The Reason Pho Always Tastes So Much Better At A Restaurant Than Homemade

Soupy noodle dishes come in many forms, but few delight quite like pho. One of Vietnam's most beloved breakfast foods, there's a nourishing appeal to a steaming hot bowl of this balanced, aromatic broth. Get it at your favorite local Vietnamese restaurant, and the flavor is just right. The spices and richness come to play yet are gentle, a major difference from ramen. Once served, there's no need to add any sriracha or fish sauce into the mix. You'll only need a topping of fresh herbs and perhaps some sliced chile.

Craft the soup at home, and it often turns out either bland or over-seasoned. Several factors explain this, and they're succinctly summarized with sentiment that there are no shortcuts to the soup. Pho is difficult to get right and requires patient cooking and deft skill. There are Vietnamese eateries specifically dedicated to the dish, and chefs start cooking at 2 a.m. or earlier for a serving time more than four hours later. The ratio of spices is right on, and the broth is always made from scratch. The magic emerges in the bone broth's slow simmer.

Many suggest that pho was inspired by the French pot-au-feu. The two dishes do share a common element – the importance of slow-cooking beef. While pho also exists in chicken and pork forms, a beef base is the most popular version. At home, cooks often neglect assembling the proper combination of beef cuts and letting them simmer for many hours. You'll need both a connective tissue–rich oxtail and a meaty chuck or brisket cut to achieve an ideal flavor. Give it time, and the meat tissue turns to collagen, which gives the broth that satisfying richness.

Understandably, making a bone broth in a home kitchen is intimidating, so cooks turn to soup bases or pre-made broths. Such mixtures can taste artificial, and the broth isn't given time to meld with the charred ginger, onions, and spices typically found in pho. The layers of delicate flavor aren't drawn out, and it all tastes a little flat. So, either use our tips to finding ridiculously good Vietnamese restaurants or commit to making it all from scratch.