Main Ingredients:

See below ingredients and instructions of the recipe

Cooking Preparation of the Recipe:

1 Stalk fresh lemon grass or 2 Shallots or white part of 2
1 tb Dried Lemon Grass -scallions, sliced
Sprinkling of freshly 3 c Water
-ground black pepper 1 1/2 Beef bouillon cubes
2 ts Fish sauce (nuoc mam) 1 ts Salt
1 Clove garlic, chopped 1 tb Fresh coriander (Chinese
6 oz Fatty beef chuck, sliced -parsley), chopped
-paper thin 2 Scallions, green part only,
1 ts Vegetable oil -chopped

Here's a pretty simple Vietnamese beef soup recipe in contrast to the
recipe for Hanoi Beef Soup. It doesn't call for hot chilies, but you
can slice a couple into thin rounds and toss 'em in. That's kosher
(if that term can apply...) with any Vietnamese soup. Add 'em either
when the soup is brought to it's final boil or just after it's
removed from the heat.

If you are using fresh lemon grass, simply remove the outer leaves and
upper two-thirds of the stalk, then chop. If you are using dried, it
must be soaked for 2 hours, then drained and chopped fine.

Sprinkle the black pepper, 1 teaspoon of the fish sauce, and chopped
garlic over the meat; mix well and allow the meat to absorb the
flavors for a few minutes.

Heat the oil and fry the shallots over a high flame. Add the lemon
grass and fry for about 1 minute, then add the meat. Cook until all
traces of redness are gone. Add the water, bring to a boil, and add
the beef bouillon cubes, remaining 1 teaspoon fish sauce, and salt.
Immediately before serving, bring the soup to a boil. Pour into
bowls and sprinkle with the chopped coriander and scallion.

From "The Classic Cuisine of Vietnam", Bach Ngo and Gloria Zimmerman,
Barron's, 1979.

Posted by Stephen Ceideburg August 28 1990.

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