Nix's Authentic InstantPot Pho

There's a few shortcuts in here, but it's not short. It is legit, though..

Ingredients

🧅 AROMATICS:

• 2 large onions, halved

• 1 large (~150g) piece ginger, halved lengthwise to expose surface area

🌶 SPICES (ideally wrapped in cheesecloth or a tea ball for easy removal):

• 10 star anise

• 4 cinnamon sticks

• 4 cardamom pods

• 3 cloves

• 1.5 tbsp coriander seeds

🦴 BROTH:

• Minimum: 3 lb meaty knuckle bones + 1 lb brisket

• Ideal: 1–3 lb brisket, 2 lb meaty bones, 2 lb marrow bones (knuckle/leg)

• ~16 cups water, or as much as fits in your pot

🍜 FOR SERVING:

• 1 package dried rice stick

• Raw beef tenderloin, sliced paper-thin while semi-frozen (cooks in hot broth)

• Poached, shredded chicken breast (boil ~10 min until internal temp hits 165°F)

🧂 SEASONING:

• 2 tbsp white sugar

• 1 tbsp salt

• 3–4 tbsp fish sauce

• (Optional) ½–1 tsp MSG

🌿 TOPPINGS (Optional, in priority order):

• Handful of bean sprouts

• 1 tbsp hoisin sauce

• 1 tbsp sriracha

• Thai basil (or mint), ~3–5 sprigs

• Cilantro (or more basil), ~3–5 sprigs

• Thinly sliced onions / green onions

• Lime wedges

• Sliced red chili or jalapeños

Directions

🔥 PREP: CHAR AROMATICS & TOAST SPICES

• 1. Heat a dry skillet over high heat until smoking.

• 2. Char onions and ginger cut-side down until deeply browned (~3–5 min). Flip once, then set aside.

• 3. Toast spices in a dry pan over medium-high heat until fragrant (~2–3 min). Set aside.

🧼 CLEAN BONES

• 4. Rinse bones and brisket under cold water until clear.

• 5. Add to stockpot, cover with cold water, bring to a boil for 5 minutes.

• 6. Drain and rinse bones under tap water to remove scum. (This prevents a cloudy broth.)

• 7. (Optional but recommended) Roast bones in a 450°F (230°C) oven for 45–60 minutes until browned. Flip halfway through for even color and flavor.

🍲 BROTH

• 8. In your largest stockpot or InstantPot, add cleaned bones, brisket, charred onion and ginger.

• 9. Cover with water (~15 cups).

• 10. Simmer with a partially covered lid for 3 hours (or InstantPot: 40 minutes on high pressure).

• 11. Remove brisket (should be tender), set aside for serving. Discard onions and ginger.

• 12. Add spice satchel. Simmer uncovered for 40 more minutes.

• 13. Strain broth into a clean pot. Discard bones and spices.

• 14. Add sugar, salt, fish sauce, and optional MSG. Adjust to taste—broth should be deeply beefy, savory, lightly sweet, and fragrant.

⸻

🍜 SERVING

• 15. In each bowl, add a handful of rehydrated rice noodles, pulled chicken/brisket and raw brisket.

• 16. Ladle in ~2 cups of hot broth

• 17. Let guests add toppings, in particular 1tbspn of Hoisin and Sriracha each alongside some fresh jalapeños, basil/coriander/mint, a squeeze of lime and a handful of sprouts.

Adapted from Tin Eats