Easy Slow Cooker Pho with Tofu and Vegetables

Growing up not far from Little Saigon, pho shops all had numbers -- Pho 79, Pho 84, but somewhere along the line pho went mainstream and so did the names of the shops. So let's get the jokes and gimmicky names out of the way upfront. "What the Pho?" -- Kids in my class were using this one as far back as junior high -- in the late '80s. Now, it's a noodle shop in Bellevue, WA. "9-0-2-1-Pho" -- This is real. And yes, it's in Beverly Hills. "Jenny Pho" -- Also real. In Issaquah, WA. And of course, the king of all Pho shops...well, there's an, um, king and he don't serve burgers. Creating a good pho broth takes hours, but there's no reason you can't do it. Put aside your worries about leaving a pot simmering on the stove unattended overnight, because you can make a good traditional pho broth in the slow cooker. I never would have thought of it, and then a lightbulb flicked on over my head when I saw the recipe on Serious Eats.

ByMichelleNovember 12, 20132Comments

Recipes

Don’t Fear the Pho

Is it possible to fear chicken soup? If it wasn’t fear holding me back from making pho at home, it must have been laziness, or the sheer number of pho shops in Seattle. Yeah, that’s it, there was no reason to make pho at home, when you can get it anywhere, even out here in the ‘burbs. Pho, a Vietnamese noodle soup, most often made with beef broth, has always seemed like a dish to leave to the experts. You char the spices and ginger and the broth needs to simmer for hours to fully develop its flavor. Then Taylor Hoang of Pho Cyclo made pho ga, chicken pho, at TDCamp and it was so easy and so delicious I knew I had to make it at home.

ByMichelleAugust 9, 20131Comment

Appetizers Recipes

Vegetarian Summer Rolls w/ Quinoa

You know that thing I said about tiptoeing into fall? It’s on hold. Well, temporarily. Ma Nature has gifted us with an extended summer and around these parts, you don’t look a sunny and 75 gift horse in the mouth. You bypass the pumpkin lattes and keep on making cold brew and enjoy every last bit of summer you can, because there’ll be beets and parsnips from the moment it ends until July comes around again next year. I’m sure I’ve committed some kind of culinary crime with these vegetarian summer rolls. Violated a sacrosanct law by bringing quinoa into the picture. A grain that’s as hipster as skinny jeans and typewriters. But if you’re trying to get more whole grains, more fiber, well, then you work it in where you can. These summer rolls are a perfect little snack, a perfect little starter and they’re chock full of vegetables.

ByMichelleSeptember 19, 20123Comments

Restaurants Travel

Ba Bar – Vietnamese Street Food in Capitol Hill

From the outside, Ba Bar (yes, Ba. Bar. Not the elephant.) looks like a coffee place. Its big windows face the street, and even as you step inside, the espresso bar with a few baked items is on your right. The floors are acid washed concrete. Walk into the main dining space and off to one side, there's an enormous, typical Pacific Northwest-looking wood bar. You might take it for a gastropub. But sit down and the menu in front of you is...Vietnamese street food.

ByMichelleApril 4, 20120Comments