Pho is a new acquaintance for me. Vietnamese noodle soup with lots of spices and fresh vegetables sounds like something I’d really like. So I tried a recipe from Green Kitchen Travels, and I must admit that it wasn’t really what I expected. With spices like cinnamon and cardamom it smelled more like a drink for Christmas than Asian street food. But lime, thai basil and coriander balanced it up, and when I tasted it I was pleasantly surprised. The best bit is pouring the steaming broth over the fresh veggies!

Let’s do it step by step.

• 400 g firm tofu, pressed to get the water out
• 0,5 dl soy sauce
• 0,5 dl sesame oil (not the roasted type!)
• 2 tbsp sweet chili sauce

Cut the tofu block in cubes, and marinate in soy, sesame oil and sweet chili sauce.

Then start with the broth:

• 2 large onions cut in quarters
• 10 cm of fresh ginger, finely sliced
• 3 sticks of cinnamon
• 4 star anis
• 4 cloves (Not garlic! In Swedish – kryddnejlika)
• 2 tbsp cardamom
• 1 tbsp coriander seeds
• 2 liters of vegetable stock
• 2 tbsp soy
• 3 carrots, peeled and sliced
• 1/2 fennel

Quickly fry all the spices in a dry pot. Make sure they don’t burn. Add vegetable stock and soy together with onions, ginger, carrot and fennel. Bring to boil and let simmer for at least 30 minutes.

Prepare the veg and noodles:

• 4 servings of rice noodle, cook according to instructions and rinse with cold water.
• 1 pak choy, sliced
• 1 carrot, finely sliced like matches
• 100 g bean sprouts
• 2 limes, cut in quarters
• 4 sprigs of Thai basil

Take the marinated tofu, roll it sesame seeds and fry it in oil.

Now pour the broth through a fine sieve to get rid of the vegetables and spices, then heat the broth again.

Prepare bowls with noodles, pak choy, carrot, bean sprouts, tofu, Thai basil and lime quarters. At the table, pour the steaming broth into the bowl, squeeze over lime juice and tuck in!