Quick & Easy Pho
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Craving a rich, comforting bowl of Vietnamese pho but short on time? This easy, healthy pho recipe brings the classic steaming broth, slurpy noodles, and tender meat to your table in just 45 minutes—without sacrificing a bit of flavor!
Pho (pronounced “fuh”) is one of my favorite dishes to order when we go out for Vietnamese food. This delicious noodle soup is made with a rich, savory broth, rice noodles, and tender meat, topped with fresh herbs, bean sprouts, chilies, and lime—and of course, the meal wouldn’t be complete without the standard squeeze bottles of hoisin and sriracha on the side.
Traditional pho recipes require hours of slow-cooking beef bones, meat, and spices to develop deep flavors. But there’s a quicker, simpler way to bring this comforting soup to your table at home. By simmering store-bought beef and chicken broth with aromatic spices, you can enjoy a flavorful, nourishing bowl of pho in a flash—perfect for those nights when you want something quick and satisfying. This recipe is adapted from America’s Test Kitchen.
“Felt like I was at my favorite pho restaurant…You really nailed the pho flavors!”
What You’ll Need To Make Quick Beef Pho
- Onion: Adds depth and sweetness to the broth, with a portion thinly sliced and reserved for serving.
- Beef broth, Chicken Broth &Water: The base of the soup that makes a rich, savory and layered flavor characteristic of pho.
- Fish sauce: Provides salty, umami depth to the broth.
- Fresh ginger, Cinnamon stick, Star anise pod, Whole cloves: Simmered in the broth to impart warmth, sweetness, and complexity to the soup.
- Flat rice noodles: A key component of the dish, these noodles, sometimes referred to as banh pho or rice sticks, have a slightly chewy texture that soaks up the flavor of the broth. They require soaking in hot water until soft and pliable before adding to the soup.
- Thinly sliced beef: The protein component of the dish, the thin slices cook quickly in the hot broth, staying tender and flavorful. I like to use a flat iron or flank steak—both are easy to find and slice thinly. Other cuts such as brisket, sirloin, round steak, or ribeye also work well.
- Bean sprouts, Cilantro leaves, Lime wedges, Hoisin sauce, and Sriracha: Classic garnishes and condiments for pho. Thai basil is also a traditional accompaniment, but it can be difficult to find at many supermarkets—feel free to add it if you can find it.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-By-Step Instructions
Start by slicing one of the onion quarters as thin as you can—this is important so you don’t end up with big bites of onion later. Set it aside for serving the soup.
In a large pot, combine the remaining 3 onion quarters, beef broth, chicken broth, water, fish sauce, ginger, cinnamon, sugar, star anise, and cloves. Bring everything to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low and let it simmer for 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil. Off the heat, add the noodles and let them sit, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking, until they’re soft and pliable but not quite tender—5 to 10 minutes. Drain and rinse well with cold water, then set aside.
Over a large bowl, strain the broth through a fine mesh strainer, discarding the solids, and pour the clear broth back into the pot. (Or if you have a fine mesh spider, you can use that to fish out the solids—it’s much easier!) At this point, the broth can be made ahead and stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days or frozen for up to 3 months.
Bring the strained broth to a boil and add the soaked noodles. Cook them until they’re just tender, no more than a minute—you don’t want them to lose their “chew.”
Using tongs (or a spider, if you have one), lift the noodles from the pot and divide them evenly into serving bowls. Reduce the heat to a simmer and add the sliced beef to the broth. Let it simmer just until it’s no longer pink, about 1 minute—be careful not to overcook the beef, or it can become tough!
Using a slotted spoon or spider, remove the beef from the broth and divide it between the bowls. Ladle the hot broth over the noodles and beef, then top each bowl with the reserved thinly sliced onions, bean sprouts, and cilantro. Serve with lime wedges, hoisin, and sriracha on the side. This recipe makes two large dinner-sized bowls or four smaller ones.
Pho Variations
Pho is highly customizable. You can easily swap the beef for chicken to make pho ga (chicken pho). For the best results, use boneless chicken breasts or tenderloins, slicing them thinly to ensure they cook quickly and evenly. Bring the broth to a gentle boil before adding the chicken, and cook until it’s opaque and cooked through. For a richer chicken flavor, replace the beef broth with additional chicken broth. If you’re looking for more variety, you can experiment with other proteins like tofu or shrimp.
Video Tutorial
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Quick & Easy Pho
This easy, flavorful pho is the perfect bowl of comfort any night of the week!
Ingredients
- 1 medium yellow onion, quartered, divided
- 1 (14.5 oz) can low-sodium beef broth (1¾ cups)
- 1 (14.5 oz) can low-sodium chicken broth (1¾ cups)
- 2 cups water
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce
- 1 (1-inch) piece fresh ginger, thinly sliced (no need to peel)
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 1 star anise pod
- 4 whole cloves
- 7 oz flat rice noodles
- 8 oz very thinly sliced beef, such as flat iron or flank steak
- Salt, to taste
- ½ cup bean sprouts
- ¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves
- Lime wedges, for serving
- Hoisin sauce and sriracha, for serving
Instructions
- Slice one of the onion quarters as thin as possible; set aside. In a large pot, bring the remaining 3 onion quarters, beef broth, chicken broth, water, fish sauce, ginger, cinnamon stick, sugar, star anise, and cloves to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil. Off the heat, add the noodles. Let sit, stirring regularly to prevent sticking, until the noodles are soft and pliable but still not tender, 5 to 10 minutes. Drain and rinse well with cold water. Set aside.
