There’s an art to this comforting Vietnamese rice noodle soup and the key is the clear, long-simmered broth. Usually made with as many knobby bits of chicken or beef as possible (as well as toasted and bruised ginger and shallots and often star anise), it’s strained before being ladled into your giant bowl of sweet-and-salty comfort.
Every restaurant has its own small differences and special touches, whether it’s chicken with lemon leaf pho at Pho MC Brossard, Triple AAA beef flank pho at La Belle Tonkinoise, duck pho at Au 14 Prince Arthur or tofu pho at Pho Rachel (take note: a lot of places serve “vegetarian” pho made with beef or chicken broth, but Pho Rachel’s is 100 percent vegetarian).
And while most will serve ample plates of fresh herbs, bean sprouts, lime wedges and chilli peppers alongside, some go a step further, like Ho Guom, which offers sawtooth herb and long and airy pastry fritters, just like in Hanoi.
There’s much more to Vietnamese food than just pho, so if you’re looking for other suggestions, check out another map over here.
Read More