to the manufacturer's instructions. Drain very well, and divide among 8 bowls. Top each bowl with a pork hock, if using, some slices of shin, some oxtail and pork neck meat, if using; top with scallions, white onion and cilantro. Pour hot broth into the bowls to completely cover the noodles.
• Serve with the reserved satay and suggested garnishes on the side.