Vegetarian Pho

By lorik

Ingredients

• Mix Ins:
• 1 onion, sliced in half
• 2 1" pieces of ginger, each piece cut in half
• 6 cups of water
• 1 Tbsp fennel seed
• 1 Tbsp coriander seed
• 1 Tbsp black peppercorns
• 1/2 tsp cardamom pods
• 3 star anise pods
• 2-3 cinnamon sticks
• Pinch of salt
• Noodles: cooked rice noodles or soba (cook your noodles beforehand -- cooking them in the broth will make the broth murky and starchy)
• Chopped raw vegetables: bok choy, kale, spinach, broccoli, asparagus, mung bean sprouts, mushrooms, snap peas, or whatever you have lying around
• Protein: tofu, shelled edamame, or -- for the non-vegetarian route -- cooked chicken or turkey or very thinly sliced raw beef
• Garnish: lime, cilantro, basil, mint, Sriracha, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, green onions, or crispy fried shallots

Details

Adapted from food52.com

Preparation

Step 1

1. Scorch. Cut an onion and 2 pieces of ginger in half; the peel can stay on. Using tongs, place the pieces of onion and ginger directly over the flame of your gas stove, one by one. Hold them there for 3 to 4 minutes, turning every so often so all the sides get black. It might look as if you’re making onion s’mores (which sound horrible) -- but there’s a good reason you’re going there: Charring the aromatics gives them a smokiness and a nice, mellow sweetness.

If this indoor campfire sounds treacherous, you could also broil the onion and ginger in the oven for 3 to 4 minutes on each side. You could also skip the charring step entirely and proceed to step two using chopped raw onion and ginger, though the broth won’t end up quite as sweet and soothing.

2. Make the broth. Put the onion and ginger in a soup pot with 6 or so cups of water. Next come the spices. Measure a cupped palmful (or a tablespoon) each of fennel seeds, coriander seeds, and peppercorns, and add them to a little bowl. Throw in a few cardamom pods, star anise, cloves, and cinnamon sticks. Smell the mixture: Do you like how it smells? Do you want to eat a soup that tastes like that? Into the soup pot they go. Are you not getting enough fennel, or do you want more of another spice? Add a bit more, smell to make sure it smells like what you want, then add the spices to the pot. Throw in a pinch of salt.

3. Simmer. Bring the mixture to a boil, and let it simmer, covered, for an hour.

4. While you wait, prep your mix-ins.

5. Get ready to slurp. Your broth will be ready when you taste it and you like it. If the flavor isn’t intense enough, let it simmer for a little longer. If the spices are overwhelming, add a bit more water. Then, strain the broth and discard the solids. Ladle into big bowls and add as many or as few of your mix-ins as you’d like. Let the raw ones (everything but the noodles) soften a bit from the heat of the broth. Take a whiff. It's good, right?