Random thoughts about pho

Mom is clumsy so she cooks simply, the kids still enjoy it. My kids like big sliced ​​noodles, but the market only sells them in thin slices. So I buy pho rolls and slice them myself, about a centimeter thick. The noodle seller said why bother slicing them. But my kids love it. When they bring the bowl of pho home, they cheer when the noodles are sliced ​​big. I'm not sure, but big sliced ​​noodles seem more rustic and old-fashioned, and taste better.

Being from Nam Dinh , I didn't know the difference between Nam Dinh pho and Hanoi pho. One time I was traveling around Nam Dinh and stopped by a pho restaurant. It was so delicious that I asked the pho vendor where he got his beef. The pho vendor probably thought that people from Hanoi would prefer the urban style, so he said he got the beef from Hanoi. Oh no.

But Nam Dinh pho, the nights at Vieng market, the cool spring air, the pho stalls crowded, stopping in for a bowl of pho, the steaming broth, the thin, soft pieces of meat with layers of lean, tendons, and fat, the pot of pho broth simmered with fragrant beef bones, the whole Vieng market was bustling, the hands holding the bowl of pho, the half-full stomach and the entrails lingered on something of a spring night.

I tried Vietnamese pho in Japan, the US or Germany - the first times were about 20 years ago and it was pho cooked by foreigners, not by Vietnamese people there. At that time, I ate it with the mindset of trying to see how pho was in the hands of foreigners. Of course it was boring, the pho noodles were dry, the broth was cooked with ready-made spices and beef balls, but those shops were always crowded, proving that at that time, even though there was no Facebook or social networks like now, pho was already a strong brand in the world . An Italian woman once told me, I love Vietnamese pho so much, I can eat pho every morning, anywhere. It is filling enough, but also light and airy, a combination of flavors, colors, and materials, including starch, meat and vegetables, and it is so appealing to the sense of smell.

Listening to her, I suddenly realized that I had never paid attention to that tight combination, but simply had a bowl of pho for breakfast when rushing to work, enjoyed the aroma of pho on a leisurely weekend morning and then went to a coffee shop, or was busy and happy with a pot of pho I cooked for my children at home. It was simply a feeling of the moment, and we often did not think much about the happiness we had.

Famous chef Anthony Bourdain, who made Hanoi's Bun Cha famous with President Obama, has a special passion for Vietnamese cuisine . During his dozens of trips to Vietnam, he always enjoyed the rich and colorful street food in Vietnam, and he also said that he really liked Pho. Ask any foreigner, perhaps among those you have met, perhaps 2/3, or 3/4, or maybe up to 99% like Pho. On Vietnamese menus translated into foreign languages, Pho now keeps its original name, no longer needing to be translated into noodle soup like in English.

Pho, by itself, is so attractive, it doesn't need a heritage title. At first, I felt strange when I heard about the heritage title. But there are always titles, stories to send a message. So, with the heritage title, what will Pho be like? For many years, we have been discussing bringing Vietnam's wonderful cuisine into a Vietnamese culinary brand to the world, into a cultural ambassador, into a component of Vietnam's soft power. Pho is certainly indispensable in those components. But how to elevate Pho like that, certainly cannot be done separately but it is not too difficult, because Pho itself is already attractive enough, reality has proven it. Love goes through the stomach, that can be true for anyone. So loving Vietnam with Pho is completely possible. Moreover, in every home, any mother can make her family happy with a pot of pho - an intangible cultural heritage - fragrant, even if she is a clumsy mother.

Source: https://daidoanket.vn/tan-man-ve-pho-10288952.html