A Bad Bowl of Pho?
Is it possible to have a bad bowl of pho? Our readers in Sweden, Greenland and other parts of the world will probably answer "no". But discerning pho-lovers will surely nod their heads "yes". From cloudy, cold broth to clumpy and over-cooked noodles many things can ruin a good bowl of pho. Wilted veggies? Bad. Meat with freezer burn? Bad.
Read the spirited discussion on Yelp! about bad pho and weigh in on the comments here with your opinion: what do you think makes for bad pho?
Read the spirited discussion on Yelp! about bad pho and weigh in on the comments here with your opinion: what do you think makes for bad pho?
8 Comments:
Oh absolutely, there is such a thing as a bad bowl of pho, especially if you get it from a restaurant that is not know for or specializes in pho, and is not even Vietnamese.
I once went to a restaurant that served Italian food, hot dogs, hamburgers, Mongolian BBQ, tacos, and pho. It was like a Jerry's Deli from hell. I had the pho, and it was gray..completely, including the veggies! There was no separate garnishing veggies included either. And the sauce they gave to accommodate my spicy needs was catchup!
Bad pho is when a swanky trendy restaurant tries to make pho with special ingredients that don't belong in real pho. All you need is the broth, rice noodles, meat, the normal veggies and condiments and you're good to go. Good pho should not cost more than $5 a bowl.
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I am a Viet so I'm very picky of how my Pho get cooked and prepared. I am not a writer so please bare with my writing. Heehe..
In order of importance:
1. Broth - I don't like sweet broth and I think good broth needs some MSG. :)
2. Noodles - Over cooked and soggy noodles is the worst.
3. Meat - I like slightly chewy cooked meat, and soft thin slice rare beef. Oh yeah, the tendon beef balls are a must. :)
4. Veggies - Fresh bean sprouts and basils are a must. In real Viet restaurant they also give you the pointed sharp herbal leaves (ngo gai), that's my favorite.
5. Condiments - Slice fresh hot peppers, chilly sauce, hoisin sauce and a piece of lemon. In an authentic Vietnamese restaurant, you can ask for a bowl of fat oil (haha, yeah i know), green onion roots, and onions in vinegar.
How do I eat my Pho?
I put all the veggies in my soup, some black peppers, some chilly sauce, fresh hot peppers, fish sauce (if the broth is bland), lemon juice and mix them up. On the side, I'll have chilly and hoisin sauce for dipping the meat.
Man! my mouth is watering...haha. Ok try it next time, and you'll be hooked. :)
Pho u
In a small cafe in Okinawa, Japan, I had the absolute worst pho ever. It shouldn't have even been called pho. There were no veggie garnishes, no sauces, the only meat in it was bland pork and the broth was like dirty dish water. It was like they made crappy soba so they decided to call it pho. It was very insulting. Yes, it was so bad, I was insulted.
I've had my share of bad pho here in Seattle. Quite often, a particular restaurant's soup is not consistent. Usually, they add sugar and too much MSG to amp it up for the American palate. I hate it when your tongue starts glowing with that MSG buzz as you're leaving the restaurant. I used to put lime and chili sauce in my broth but now I just put in the veggies and chili slices so I can taste the beefy goodness better (in my opinion). I dip the meat in the hoisin and hot sauce that I have in a small plate on the side. I really love tendon and tripe and some places treat them as an afterthought (mushy) which diappoints me. I'm not a real Bo Vien fan as it tastes just like Oscar Mayer to me.
I've had 2 super bad bowls of pho, and these were the problems:
1. Bowl one was really oily, and when i was done, my face was all greasy. Ick!
2. Bowl two's broth was clearly chicken broth heated up and poured in the bowl. No spices in the broth.
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