The Best Vegetarian Pho Recipes

VEGETARIAN PHO (VIETNAMESE NOODLE SOUP)

Steps:

• Place vegetable stock, onion, soy sauce, garlic, cinnamon sticks, ground ginger, star anise, and bay leaves in a large pot; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer until flavors combine, 30 to 45 minutes. Remove solids with a slotted spoon and keep broth hot.
• Place noodles in a large bowl and cover with boiling water. Set aside until noodles are softened, 8 to 10 minutes. Drain and rinse thoroughly. Divide noodles among 6 serving bowls.
• Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add tofu in a single layer and fry, in batches, until golden brown, about 6 minutes per side.
• Simmer fried tofu and mushrooms in broth until heated through, about 5 minutes. Transfer to serving bowls. Top with scallions and cilantro. Ladle in hot broth.
• Serve lime wedges, jalapeno peppers, bean sprouts, and basil alongside for garnishing each bowl.

VEGETARIAN PHO

Steps:

• Vegetable Stock
• Put the oil in a large pot over medium heat. When it's hot, add the carrots, celery, onion, potatoes, garlic, and mushrooms. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, cover, and cook, undisturbed, until you hear the vegetables sizzle, 3 to 5 minutes. Uncover, stir once or twice, and cook, stirring only enough to prevent burning until the vegetables release their liquid and begin to brown, 15 to 20 minutes. (If you have more time, keep going another 15 to 20 minutes or until they're even darker.)
• Add 10 cups water, the parsley, and the bay leaves. Bring to a boil, then adjust the heat so the mixture bubbles steadily but gently. Cook until the vegetables are very tender, anywhere from 15 to 60 minutes depending how much time you can spare.
• Strain through a fine-mesh strainer. Taste and adjust the seasoning before using or cooling and storing.
• Pho
• Put the oil in a large pot over medium heat. When it's hot, add the onion, garlic, and ginger. Sprinkle with some salt and the sugar and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables soften, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the star anise, cinnamon, bay leaves, and peppercorns and stir until warm and fragrant, no more than a minute. Add the stock, soy sauce, vinegar, half the cilantro (save therest for garnish), mushrooms, and 1 cup water. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat so the stock bubbles gently. Cook, partially covered, until you are happy with the concentration of flavor, 30 to 60 minutes.
• Put the rice vermicelli in a large bowl, sprinkle with salt, and cover with the boiling water. Soak until the noodles are barely tender; start checking after 3 minutes. Drain the noodles, then rinse them and the bowl with cold water to cool down. Return the noodles to the bowl, add enough cold water to cover, and let sit until you're ready to serve.
• Strain the broth through a fine-meshed strainer, return it to the pot, and keep at a gentle bubble. Taste and adjust the seasoning, adding more soy sauce if you'd like. (You can make the broth to this point, cool, and store it in the refrigerator for several days or the freezer for a few months. Return it to a boil and keep hot until time to serve.)
• Prepare any additional toppings from the list that follows (or whatever else you'd like) and put them in bowls or platters. Drain the noodles and divide them among big bowls; ladle some broth over the noodles. Garnish with the scallions, limes, and sprigs of the reserved cilantro. Top the soup with other additions as you like.

BASIC VEGETARIAN PHO

Steps:

• Combine vegetable broth, lemon grass, vegetable bouillon, and star anise pods in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and let simmer until flavors are combined, 30 to 45 minutes. Remove lemon grass and star anise with a slotted spoon and discard.
• Place rice noodles in a bowl and cover with hot water to soften, about 10 minutes. Drain and cut into shorter pieces with kitchen shears; divide noodles equally between soup bowls. Fill bowls with hot broth to cover noodles.
• Place bean sprouts, mushrooms, limes, cilantro, basil, and green onions into separate bowls. Place teriyaki sauce, soy sauce, chile paste, and sesame oil in separate bowls. Serve soup alongside garnishes and flavorings.

THE BEST VEGETARIAN PHO

Steps:

• Pour broth and water into slow-cooker, and add onion, garlic, and spices or spice packet.
• Set slow-cooker to high for 4 hours (you can do it at whatever setting you need! Low totally works if you need it cooking all day)
• One hour before eating time, drain the broth and discard spices (or simply remove the packet and skip the straining).
• Add in tamari, salt (if needed), pepper, carrots, cabbage, and broccoli, and set slow-cooker to high. Allow the vegetables to cook for 5-10 minutes until soft, but still crunchy.
• Follow directions below to prepare tofu.
• Add rice noodles to pho and let soak with the lid on for 5 minutes. Check the noodles for done-ness.
• Add tofu or meat to bowls and pour broth over.
• Use tongs to grab the noodles and vegetables to add to bowls.
• Top with desired toppings (I really can't imagine pho without bean sprouts, basil, and sriracha).
• Set saute for 10 minutes. Add 1 T oil to Instant Pot and add onion, ginger, and spices to pan. Saute while stirring constantly.
• Add in broth and water, lock lid in place with valve shut, and cook on high pressure for 30-45 minutes.
• Quick release pressure and strain the spices out of the broth (or simply remove spice packet). Return broth to pot.
• Add in the carrots, broccoli, and cabbage and replace the lid for 5 minutes.
• Remove lid and add noodles, replacing the lid and letting them sit for 4-5 minutes.
• When the noodles are the right consistency, you're done!
• Drain your tofu. You do this by wrapping the extra firm tofu in a cloth napkin (or two), placing it on a plate, and adding weights on top to squeeze out the liquid. I like to put a cutting board with a heavy glass bowl on mine. Let it drain for 10-15 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
• Slice tofu into 1/2-1 inch strips.
• Heat a large cast iron skillet or griddle to medium-high, and add 2 T of oil.
• Place the tofu pieces in skillet without the pieces touching. Allow them to cook on one side for a few minutes until crispy on the side. Flip and allow them to crisp on the other side.
• Place the skillet into the oven for 10-15 minutes until extra crispy (pan frying works well enough, but the time in the oven helps to dry out the tofu and give it an extra crispiness that's AWESOME).
• When pho is done, place tofu on top of individual bowls of noodles.