You catch the smell through the steam vent and suddenly you are starving. The rich aroma of beef, lemongrass, and chilies is drawing you closer to the kitchen. It’s dang inviting and just the kinda thing that makes your mouth water without even seeing the bowl yet.
It’s like this deep, spicy warmth wraps the whole room up with every hiss of the valve as the pressure builds inside your cooker. You know something good’s coming, you feel it in that steam and scent hanging around. It kinda teases your senses and you just gotta wait.
Those flavors ain’t subtle either. The shallots, garlic, and shrimp paste all mix in the broth while that slow release lets everything get cozy and tender. When you finally do crack open the lid you find something way better than just any noodle soup, maybe even better than pho!
Why This Recipe Works Every Single Time
- Using brisket and oxtail together gives perfect broth depth and body.
- The bruised lemongrass and shallots add a fresh, aromatic punch.
- Pressure cooker cuts down hours of simmering to just a bit over an hour.
- Chili oil made on the stove lets you control how spicy the broth gets.
- Natural release helps keep meat tender and broth clear, no cloudiness.
- Cooking noodles separately keeps ’em from getting mushy.
- Fresh herbs and lime for garnish brighten every bowl with color and flavor.
Everything You Need Lined Up
- 1 pound brisket and 1 pound oxtail for that deep beef flavor.
- Lemongrass split into bruised stalks for broth and minced for chili oil.
- Shallots both halved for broth and chopped for the oil mixture.
- Garlic cloves and Thai chilies to kick things spicy and savory.
- Neutral oil like grapeseed or canola to fry up the aromatics.
- Chinese chili flakes or extra Thai chilies for heat and color in the oil.
- Sugar, fish sauce, and shrimp paste mắm ruốc to balance salty, sweet, and umami vibes.
- Beef meatballs and Vietnamese ham slices for extra meaty goodness.
How It All Comes Together Step by Step
First, you gotta bring a big pot of water to boil. Toss in your brisket and oxtail chunks and let ’em parboil for 5 minutes. This gets rid of impurities and any funky stuff. After that, drain and rinse your meat real good.
Next, slide your parboiled meat into the pressure cooker pot. Add in three stalks of bruised lemongrass and two halved shallots. Fill with water just enough to cover everything. Lock the lid and let your cooker build pressure until you hear that hiss sound, then lower heat and cook for around an hour or little more till meat gets tender.
While that's happening, warm up your neutral oil in a small pan over medium heat. Toss in minced lemongrass, chopped shallot, garlic and Thai chilies. Stir around till you get that nice fragrant mix, around 3 to 5 minutes. Then sprinkle in the Chinese chili flakes and turn your heat real low. Let it simmer gently for 2 minutes just to blend flavors, then take it off the heat.
After your cooker’s done its thing and naturally released steam, strain your broth to keep it clean and skim off any fat. Take out the meat and slice it thinly ready to go. Now season broth with fish sauce, sugar, and a pinch of salt to your taste. Use the chili oil you made to control heat level.
Cook your vermicelli noodles by the package. When done, rinse ’em under cold water so they don't stick around. Drain well. Then you’re ready to assemble bowls by dropping noodles in, topping with meat slices, and ladling piping hot broth over everything.
Last step is garnish. Lay on your sliced red onions, banana blossoms, sawtooth coriander, cilantro, Thai basil and a good squeeze of lime before serving. Don’t forget extra chili oil on the side if you like it fiery!
Quick Tricks That Save Your Time
- Parboil meat in your pressure cooker pot, so less pots to wash later on.
- Use pre-minced lemongrass if you want to skip that chopping step.
- Make the chili oil while the broth pressure builds, multitasking saves you minutes.
- Freeze leftover broth in ice trays for quick future meals.
- Slice herbs and veggies the night before to speed up final assembly.
Your First Taste After the Wait
That first slurp is like shi... dang, this hits all the right spots. The broth is spicy but balanced with that sweet and savory hit from lemongrass and shrimp paste. You catch the heat but it don’t overwhelm, kinda dances around your tongue.
