Bun Bo Hue Xuan Hong Food

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!

BúN Bò HUE

Steps:

• 1. Make the stock: to ensure the pot is large enough to blanch the bones without boiling over, put the bones in the pot and add water to cover by 1 inch. Then remove the bones and set aside.
• 2. Bring the water to a boil. When it is at a rolling boil, add the oxtails, beef shank, and pork bones. Return the water to a boil and boil for 3 minutes. Drain the bones into a colander and rinse under cold running water. Rinse the pot and return the rinsed oxtails, neck bones, and shanks to the pot. Add the marrowbones and brisket.
• 3. Cut off the pale, fleshy part (the bottom 4 inches) of each lemongrass stalk and discard the leafy tops. Crush the lemongrass with the side of a cleaver or the bottom of a heavy pan and add it to the pot. Add 8 quarts fresh water and bring to a boil over high heat. Lower the heat so the liquid is at a simmer and skim off any scum that rises to the surface.
• 4. After 45 minutes, ready an ice-water bath, then check the brisket for doneness by using the chopstick test: transfer the brisket to a plate and poke it with a chopstick; the juices should run clear. If they do not, return the brisket to the pot and continue cooking, checking again in 10 minutes. When the brisket is done, remove it from the pot (reserving the cooking liquid) and immediately submerge it in the ice-water bath, which will stop the cooking and give the meat a firmer texture. When the brisket is completely cool, remove from the water, pat dry, and refrigerate.
• 5. Continue to simmer the stock for another 2 hours, skimming as needed to remove any scum that forms on the surface. Remove from the heat and remove and discard the large solids. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a large saucepan. Skim most of the fat from the surface of the stock (leave some, as it gives the stock a better flavor and mouthfeel). Return the stock to a simmer over medium heat.
• 6. In a spice grinder or mortar and pestle, grind the red pepper flakes and annatto seeds into a coarse powder. In a frying pan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the ground red pepper flakes and annatto seeds and cook, stirring, for 10 seconds. Add the shallots, garlic, lemongrass, and shrimp paste and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes more, until the mixture is aromatic and the shallots are just beginning to soften.
• 7. Add the contents of the frying pan to the simmering stock along with the salt and sugar and simmer for 20 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasoning with salt and sugar.
• 8. To ready the garnishes, arrange the basil, perilla, cabbage, lemon and lime wedges, and onion slices on a platter and place on the table. Thinly slice the brisket against the grain. Divide the cooked noodles among warmed soup bowls, then divide the brisket slices evenly among the bowls, placing them on top of the noodles. Ladle the hot stock over the noodles and beef and serve immediately, accompanied with the platter of garnishes.