In today’s post, I will attempt to clarify and simplify the ordering process to help those of you who are new to pho – or even those veterans who still find themselves confused by the clutter of never ending choices – create a perfect bowl for yourself!

Pho, essentially, is made up of two very basic ingredients: the broth, and the pho noodle (pho is the name of the noodle as well as the dish). Restaurants often garnish the broth with chopped scallions, onions, and coriander. This is what you get when you order plain pho (pho khong). Every bowl of pho is accompanied by a plate of veggies, which often includes lime or lemon, basils bean sprouts, green chili, and culantro.

different vegs and herbs that accompany pho, as shown on the menus of Pho Hoa restaurants

A full-blown pho menu will give you up to 15-20 different combinations of pho. These combinations differ based on the cuts of beef you prefer. There are 8 different cuts, as described in the table below.

	English Name	Vietnamese	Description	Texture	Taste
Beef	Beef Balls	Bo Vien	round, firm meat balls	soft and chewy	savoury
	Brisket	Chin Nac	well-done thin slices of beef	chewy, roast beef-like	natural, unseasoned
	Flank	Nam	melt-in-your-mouth thin slices that literally disintegrate upon being touched with chopsticks	soft, juicy	natural, unseasoned
	Crunchy Flank	Ve Don	a firmer part of the flank	soft, chewy, crunchy	natural, unseasoned
	Fatty Flank	Gau	flank with extra fat	very soft and tender	natural, unseasoned
	Steak	Tai	(red) rare slices of beef	tender and juicy	natural, unseasoned
	Tendon	Gan	chunks of beige to brownish tendons	can be tough, gelatin-like	natural, unseasoned
	Tripe	Sach	tangled strips of white, rubbery looking thing..	chewy, rubbery, like calamari	neutral
Veggies
	Bean Sprouts	Gia	long, round and white sprouts of mung bean	crispy, crunchy	mild, "plain"
	Chili	Ot	thin slices of green chilies, or whole of smaller green or red chillies	crunchy	spicy
	Coriander/ Cilantro	Ngo	chopped up green leaves in the broth	soft leafy texture	tangy, citrusy
	Culantro/ Long Coriander	Ngo Gai	big, long green leaves that come with the side plate	firmer leafy texture	similar to coriander
	Lemon/Lime	Chanh	yellow or green wedges that come with the side plate		sour, tangy
	Onions	Cu Hanh	white strips of onions that sometimes come with the broth	crunchy, but soft	hints of sweetness and spiciness
	Scallions	Hanh	chopped up chucks of green stems of scallions	a little bit slimy	almost like onions, but much lighter
	Basils	Que	full stem with many green leaves that come with the side plate	leafy	a bit minty
Condiments
	Hoisin Sauce	Tuong An Pho	a brown sauce one could add to their bowl	texture is not detected once stirred in broth	a bit more sweet than salty
	Hot Sauce	Tuong Ot	a red sauce one could add to their bowl	texture is not detected once stirred in broth	a spicy sauce

eight types of beef parts, as shown on the menus of Pho Hoa restaurants

A typical combination includes rare beef slices (steak) and beef balls, while the ultimate bowl of pho includes all of the ingredients, known as pho dac biet, or “Special Pho”.

Although these 8 cuts of beef can combine to create more than 40,000 different combinations!, most menus only list up to 20, to save you the headaches. If your ideal combination of pho isn’t on the menu, you could ask (depending on the restaurant) the server to customize your bowl for you.

I hope this addresses some of your concerns and confusions. Feel free to post questions if you are still unsure.

Similarly, I will post an article explaining the different choices of vermicelli and rice combinations in the upcoming weeks.

Choosing, and Setting Up Your Pho

When you open your menu, it might look a little overwhelming with all the variations of Pho to choose from. The variety is simply personal preference. When in doubt, go for simple ‘Rare Beef Noodle Soup’! Don’t worry the beef is sliced so thinly that it cooks almost immediately after being immersed in the hot soup. After you make your order a plate of bean sprouts, Thai basil, lime and chillies will arrive at your table. These are options to sprinkle and squeeze over your main bowl till it suits your taste.

been sprouts, basil leaves, lime

Here is a list of some common combinations found on most menus:

Phở Đặc Biệt
Special Pho Noodle

Phở Tái
Rare Beef

Phở Tái Sách
Rare Beef and Tripe

Phở Tái Gân
Rare Beef and Tendon

Phở Tái Nạm
Rare Beef and Flank Brisket

Phở Tái Bò Viên
Rare Beef and Beef Balls

Phở Gà
Chicken Pho Noodle

Finally, an aromatic and steaming bowl of noodle soup is placed before you and if you are wondering where to begin then let your senses be your guide. What I always do is to try the soup first. Depending on how flavourful it already is, I add condiments accordingly. I usually immerse most of my bean sprouts and make sure they make their way under the noodles so they cook slightly. Tearing some basil leaves off the stem and sprinkling them over the noodles along with a squeeze of lime will probably give your tastebuds a lift from the deep flavour of the beef bone soup. Then you can experiment with the balance of the caramelized sweetness of hoisin sauce and the amount of heat from Sriracha hot sauce and/or chillies you like.