The meat’s tender enough to almost melt but keeps just enough chew to remind you it’s real. Noodles are soft and soak up that rich broth real good. Then the fresh herbs and lime add a zing that brightens the whole bowl.
It’s dang satisfying, like big flavor hugs after a long day. The layers of heat, tang, and richness all play together perfectly. You’ll be staring at your bowl thinking, “Dang, maybe this Bun Bo Hue is better than pho.”
Keeping Leftovers Fresh and Ready
Store any leftover broth in airtight containers and keep ’em in the fridge up to 4 days. That broth depth stays solid, just reheat slow and simmer a bit before serving.
Leftover cooked meat goes with the broth or separately wrapped in plastic wrap in the fridge for 3 days. You gotta reheat gently to keep that tenderness.
If you got leftover noodles, keep ’em in a sealed container with a splash of oil and refrigerate no more than 2 days to avoid mushiness.
For longer storage, freeze broth in small portions. Meat can go in freezer bags sealed tight as well. When you wanna eat again, thaw overnight and warm slow on the stove.
Everything Else You Wondered About
- Q: Can I skip the shrimp paste? A: Yeah, you can leave it out but it adds a real umami punch. It’s traditional but not mandatory.
- Q: What’s natural release and why use it? A: Letting your pressure cooker slowly release steam after cooking keeps meat tender and broth clear without cloudiness.
- Q: Can I use just brisket or just oxtail? A: Sure but the mix gives the best broth depth. Combining both is worth it for flavor.
- Q: How spicy is this soup? A: It’s got a nice burn from the chilies but you can add more chili oil to crank it up or keep it milder.
- Q: Can I prep ingredients ahead? A: For sure, chopping and sorting before you start saves you time and stress during cooking.
- Q: Why is the parboil step important? A: Removes impurities keeping your broth clean and tasting fresh, so skip it and broth might get cloudy.
Bun Bo Hue: Maybe Better than Pho?
Equipment
- 1 Mixing bowl Large
Ingredients
Main Ingredients
- 1 lb Brisket
- 1 lb Oxtail
- 3 stalks Lemongrass bruised
- 2 Shallots halved
- 3 stalks Lemongrass minced, for satế
- 1 Shallot chopped, for satế
- 4 cloves Garlic
- 4 Thai chilies
- ½ cup Neutral oil grapeseed or canola
- ¼ cup Chinese chili flakes or 2-4 Thai chilies
- ¼ cup Sugar
- ¼ cup Fish sauce
- 1 tablespoon Shrimp paste (mắm ruốc) optional
- 8 Beef meatballs halved
- 8 slices Vietnamese ham
- 14 oz Thick vermicelli noodles look for 'Bun Bo Hue'
- ¼ Red onion thinly sliced
- 1 cup Banana blossoms cleaned, trimmed, sliced
- 4 stems Sawtooth coriander ngò gai
- 4 sprigs Cilantro
- 4 sprigs Thai basil
- 4 wedges Lime
Instructions
Instructions
- Parboil brisket and oxtail in boiling water for 5 minutes, then drain and rinse well.
- Transfer meat to pressure cooker, add 3 stalks bruised lemongrass and 2 halved shallots. Cover with water and cook under pressure for 60 minutes.
- In a pan, heat neutral oil. Add minced lemongrass, chopped shallot, garlic, and Thai chilies. Sauté 3-5 minutes, add chili flakes and simmer 2 more minutes. Remove from heat.
- When pressure cooking is done, naturally release steam. Strain broth, skim fat, and slice meat.
- Season broth with fish sauce, sugar, salt, and custom amount of chili oil to taste.
- Cook vermicelli noodles according to package, rinse under cold water, and drain well.
- Assemble bowls: add noodles, top with sliced meat, beef meatballs, and Vietnamese ham. Ladle hot broth over.
- Garnish each bowl with red onion, banana blossoms, sawtooth coriander, cilantro, Thai basil, and lime.
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