Vietnamese · soup

Pho Vo Vien - Vietnamese Beef Ball Soup

Pho Vo Vien - Vietnamese Beef Ball Soup reads umami 7.0, richness 5.3 and salinity 4.8 on Palate's 0–10 flavor X-ray — a Vietnamese soup, about 2 hr 50 min. Measured from the recipe itself: ingredients and technique.

The flavor X-ray — six axes, 0–10

The measured notes (of 18)

Umami 7.0 · Richness 5.3 · Salinity 4.8 · Heat 3.7 · Nutty 3.2 · Sweetness 3.0 · Herbaceous 3.0 · Funk & Ferment 2.5 · Citrus 2.4 · Sourness 1.4 · Warm Spice 1.3 · Floral 1.1 · Allium 0.9 · Bitterness 0.7 · Earthy 0.6

What's in it (13)

Time & effort: about 2 hr 50 min (20 min active) · effort: involved

Nutrition (per 100 g, engine-estimated): 193.9 kcal, 12 g protein, 13.3 g fat, 7 g carbs

Dietary: Contains meat — engine-derived; double-check anything allergy-critical.

How it's cooked (13 steps)

  1. Slice meat thinly; mix with pepper, salt, cornstarch, oil, and baking powder.
  2. Let meat stand for 1 hour, then place meat in a plastic ziplock bag and set in freezer for 45 minutes, turning each 10 minutes to keep from freezing.
  3. Remove from freezer and mince very fine in small quantities, or grind in a mortar.
  4. Boil 2 cups of water in a saucepan, then reduce to a simmer.
  5. Mix 1 cup of cold water with 1 teaspoon salt; oil your hands, and place about a tablespoonful of meat in your palm and squeeze tightly.
  6. Dip soup spoon into salty water, then use to lower meatball into boiling water; remove meatballs when they turn white or rise to the surface.
  7. Repeat method until all meatballs are finished.
  8. After all the meatballs are done, add 1 quart of water and 1 teaspoon of salt to the water and bring to a boil.
  9. Skim off the foam.
  10. Reduce the heat to low, add the beef balls to the stock and simmer for 3-5 minutes.
  11. To serve, put 5-6 beef balls and some soup in a bowl and sprinkle with some green onions, chopped cilantro, and 1-2 drops of sesame oil.
  12. Make 3 bowls of dipping sauces for the meatballs: 1 with hoisin sauce, 1 with black bean sauce, and 1 with Sriracha chile sauce and lemongrass stirred together.
  13. Sip the soup and dip the meatballs into the bowls of dipping sauces.

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Every number above is Palate's engine-measured estimate, computed from this recipe's ingredients and techniques — not human-tasted ratings or reviews.