Spooning It Correctly

Now you are ready to eat but there is a highly efficient method that closely resembles the spoon and fork action when consuming spaghetti, except with chopsticks. Eating noodles in soup can be a slippery affair which could result in a less than satisfying mouthful that ends up back in the bowl. The solution is a two handed technique. Chopsticks have the agility and sensitivity to lift and select individual bitefuls while the Asian soup spoon is broad with a beveled edge which allows for more than just soup. To get all the flavor and texture of your precisely customized and balanced bowl of noodle soup into each mouthful is by always assembling the perfect pile of noodle to beef to soup ratio onto your spoon. This is done by using your chopsticks to nimbly arrange noodles, a slice of beef and depending what you feel like for that particular bite: basil, chilli or sprouts to top, onto your spoon. Then lower your spoon into the soup and proceed to bring it to an open mouth. Enjoy!

Apologies for the quality. It was difficult to concentrate on the task at hand!

another angle

When you feel more adventurous, do try the other combinations mentioned above. If you don’t eat beef there is sometimes a chicken option and if you don’t eat meat then there are vegetarian versions that come with fried tofu and vegetables. All can be eaten in the same manner. Have fun!

For a lot of people, a hangover is the price of a good time.  But it’s worth it, and most of us do not hesitate to admit that! But wouldn’t a good time be better if we didn’t have to wish we were dead the next day? I think so!

As you all know, alcohol consumption causes your body to dehydrate, among other effects. Dehydration in turn causes headaches and bodily malfuctions. That’s why it’s important to rehydrate your body after a night of drinking, to allow it to return to its normal state as quickly as possible. Although glass after glass of water is the traditional way to prevent a hangover, here at Pho411, we would like to recommend to you the most effective and best tasting way to avoid paying the price for the good time you’ll have this weekend.

pho with rare beef

Ever had a bowl of Special Number One Pho at 3 in the morning? Ever thought of pho as a way to prevent your descent into hell the next day? A bowl of pho not only rehydrates your body with liquid, it also provides vital nutrients like sodium, which your body loses large amounts of through frequent urination. The noodles and meat also help slow down the process of alcohol absorption in your blood stream. These benefits far outweigh that of water consumption. Research shows that rehydrating your body with just water by itself can be a bad thing, for it actually dilutes and lowers the salt concerntration in your body! Next time you drink 6 glasses of water, be sure to swallow a spoon of salt

If you’re in downtown Toronto, there are two places that open late: Pho Xe Lua on Spadina, and Pho Pasteur on Dundas – both within minutes from each other. In Mississauga, Pho Do Thi on Dundas, just east of Hurontario opens 24 hrs, and serves this purpose very well. If interested, you can read more about the effects of alcohol here.

Photo Credit: Patrick

While there are many dishes that have yet to earn their ID plaque, one dish however, is hogging up all the names that are badly needed elsewhere.  I’m talking about the ambiguously labeled goi cuon.  Goi cuon is the chameleon of Vietnamese dishes, changing its name accordingly with the season… that’s in season.  Although the literal translation for goi cuon is salad (goi) roll (cuon), it is also known as fresh roll, spring roll, and summer roll.  And, if I’m not mistaken, some people call it winter roll and autumn roll, but there’s a good chance I am.

salad rolls

Underneath the rice paper is what looks to be a healthy group of ingredients that, when spotted together, could put a 15 minute session on the treadmill to shame.  The combination of peeled boiled shrimp, lettuce, herbs, vermicelli, cucumber, and possibly others, are consistent with the ingredients of most healthy salads.  This ’salad’ is placed on a sheet of rice paper and ‘rolled’ into a roll.  I think ’salad’ makes a very strong argument for being crowned the title.

Chinese spring rolls

So where did the name ’spring roll’ come from?  It is possible that people confused the salad roll for the Chinese spring roll, which is a crunchier, deep fried version of the salad roll.  Not to mention the ingredients and flavours are very different, too.  What about ’summer roll’ and ‘fresh roll’?  Again, there’s a strong possibility that these names were coined to associate the salad roll with freshness, as opposed to the deep fried spring roll. 

Although its English name is still debatable, one thing for sure, it isn’t the label that defines goi cuon as a refreshing, rolled up salad that can be enjoyed in all seasons…

P.S. Did you know that the Vietnamese have their own version of the deep fried spring roll, called Vietnamese spring roll?  More on that later.

Banh mi (a.k.a. the Vietnamese baguette sandwich)

Despite being infamously known as the Vietnamese baguette, the history behind the delectable sandwich actually lies in the name: Banh mi tay literally translates to ‘French bread’. But this bun’s Parisian roots should come as no surprise, since French colonials imported both culture and cuisine during their occupation of Vietnam. During this time, French deli’s offered gourmet sandwiches made with baguettes baked from imported wheat and filled with seasoned butter spreads, expensive goose or duck liver pâté, cured sausages, onions, radishes, and cornichons (which is French for gherkin pickles).

