translated from Spanish: Where to eat pho, the traditional Vietnam soup

At the end of the NINETEENTH century, at the time of the French occupation in Vietnam, in the province of Nam Dinh (100 kilometres from Hanoi) the first dishes of pho were served: the soup which was consolidated as one of the most traditional recipes-although relatively recent-of the C Vietnamese Ocina. Basically, it is a beef or chicken broth with spices, herbs and rice noodles. Arguably it is similar to Japanese ramen, although its base is different (ramen can be done with soy, pork, miso; The pho is with the bones of the res or the bird) and so are their toppings and noodles (in a case are wheat , in another of rice). As a result, the pho is lighter, which explains that in Vietnam it was consumed historically during breakfast. Since its beginnings and even today, this soup is sold in street stalls, but there are also many restaurants that are dedicated to prepare it, both in their native land and other parts of the globe. How was this dish created, where did its name come from and why do we know it even in Argentina? There are several answers to everything. Some records indicate that during the French colonization, the Europeans took to Vietnamese territory the recipe of their “pot au feu”, similar to a stew. It is not clear that the pho derives from that dish, as it does not carry vegetables like the original French, for example. But the truth is that the name does have a contact point (“feu” pronounced “pho”) and that before the occupation, the Vietnamese did not kill the cows to eat them, but they used them exclusively as animals of work. The introduction of pot au feu (or pho) provides a logical explanation for the fact that they began to devote the cows to gastronomy: the first step to prepare the broth is to boil beef bones for several hours. In 1930, the word “pho” appeared for the first time in a Vietnamese dictionary, defined as a soup of noodles with fetas of meat. Nine years later, local cooks began to use chicken as well as beef, thus generating a widely spread dish variant, known as Pho Ga. And its expansion at the international level? After the fall of Saigon, which ended the Vietnam war, many Vietnamese moved to the United States, as well as other Asian countries, to Europe and to Australia. They brought their culinary traditions and, especially on American soil, the pho became very popular. In Argentina, more precisely in Buenos Aires, we are witnessing an oriental food boom: There are more and more restaurants specializing in Vietnamese, Thai, Japanese or Chinese cuisine, among other gastronomic cultures. From the hands of foreign chefs installed in our country, we have the possibility to try recipes born at the other end of the planet. The Pho is a clear example. We are in a perfect time to enjoy the dishes of pot and soups, so we suggest you go in search of this delicacy to any of these places:

Green Bamboo (Costa Rica 5802, Palermo). It is one of the first restaurants with Southeast Asian dishes that opened in the city and the pho is part of the menu for a long time. They prepare it with loin meat, rice noodles and herbs, well classic.

Sunae Asian Cantina (Humboldt 1626, Palermo). The Talentosísima chef Christina Sunae, although from the Philippines, also serves a very traditional and tasty version of the soup, with rice noodles, beef, fresh herbs, soy sprouts and hoisin sauce. 

Saigon (Bolívar 986, San Telmo). In the picturesque local corner of the market, Vietnamese chef Thomas Nguyen knows perfectly the steps to make a rich and plenty pho, with wide rice noodles sautéed in oyster sauce, meat, sweet red pepper, soy sprouts and onion.
In this note:
Restaurants
Asian cuisine
Viet Nam
Chegusan

Original source in Spanish