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  • Southeast Asian Beef and Rice-Noodle Soup

    1 vote
    Southeast Asian Beef and Rice-Noodle Soup
    Prep: 45 min Cook: 3.5 hours Servings: 6
    by The Mom Chef
    11 recipes
    >
    Several years ago I happened upon a recipe on Epicurious for Grilled Five-Spice Chicken with Soy Lime Dipping Sauce. That recipe started a love affair in our family for Vietnamese food. So, ever since I saw the recipe in the February 2009 issue of Gourmet Magazine for the Southeast Asian Beef and Rice-Noodle Soup, I knew I'd be making it and loving it. It's really an easy recipe to make and the ingredients are basic and not difficult to find. If you do much cooking, you'll already have them in the pantry. There's so much that helps the flavors that might seem like an unnecessary extra step, but believe me, they're all worth it. I'm thinking especially of the browning of the meat, which is just going to be cooked for 2 hours anyhow. Anytime that ginger, garlic and soy sauce come together I know good things are happening. This soup smelled wonderful while it was simmering and I probably could have hyperventilated during the cooking time. In fact, after I've chopped the garlic and ginger, I love the smell of the combination on my fingers. I've gone so far as to tell my husband to sniff my finger. That didn't go over so well. It's too bad that many people associate ginger with ginger ale and ginger ale with being sick so they don't really appreciate the flavor of this incredible root. While it's true that it is a very good help for stomach aches, it's one of those versatile spices that when raw has a very peppery flavor and is excellent in savory dishes, but when dried and ground, is also wonderful in sweets like cookies and breads. All the good stuff that the meat cooks in is thrown out when the broth is finished and when the simmering is finished, all that's left is a beautiful dark brown broth, savory, tender beef and the noodles. Personally, I thought that the noodles were unnecessary. I would have been happy with just the broth and beef. The recipe calls for various accompaniments if desired, like mint leaves, cucumber slices, Sriracha, hoisin and lime. I used the Sriracha because I like a little heat and squeezed some lime in; that's it. I think the lime should be an essential ingredient, not a "only if you want." It added another level of flavor that served to increase the wonderfulness of the soup. Can you tell I loved it? I'll definitely be making it again.

    Ingredients

    • 3 pounds meaty beef short ribs
    • 3 pounds beef shank in 2 or 3 pieces
    • 2 tablespoons peanut or vegetable oil, divided
    • 1 large onion, sliced
    • 2 (1-inch) pieces peeled ginger, smashed
    • 1 bunch scallions, white parts smashed and greens chopped
    • 3 garlic cloves, smashed
    • 1 (4-inch-long) fresh red or green chile, stemmed and halved lengthwise
    • 2 quart water
    • 1/4 cup soy sauce
    • 4 whole star anise
    • 1 (4-inch) cinnamon stick
    • 14 ounces dried flat Asian rice noodles

    Directions

    1. Pat meat dry. In a large heavy pot, heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium-high heat until it shimmers, then brown meat for about five minutes in batches without crowding. Transfer browned meat to a platter.
    2. Saute onion, ginger, white of scallions, garlic, and chile in a tablespoon oil in the same pot over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until browned, 12 minutes.
    3. Add water, soy sauce, star anise, cinnamon stick, and meat (with juices) to the aromatics and simmer, covered, until the meat is tender but still holding together, about 2 - 21/2 hours.
    4. Using tongs, transfer meat to a cutting board. Throw out bones and other gross parts, then cut meat across the grain into 1/2-inch pieces.
    5. Strain the broth through a fine-mesh sieve lined with a layer of dampened paper towels that has been pun in a large saucepan. Throw out the solids and skim off fat. Season the now pristine broth with salt, then return meat to the broth and reheat.
    6. While the meat and broth are reheating, cook noodles by dropping them in a 4-quart pot of unsalted boiling water. Let stand off heat, covered, until softened, 4 to 8 minutes. Drain and divide among large soup bowls. Add scallion greens and ladle in soup.

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