Rare Steak & Tendon Pho Recipe

Blanch bones

Place beef bones and oxtail (if using) in a large stockpot and cover with cold water. Bring to a rolling boil over high heat and boil for 10 minutes. Drain and discard the blanching water. Rinse bones and pot to remove scum.

Char aromatics

While bones blanch, char the halved yellow onion and halved ginger over an open flame, under a broiler, or in a dry skillet until deeply browned and slightly blackened (about 5-8 minutes). This adds typical pho aroma.

Toast spices

In a dry skillet over medium heat, toast star anise, cloves, cardamom pods, cinnamon sticks, coriander seeds, and peppercorns for 2-3 minutes until fragrant. Transfer toasted spices to a cheesecloth or spice infuser bag and tie closed.

Simmer broth

Return cleaned bones and oxtail to the stockpot. Add 6 liters (about 6 qts) of fresh water. Add the charred onion, ginger, spice bag, kosher salt, and rock sugar. Bring to a gentle simmer (do not boil hard) and skim any scum that rises in the first 30 minutes. Simmer gently for 6-8 hours for best results, up to 10 hours for maximum collagen extraction. During the last 2 hours add the cleaned beef tendon so it slowly becomes tender. Maintain a gentle simmer and keep the pot partially covered.

Finish seasoning

About 30 minutes before serving, fish out the bones and large solids and strain the broth through a fine-mesh strainer or cheesecloth into a clean pot. Add fish sauce and taste; adjust salt/fish sauce/sugar to balance salty, savory, slightly sweet. Keep broth at a very gentle simmer until ready to serve.

Prepare tendon

If your tendon was added to the simmering broth, remove it when fork-tender (tendon should be gelatinous and soft, 2-4 hours depending on size). Slice cooked tendon crosswise into 1/4" pieces. If starting with pre-cooked tendon, warm it briefly in the hot strained broth before serving.

Slice steak

Partially freeze the raw steak for 20-30 minutes to firm it for thin slicing. Using a very sharp knife, slice steak as thinly as possible (about 1/8"). Keep slices chilled on a plate covered with plastic wrap until serving.

Cook noodles

Bring a separate pot of water to a rolling boil. If using dried rice noodles, briefly soak or blanch per package instructions (typically 3-5 minutes) until al dente. Immediately drain and rinse with hot water to stop cooking and keep warm. If using fresh rice noodles, blanch 15-30 seconds until tender.

Assemble in bowls

Divide warmed noodles among bowls. Arrange several slices of raw steak on top and add several slices of sliced tendon. Ladle very hot broth (just off a strong simmer) over the bowl — the hot broth will cook the thin steak to rare/medium-rare. Cover with a lid or plate briefly to let steak finish cooking to the desired doneness (about 30-45 seconds for rare).

Stock bowls with bean sprouts, Thai basil, cilantro, thinly sliced scallions, and sliced yellow onion. Serve lime wedges, sliced chiles, hoisin, and sriracha on the side so each diner can season to taste.

To serve: squeeze lime over the soup, add herbs and sprouts, and stir in a little hoisin and sriracha if desired. Eat immediately while broth is steaming hot so the steak remains tender and rare.