This took me 20 minutes to get all ingredients in the instant pot with the spices already in the PHOKIT
BROTH (DAY 1)
Pho Kits (pronounced F***it)
Yield: 5 large bowls
PHO SPICES (PHO KIT)
15 star anise
12 whole cloves
9 cinnamon sticks
6 cardamom pods
3 tbsp whole coriander seeds
Aromatics
3 large onions (halved and peeled)
9 inches of ginger root (semi peeled and hamburger sliced)
Flavors
3 tbsp brown sugar
2 tbsp fish sauce
3 tbsp kosher SALT
1 tbsp soy sauce
2 cups shredded napa cabbage (optional)
Broths To taste -better than bouillon Chicken, Beef and/or roasted veggie.
Burn or broil aromatics(onions and ginger); this will take some time. Place the cut side in the burner flame or facing the broiler. See step one photo
While the onion and ginger burn toast the pho spices(star anise, whole cloves, cinnamon sticks, cardamom pods and whole coriander seeds) on the sauté setting of the instant pot or over medium high heat in a heavy bottomed stock pot (have one cup of water on hand in case the spices start to get too dark. Be ready to add the water to instantly stop the toasting) cook until very fragrant. See step two photo
When the aromatics (onions and ginger) are burnt add them to the toasted spices and add the Flavors (brown sugar, fish sauce, kosher SALT, soy sauce, shredded napa cabbage) fill with warm water to the fill line on the pressure cooker or about 1 inch away from the top of the stock pot. See step three photo
Place the Pressure Cookers lid on and cook for 30 minutes with a natural release (1 hour for a stock pot at a rolling simmer)
When the broth can be handled, strain and whisk in the bouillon, start with 2 tablespoons of each flavor, whisk in. Cool and refrigerate the broth.
DINNER (DAY 2)
Now we pull it all together.
About three or four hours before your guest (or if you are just eating this alone) and you are planning on using beef sirloin, I go ahead and put my cut steaks in the freezer so they are easier to cut *slightly frozen(slice this thin against the grain at the time for plating). If you are doing a chicken, tofu or roasted veggie version, you can defiantly cook these items a head of time to better your service timing. As I mentioned before, a rotisserie chicken from yesterdays trip to Costco also goes very well with this PHO - tossing that out there, make it easy on yourself!
Set the table how ever you like, getting this out of the way now lets you enjoy the plating process instead of scrambling when your guests are set to arrive. In our house over the years we have collected chopsticks, and many large Asian soup spoons so these go on the table with cloth napkins and i put out any sauces and spices that are not going to worry me about sitting at room temp for a few hours - sriracha, hoisin, bachan's japanese bbq sauce(Skye’s Favorite), white pepper, SALT, numbing spice, ect.
Garnish plate- this can be prepared ahead of time as well, two or four hours, no problem, just keep it in the refrigerator.
Limes - cut a lime into 8 wedges
Jalapeños- slice them thin
Cilantro - pick the leaves
Thai Basil - pick the leaves
Green Onions - slice them on the bias and thin
Red Onions- sliced thin
Bean Sprouts - pile high
Mint (optional) - pick the leaves
Serving
Boil your broth
While this boils, place about 6 oz of noodles in the big bowl of your choice, add some sliced red onions, green onions, cilantro and the proteins of your choice(the sliced rare beef will cook from the broth, I would advise heating the other proteins or veggies to keep your soup as hot as possible).
Stir the broth with a whisk, pour the broth over the fresh or prepared noodles until all the noodles are covered, I use a glass 2 cup measuring cup - if you are using the fresh noodles, let them sit for about 3 minutes before you start eating your soup, if you are using prepped from dry noodles you may eat right away!
Enjoy your soup! Add a little bit of this, and a little bit of that - and remember