How to Easily Make an Authentic Pho Tai Soup at Home

Hey there, foodies!

I want to share my recent experience making authentic Pho Tai soup at home, so you know a bit what to expect.

Since you’re here, chances are it’s not necessary to introduce you to the soup phở, from Hà Nội (capital located in the North of Vietnam), a great classic of dishes; for many, the symbol of Vietnamese cuisine.

If you’re a foodie who loves exploring new cuisines, you’ve probably tried Vietnamese food at some point. And, this is one of the most popular and beloved dishes in Vietnamese cuisine, a savory and comforting noodle soup made with beef broth and rice noodles. However, if this is new to you, start with this post: What is Pho Tai.

In this article I’ll tell you all need to successfully make authentic Photai (phở tái) soup at home.

As an interested foodie myself, I have tried my hand at many different recipes over the years, including a few Asian dishes. However, I recently took on a new challenge and decided to make Pho Tai soup at home, for the first time. I was aware that making authentic phở tái requires some effort and patience, due to its long list ingredients, as well as the preparation process.
I was excited and a bit nervous at the same time, as I had never attempted this particular dish before — mainly because of how long it takes. However, I was determined 🙂 .

Although it was a bit challenging (for me), I must say I was pleasantly surprised at how smoothly it went. I was able to get the hang of each step, and things just flowed.

It turned out to be an exciting — and delicious — experience!

I’m telling you my experience to motivate you all to try it, it’s really worth it, mainly for two reasons:

1 – You’ll get the (well deserved!) feeling of having a great culinary achievement under your belt;

2 – You’ll get to control the quality and freshness of everything that goes into YOUR soup, for better nutrition.

Besides, you will, of course, have complete control over the seasoning, according to your own taste and desires. Note: It WILL taste somewhat different from a restaurant one, no matter what.

How I made it – My workflow condensed step by step:

How I Made an Authentic Pho Tai Soup at Home

Took Around 5 hours

First, kitchen ready

I gathered all of the ingredients and kitchenware I needed;

Then, off to making that flavorful broth

I rolled up my sleeves and got straight to work preparing the bone broth.
I roasted the bones first for extra depth of flavor, but in some recipes they make this optional.
I let it simmer for about two hours. The aroma of the spices filled my kitchen, and I was already getting excited about how the soup would turn out;

Time for the noodles

While the broth was simmering, I prepared the rice noodles;

Strained the Broth

Once the broth was ready, I strained it, brought it back to boiling, and poured it onto the thinly sliced beef to cook in the hot broth;

Everything on the Table

Finally came the most exciting part, the serving and customizing my Pho Tai soup with fresh herbs, bean sprouts, and a squeeze of lime.
The end result? A homemade steaming hot bowl, filled with aromatic flavors, so deliciously rich, yet light-tasting, that no store-bought pho could ever match up against!

I couldn’t wait to try it! As I took my first spoonful of the Pho Tai soup, I was blown away by the flavors. The broth was rich and fragrant, and the beef was tender and flavorful. The fresh herbs and lime added a perfect zing to the soup, and the rice noodles added a satisfying texture.

All in all, making this soup at home for the first time was a fantastic, rewarding experience. It was a bit of a challenge, but it was well worth it the effort. Seeing everyone enjoy it made all those hours spent worth every minute.
It was “Pho-tastic“! Plus, as I mentioned above, knowing exactly what went into your meal gives you peace of mind and ensures control over quality & nutrition.
I can’t wait to make it again soon, and even experiment with different ingredients, to create my own unique version(s). I guess we are now “ Pho-natics”. 🙂

I hope this inspires you to try making your own Authentic Pho Tai soup at home too!

Next week-end transform your Kitchen into a Vietnamese gargote, making and serving pho (or, in Vietnamese, phở — pronounced feu-euh — and, by the way, it is not spelled phô).

Your friends and family will be delighted with the explosion of taste from the first contact of the taste buds with this burning liquid, perfumed with spices and magic herbs!

Everybody will be reaching for their phones, they’ll become “Pho-tographers”.

If you’re a fan of Vietnamese cuisine, I highly recommend giving Authentic Pho Tai soup a try. If I can do it, you can, too! Give it a try!

For making this recipe, you’ll need:

A good Recipe (see ours published here);
Please note: Like with so many other recipes, we often find that there are some variations, both in the ingredients and in the making itself.
The appropriate kitchenware (see our Recipe in the link above for a complete list);
Good quality Ingredients (just continue reading ).

Image of ingredients for Pho Tai; beef, beef bones, noodles, ginger, star anise, onions, salt

OUR RECOMMENDATIONS:
• For a high quality Broth (yes, they exist!), click here
• For high quality, Grass-fed, Farm-to-the-table meat, click here
• For cookware that really makes a difference in your kitchen, in every aspect, click here

The Ingredients you’ll need:

The key to making a delicious bowl of pho tai is using high-quality ingredients.
Here’s the break down of the main list of what you’ll need:

Beef bones: You’ll need beef bones to make the broth. Look for bones with a good amount of meat on them, as this will add flavor to the broth.
Beef sirloin: This is the cut of beef used for the rare beef in the soup. Look for a high-quality, well-marbled piece of meat for the best flavor.
Rice noodles: You’ll need flat rice noodles, which can be found in most Asian grocery stores.
Beef broth: You can make your own beef broth by simmering beef bones with aromatics like onions, garlic, and ginger, or you can use store-bought broth.
Herbs: Fresh herbs like basil, cilantro, and culantro are essential for adding flavor to the soup.
Bean sprouts: These add a nice crunch to the soup.
Lime wedges: Lime wedges are squeezed over the soup before eating, adding a bright, citrusy flavor.
Hoisin sauce: This sweet and savory sauce is typically served with pho tai and adds a nice depth of flavor. A quality store-bought one is fine; however, if you want to make your own, SEE RECIPE.
Sriracha sauce: This spicy sauce is a favorite among pho lovers and adds a nice kick to the soup. Again, a quality store-bought one is fine; however, if you want to make your own, we also have the recipe for you SEE RECIPE

Some “good to know” tips to help you:

Check these 3 points before starting:
One: Decide on how many people you’ll have, AND find out about any food restrictions;
Two: Buy the ingredients a couple of days before, for organization sake, but not much before, for freshness;
Three: Prepare your kitchen: temporarily remove all items you’ll not be needing; clean and prepare all needed utensils, cookware, silverware and plates.
Use fresh herbs (I grow several at home, you should too). BTW, get our free herbs guide here, it’s a very easy, simple pdf. If you’re not a subscriber, become one here, for this and more free stuff).
Once the noodles are cooked, I rinsed them in cold water to remove excess starch and keep them from sticking together.
Toasting the spices helped to release their essential oils and made the flavors more intense. Again, in some recipes these are not toasted.
I found that cooking each component separately helped keep things organized while allowing me more control over how each element turned out.
Blanching bean sprouts then plunging them into ice water ensured they stayed crunchy instead of getting too soft or mushy in hot soup.
Do not use bouillon cubes — it wont be authentic anymore.
Did you make a really big pot? No problem, see here what to do with leftover Pho.

That’s all, you have here all you need to make an unforgettable food experience at home!!

Please share, thank you!

How to Easily Make an Authentic Pho Tai Soup at Home