World’s apart

I’ve been a whole lot of comfort food lately, plenty of warm bowls of oats, pancakes…

And belly loving soups like my Thai Red Lentil Coconut Squash Soup that I posted on Tuesday.

I don’t think I’ll ever reach a stage were I become fed up of oats, pumpkin or pancakes, it’s just never going to happen, but it’s nice to switch it up a bit ever so often. In between all the comfort food I was craving something a little more refreshing and so I finally got around to cooking up a Vegetarian Vietnamese Pho.

It’s a really simple dish that doesn’t require a whole lot of effort, there are just a number of components to look after. While I quickly whipped up all the toppings and add ins I left the broth to simmer away.

After an hour and half of simmering I thought I had nothing better to do than to strain it as you do so over with the pot to the colander in the sink I went….

Yep straight down the drain! I was having one of those mornings were nothing seems to go quite right and you seem to trip over your own feet at every opportunity! I laughed, there was no point in getting frustrated, it’s not like it had taken a hold lot of effort, it was just a test of my patience!

It was one of those…did I really just do something so stupid moments?!?

With all the toppings ready and set aside I got to making up the base once again!

I got their in the end and it was so worth it! It was just what I was after. Light and refreshing, easy on the tummy, packed full of flavour with a wonderful array of textures and an altogether incredible aroma.

Steamed cabbage, soba noodles, shredded cabbage, shitake mushrooms, spring onions, diced tofu, toasted peanuts…it had it all and more; a sprinkling of fresh chili gave it a wonderful kick.

Despite the kitchen disaster/stupidity it ended up being a fantastic success and one which I’ll definitely be repeating!

What’s the silliest thing you’ve ever done while cooking?

Vietnamese Vegetarian Pho

 Print this easy peasy recipe

Servings – 1

Preparation Time – 10 minutes

Cooking Time – 1 hour 30 minutes

Ingredients

Broth

• 1/2 large onion
• 1 inch piece of ginger root peeled and sliced in half
• 1/2 tsp coriander seeds
• 2 cups (500ml) vegetable stock
• 1 tsp aminos
• 2 carrots peeled and chopped in to two or three pieces
• 1 clove
• 1 inch stick of cinnamon

Toppings

• 1/4 block of tofu pressed, diced and sautéed or grilled
• 1/2 cup sautéed shitake mushrooms
• 1/2 cup shredded savoy cabbage steamed or sautéed
• 1/2 cup cooked buckwheat (soba) noodles
• 1/4 cup shredded carrot
• 1/3 cup beansprouts sautéed
• 1 tbsp diced spring onions
• 1/2 tbsp toasted peanuts
• 1/2 tbsp fresh coriander
• 1/4 tsp fresh chili diced
• Wedge of lime

Directions

1. Add all broth ingredients to a pot, bring to the boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer for one hour. Strain and leave to simmer until ready to serve.
2. While the broth is cooking you can cook your vegetables, noodles and tofu.
3. Place cabbage and noodles into a bowl, pour over broth and lay toppings, carrot, mushrooms, beansprouts, spring onions and tofu on top. Sprinkle with coriander and toasted peanuts to serve. Squeeze in a little lime juice and leave a few extra toppings for adding in if you need a bit more filling!

Tagged as: buckwheat noodles, cabbage, carrot, chili, gluten free, onion, pho, spring, tofu, vegan, vegetarian, wheat free