Vietnamese Spicy Beef Noodle Soup (Bún Bò Huế)

Ingredients 
--For the Broth--

• 500 ml beef stock
• 200 g beef shank
• 1 brown onion, peeled
• 6 stalks lemongrass, bruised 
• 1 tbsp salt
• 1 tbsp sugar

--For the Chili Saté--

• 3 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 tbsp minced lemongrass 
• 1 tbsp minced shallot
• 1 tbsp chili powder
• 2 tbsp fish sauce
• 1 tbsp sugar

--Others--

• 500 g rice vermicelli noodle (labeled as Bún Bò Huế)
• 2 tbsp Vietnamese shrimp paste (mắm ruốc)
• 200 g boiled blood cubes (huyết) (optional)
• 200 g Vietnamese ham (chả lụa) (optional)
• 1/2 cup chopped spring onion
• 1/2 cup chopped cilantro
• 1 medium onion, thinly sliced
• Fresh greens: mint, Vietnamese mint, bean sprouts, shredded banana blossom (optional), lemon wedges, shredded lettuce/cabbage.

-- The recipe is to serve 2, increase the amount if required--

Method
- In a big pot, add the beef stock, 200 ml water and the beef shank. Smash the lemongrass to release its fragrance, tie them up and add to the stock pot, along with 1 peeled onion, salt, sugar. Bring it to a boil over high heat, then lower to medium and simmer uncovered for 5-10 minutes.
- When the beef shank is cooked, remove and soak it in a bowl of cold water for 5 minutes to prevent it from turning dark. Then drain, let cool and slice thinly into bite-sized pieces.
- To make the saté, heat oil in a pan, saute minced lemongrass, garlic and shallot until fragrant and slightly golden. Then take off the heat, add chili powder, fish sauce, sugar, stir well and simmer under low heat for 2 minutes until smooth. Add half of the saté to the stockpot. Save the rest in a small bowl for serving.
- Dissolve Vietnamese fermented shrimp paste in a cup of cold water. Let it sit for 10 minutes to settle the dregs. Fill a saucepan with 2 cups of water, add the shrimp paste liquid (discard the dregs at the bottom). Bring to a boil then remove from the heat and let it sit for 15 minutes to settle the dregs again. Then extract the clear broth on top and add to the simmering stockpot. Discard the dregs. Adjust the flavour of the broth to your taste with salt, fish sauce and chicken powder.
- Cook the rice vermicelli following package instructions. Then rinse under cold water to stop the cooking process and remove the outside starch. Then rinse again under hot water, this helps the noodles to get dried faster and become more fluffy.
- To assemble the dish, place a handful of the rice vermicelli in a serving bowl. Top with sliced beef, boiled blood cubes and Vietnamese ham. Ladle the broth over the noodles and garnish with the chopped spring onion, cilantro and sliced onion. Serve hot.

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