Vietnamese Pho with Mushrooms and Pak Choi

SERVES 2

INGREDIENTS

2 shallots or 1 brown onion, finely diced

1 tblsp rapeseed (canola) or sunflower oil

1 tsp grated ginger

½ tsp caster (superfine) sugar

1 cinnamon stick 1 star anise 2 cloves

250g chestnut (cremini) mushrooms, thinly sliced

2 pak choi, sliced with white stalks and green leaves kept separately 2 tsps gluten-free tamari

1 tsp fish sauce or tamari for veggie option

900ml chicken or vegetable stock

90g flat rice noodles or rice sticks

4 spring onions, sliced

TO SERVE

Fresh mint

Fresh coriander (cilantro)

Sliced red chilli

Lime wedges

METHOD

1 Add the shallots to a non-stick, heavybased saucepan with the oil and fry over a medium-low heat for 5 minutes, or until soft and beginning to caramelise.

2 Add the ginger, sugar, cinnamon, star anise and cloves and cook for a couple of minutes over a medium heat, stirring frequently.

3 Add the sliced mushrooms, the whites of the pak choi, tamari and fish sauce and cook over a medium heat for a few minutes, or until the mushrooms are beginning to soften. Pour in the stock, bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes while you cook the noodles.

4 Bring a large saucepan of water to the boil, add the noodles and cook them in simmering water for 5 minutes, or until they are soft but still have some bite to them. Drain, rinse under cold running water and transfer them to a saucepan of COLD water – this will stop the noodles from getting stuck together. Set them aside until needed.

5 Back to the pho. Turn off the heat, remove the aromatics (the cinnamon stick, star anise and cloves) with a slotted spoon and discard. Now add the drained noodles, the sliced pak choi green leaves and the spring onions. Stir through, then divide the pho between two bowls.

6 Serve topped with fresh mint and coriander, sliced red chilli and lime wedges, if you like.