- Over a large bowl, strain the broth through a fine mesh strainer. Discard the solids and pour the clear broth back into the pot. (Alternatively, you can use a fine mesh spider to fish out the solids.)
- Bring the broth to a boil and add the noodles; cook until the noodles are just tender, 30 seconds to 1 minute. Using tongs or a spider, lift the noodles from the pot and divide evenly into bowls. Reduce the heat to a simmer and add the sliced beef to the broth; let simmer until no longer pink, about 1 minute. Using a slotted spoon or spider, remove the beef from the broth and divide between the bowls. Taste the broth and adjust the seasoning with salt, if necessary. Ladle the broth over the noodles and beef. Top each bowl with the reserved thinly sliced onions, bean sprouts, and cilantro (you may not need all of the onions). Pass the lime wedges, hoisin, and sriracha at the table.
- Make-Ahead/Freezing Instructions: The broth can be made in advance and actually develops more flavor as it sits. Simply prepare the broth according to the recipe, allow it to cool, and then store it in the refrigerator for up to 3 days or freeze it for up to 3 months. When ready to serve, reheat the broth to a simmer, then proceed with assembling your pho bowls with noodles, beef, and toppings.
Nutrition Information
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- Serving size: 2
- Calories: 657
- Fat: 11 g
- Saturated fat: 4 g
- Carbohydrates: 99 g
- Sugar: 10 g
- Fiber: 4 g
- Protein: 39 g
- Sodium: 1,464 mg
- Cholesterol: 77 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
Gluten-Free Adaptable Note
To the best of my knowledge, all of the ingredients used in this recipe are gluten-free or widely available in gluten-free versions. There is hidden gluten in many foods; if you're following a gluten-free diet or cooking for someone with gluten allergies, always read the labels of your ingredients to verify that they are gluten-free.
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Comments
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Hi Jenn,
Thank you for this recipe. I have always wanted to make pho but it was way too much work to boil the broth for hours. This simplified recipe tastes just as good. So thank you! I have a question.
If I want to make 4 servings instead of two, do I just double up on every ingredient?
And if I want to make a seafood or chicken pho, do I need to change the broth?
Please advise. Thank you.
Hi Lucy, so glad you enjoyed it! Yes, you would just double everything if you wanted to make four servings. And you don’t have to, but can change the broth up if you’d like to; just make sure you go with low-sodium.
Delicious! Better than the restaurants. I can’t believe how good it was. Thank you again!
I generally steer away from bean sprouts due to possibility of contamination- yes, it’s infrequent overall but my husband is very sensitive so not worth risk. Is there anything you might suggest as an alternative? Thank you for sharing your delicious recipes. I know I can depend on your recipes!
Hi Robin, you can just omit them. Enjoy the pho!
Really good recipe! Felt like I was at my favorite Pho restaurant. Didn’t change a thing but the cilantro, instead topped with basil. You really nailed the pho flavors! Thanks for sharing!
Jenn, I spent a couple of months in Vietnam riding motorcycles, about 4000km in total. I’ve eaten lots of pho! I’ve been looking for an easy version as I’m a busy guy, but I still love me a good bowl of pho. I live on a small town so popping ‘round to the local Vietnamese restaurant is not an option.
I actually made this in my Instant Pot (did I mention I’m a busy guy?), letting it cook, at pressure, for 15 minutes. Since I used OXO powdered bouillon (I know, a travesty) I had to estimate how much to add. In the end I added a little more sugar, fish sauce, and bouillon powder to get it dialled in. No fault of yours, I was just working with what I had.
By now I should know to check your website first, when looking for recipes. I could have saved myself allot of work. The fact that you put so much time and effort into publishing tried and true recipes doesn’t go unnoticed by your fans. Thank-you!
Traditional pho is garnished with bean sprouts, fresh basil, sliced green chili’s, and a wedge of lime, not cilantro and in addition to thin slices of yellow onion add a little sliced green onion. Trying your recipe tomorrow with the above changes. Will use cilantro to flavor the broth, then will toss out with the other solids for flavoring. We always follow a pho meal with boba tea. For us it’s a several decades tradition. Thank you for your recipe, really looking forward to making this dish. <3
My daughter went to school in Seattle and learned to love Pho. When I made this for her, she absolutely LOVED it. The flavor is amazing. I’m definitely going to make the broth ahead so she can just heat & eat.
This is the most amazing recipe! We love Pho, but I’m not a very good cook so I was always hesitant to try any Pho recipes at home – we always went out. We had a great time preparing this because it was easier than most. This recipe is just so aromatic & delicious!! We added a few fresh mint leaves along with the other ingredients in the broth & it was fantastic. Thank you, Jenn (Once Upon A Chef Owner)!!! ❤️
I LOVE Pho! I’ve been looking for a “cheat” and of course I trust a Jen Segal recipe :). I just wanted to ask, can you double, triple, quadruple the recipe or will it lose the strength of flavor? I intend to get straight to the kitchen this weekend.
Hi Aminah, Feel free to increase the quantity (all the ingredients) as needed – it should still be delish.
Delicious! We all loved the Pho Jen. Simple, easy and our new fave soup. I just wanted to ask, if I freeze the broth, are there any special instructions to defrost so it doesn’t taste watered down?
Thanks again for the recipe. It really was so good, soooo good!
So glad you liked it! I don’t think you’ll need to do anything other than thaw the broth if you freeze it. 🙂
This turned out great! If you want the broth to be clear for a more authentic pho, I’d cook the noodles separately and strain the broth through a cheesecloth, but I followed Jenn’s instructions to a T and it tasted great despite the shortcuts. I was dubious about the cinnamon but it made the house smell great and didn’t add a weird flavor to the broth.