It's been about 3 months since my vacation in Cali, and I still find myself daydreaming about the vegetarian pho I had there. Le sigh~ That pho broth was bomb. My pho craving has gotten so intense that I actually attempted to make my own the other day. I say "attempt" because I'm a total noob when it comes to Vietnamese cooking!
My amateur bowl of pho was lacking a lot of the deep, complex flavors of real pho broth and didn't quite 'hit the spot' like I was hoping it would. If you're wondering, here's the link to the recipe I tried to follow. I picked this one because it seems pretty authentic, but I can't really speak for the recipe itself because I didn't have half the ingredients listed (like fennel seeds, cardamom, coriander seeds, or lime wedges), which is probably why my pho came out on the bland side.
I did, however, have cinnamon sticks, cloves, star anise pods, and fresh cilantro, all of which I obtained at the FFM in Itaewon.
Hm, now that I think of it, perhaps I'm being a bit hard on myself. It actually did taste kinda like pho, and I did slurp down the whole bowl (a good sign). The cilantro definitely 'made' the dish, and the pan-fried tofu was a nice addition. I suppose it was a good first attempt, and I can now add it to my 101 List for trying new International dishes.
But seriously, if anyone here knows a place in Korea that has vegan pho, let me know! Or if you know how to make amazing homemade pho, will you invite me over for dinner? I shall repay you in cookies. Pho realz.