How to Cook Vegetarian Pho

Serves: 4-6

Preparation time: 10 mins

Cooking time: 90 mins

Ingredients needed to make vegetarian pho:

• 1 package fresh flat rice noodles or banh pho

For the broth:

• 14 oz vegetable broth
• Leaves of a leek
• 1 fresh ginger root, peeled
• 1 yellow onion
• Soy sauce, as required
• ¾ tbsp Chinese five spice
• 5 star anise
• Water, as required
• 1 tbsp sugar

For the mock meat:

• 1 can (10 oz) of mock meat, liquid reserved
• Stem of a leek
• 8 oz white mushrooms, sliced
• Vegetable oil, as required
• Dash of mushroom seasoning
• Soy sauce
• Freshly ground black pepper to taste

Cooking instructions for vegetable pho:

• Cook the noodles according to the package instructions; drain and place it under running water before setting it aside.
• Pour vegetable broth in a medium stock pot and empty 10-12 cups of water into it.
• Peel off the outer layer of the onion and drop it into the broth.
• Crush the ginger in a mortar and add it to the broth along with the leaves of the leek.
• Plop in the star anise florets and heat the mixture over high flame until it starts boiling.
• Cook the broth for an hour or until the onions as well as ginger turns tender.
• Throw away the leek leaves and stir in the Chinese five spice as well as sugar.
• Add a splash of soy sauce and give it a nice stir to mix.
• Reduce the heat to moderate and simmer the broth for another 15 minutes.
• While the soup is cooking, slice the leek stems into fine strips.
• Chop the mock meat and mushrooms into bite-sized chunks; you can also swap mock meat for tofu.
• Drizzle oil in a medium-sized wok to heat it over moderate flame.
• Throw in the leek strips and stir fry for a couple of minutes, or until they turn golden brown.
• Stir in the mushrooms as well as mock meat to the golden leeks.
• Pour in half of the reserved liquid into the sauteed mixture and stir them all together along with a dash of mushroom seasoning and lots of black pepper.
• Pour in the soy sauce to season and give it a nice stir.
• Arrange a bed of noodles in a soup bowl and top it up with the above mixture.
• Ladle the warm broth over them and sprinkle the topping of your choice.
• Serve right away.

Image credit: Wikimedia Commons