The foreign nature and elitism associated with the French sandwich caused the Vietnamese to create their own cheaper imitations using local ingredients. Rice flour was substituted for part or all of the imported wheat flour used in baking, creating a baguette with a lighter and thinner crust than the French. An egg yolk and oil based spread that resembled mayonnaise was used in place of butter and inexpensive chicken and pig liver spreads replaced the pâté. Vietnamese barbecued meats were used instead of the cured meats and pickled carrots, cucumbers and daikon radishes replaced the onions, radishes and cornichons. Finally, spicy hot peppers and fresh coriander were added for flavour yielding a tasty sandwich superior to the original.

pickled daikon and carrot, fresh coriander and cucumber, meatball and tofu

In modern days, these sandwiches are typically found in small Vietnamese deli shops or restaurants. Variations upon this basic recipe have been made to include meats such as grilled pork, chicken, beef, shrimp, Vietnamese meat balls and seasoned tofu in order to satisfy contemporary taste buds. Luckily for diners, the price of the Banh mi remains affordable at half the cost of a meal at McDonalds: a typical sandwich will set you back a trivial $2 to $3 in most Chinatowns across the country, lending no excuse for those who haven’t had the chance to give one a try. Do it! Try it! You will love it.

Vietnamese flavours

Luckily for us, Vietnamese food is generally considered to be healthy since Vietnam’s geographical location yields lots of fresh tropical fruits and vegetables which have been incorporated into the diet. Also contributing is the fact that food is typically prepared and served either raw (rice paper salad/summer rolls Goi cuốn, papaya salads Goi du du, baguette sandwiches Bahn mi), grilled (marinated meats over rice/vermicelli Com tam/Bun) or in soup form (Pho), which require far less use of oils and fats. The exception is the deep fried spring roll Cha gio, which is a relatively modern interpretation of the more traditional summer rolls.

However, if one is new to Vietnamese cuisine and not familiar with some of the ingredients, it is more difficult to grasp the nutritional value of these meals in comparison, especially with nutrition and food regulations being different for imported foods. Therefore, upon looking over the menus for popular Vietnamese restaurant chains such as Ginger and Pho88, here are, in my opinion, the healthiest selections:

salad/summer roll

- salad/summer rolls Goi cuon – fresh shrimp, crab, chicken, herbs and vermicelli wrapped in rice paper rolls; be sure to try the low-fat fish extract sauce Nuoc cham in place of the fattening peanut sauce
- Pho noodle soup – a big bowl of thin rice noodles covered in a rich, clear meat broth and topped with various meats, scallion, bean sprouts, onion, coriander and sweet basil. I have had people argue that noodles are high in carbohydrates and therefore are not healthy, however a healthy diet should be approximately 50% carbohydrates (grains, noodles, sugars, sauces), 20% protein (meats, tofu, nuts) and 30% fat.
- vermicelli bowls, Bun – bowl of rice vermicelli topped with grilled marinated meat, fresh greens, beansprouts, mint, coriander, chopped peanuts, and pickled carrot, cucumber and daikon radish
- papaya/mango salad Goi du du – thinly sliced fresh papaya or mango with pickled carrot, cucumber, daikon radish, mint, onion and occasionally meat
- fresh fruit juices/smoothies – made with exotic fruits including mango, avocado, pineapple, dragonfruit, durian, and jackfruit; opt for juices as smoothies often have condensed milk or other fattening dairy added

papaya salad

Keep in mind, these are just recommendations, and that my motto for healthy eating is ‘everything in moderation’ : if you go for the deep fried spring rolls, then choose a healthier entrée.

Photo Credit: Tony Ngo,Thanh Tran, C. P.

lemongrass grilled pork

I started with a trip to my favorite organic store on the Danforth and picked up some pork chops. I recalled seeing fish sauce on the kitchen counter so I had one essential ingredient covered. The next most important ingredient: lemongrass. I love this plant. The resemblance is of green onion and sugar cane mating, they name her Lemongrass and smells of vanilla citrus. Interestingly enough, her other name is Citronella. Not only is she helpful in the kitchen she is also a great healer. Lemongrass calms our nerves and gently heals our insides, notably she is able to help detoxify the liver, pancreas, kidney, bladder and the digestive tract.

lemonion=lemongrass

I certainly enjoy her company in the kitchen especially when it involves the grill. I am now fully prepared. I chop up all the marinating ingredients: shallots, garlic, sugar, fish sauce, black pepper, green onion, and lemongrass, toss them with the pork chops and stick it in the refrigerator for tomorrow’s dinner. The next evening while the meat is on the grill, I prepare some carrots and white radish with some vinegar and sugar to serve as a quick side slaw over some greens. Finally, while the rice boils I make the fish dipping sauce by mincing some garlic and chillies and simmering it in some diluted fish sauce and about a tablespoon of sugar. Voila!
Dinner practically makes itself. While I plate everything up, the eggs fry in the pan and I call my mom and brother to the dinner table. My brother finishes his grilled pork chop and egg entre and exclaims, “That was refreshing!” Lemongrass becomes my new best friend.

grilling shrimp

lemongrass shrimp with vermicelli noodles

The next day, I do it again but this time, shrimp with vermicelli rice noodles and grill up some fresh Ontario zucchini.