The Best Bun Bo Hue (Spicy Vietnamese Beef Noodle Soup)

Bun Bo Hue or Spicy Vietnamese Beef Noodle Soup is one of my favorite Vietnamese dishes of all time. There is a reason this dish continues to be a favorite among the Vietnamese community! It has all the flavor profiles from spicy to sweet to savory. It does take some time to make, but I promise you it will be worth it. In my post, learn all the tips and tricks from creating the broth to perfectly cooking noodles, so you get consistent results every time.

When the weather turns cold, I turn to good ole Vietnamese noodle soups for warmth. Making these noodle broths from my culture connects me to it like nothing else. One of my favorites is Bun Bo Hue (BBH) or Spicy Beef Noodle Soup. Hailing from the central city of Hue, it’s one of the most popular spicy Vietnamese soups in the country, but it’s not well known in the US. I like to consider it the spicy cousin of pho. It has a spicy beef and pork based broth and is served with thick rice noodles, beef, pork hocks, and lots of herbs.

My uncle’s BBH

When I think of authentic Bun Bo Hue, I think of my uncle’s house. This is his signature dish. I remember he used to make gallons of BBH broth and invite all of our friends and family over for dinner. It was his way of connecting with other people. My cousin and I would watch him cook the soup for hours, waiting and anticipating when we could have a bowl. The thing I probably remember most about his broth is how SPICY it was. It’s literally so hot it burns the roof off your mouth. He does not joke around. I couldn’t handle my spicy foods back then, but that didn’t stop me. I would just have a large glass of milk ready.

Making my version of Bun Bo Hue

In my authentic version of Bun Bo Hue, I use a combination of beef and pork to make the broth. Pork is something that is very commonly use in Vietnamese cooking to get a deep, sweet and umami flavored broth. Other than bun bo hue, you can also find it in other Vietnamese favorites like banh canh cua, canh chua, and bun rieu. In this broth, pork adds some sweetness to it which helps balance out the savory flavor from the beef. It is definitely the ultimate example of balance in Vietnamese cooking.

What is the difference between Bun Bo Hue and Beef Pho?

BBH and Pho are really similar dishes, but there are a few distinct differences in my book.

1. The most noticeable difference is BBH is spicy, and pho is typically not spicy. The broth for BBH also tends to take on a red color due to all the spices added. A pho broth is typically more clear or a light brown/yellow color.
2. BBH includes pork in the broth in the form of pork hocks. A beef pho broth is made with only beef.
3. The noodles that are traditionally served in both are very different. BBH typically uses thick rice noodles that are chewy, and pho uses thinner rice noodles that are more tender. Pho noodles also tend to be better at soaking in the broth than BBH noodles.
4. The toppings are also very different between both noodle soups. BBH usually has more toppings between the beef, pork hocks, cha lua, and all the herbs. Pho typically only has beef, herbs, and sauces.

Some details about key ingredients

Broth Ingredients

• Beef shank – This is part of the leg of the cow, so it has a lot of muscle and tough meat. Sometimes depending on supply, you can’t find beef shank at the market. Good substitutes are beef chuck and beef brisket. Definitely try to incorporate some beef bone somewhere to get that full rich broth.
• Pork hocks – Pork hocks are the part of the leg that lies right above its hoof. It has a lot of tendons, but the main part people eat is the skin. This ingredient can be difficult to find unless you have an Asian market near you. You might be able to find these things at your local butcher. Make sure to get the butcher to cut it into small pieces for you because it’s difficult to cut on your own. A good substitute for pork leg is pork shoulder with the bone still attached.
• Beef chuck – This is mostly for flavor and extra meat to go on top of the bowl of noodles. I love beef chuck because it has some fat which adds to the richness of the broth. A good substitute for beef chuck is brisket.
• Bun bo hue powder – BBH powder can be found at Asian grocery stores, or it can be made at home. See my recipe for Bun Bo Hue powder below!
• Shrimp paste – There are no real substitutes for this paste. If you can’t find it, I would recommend using fish sauce instead.
• Daikon – I tested this recipe with Korean radish, and it works really well as a substitute. Another good substitute are white turnips.
• Lemongrass – You can also use lemongrass paste (add 2 tbsp to the broth).
• Chicken broth – This can be substituted with vegetable broth or beef broth.

Noodle Bowl

• Thick rice noodles or Bun Bo Hue Noodles – The noodles that are traditionally used for Bun Bo Hue are thick rice noodles. They’re 2-3 times bigger than vermicelli noodles, and they are chewier. They not only add texture to the bowl, but it also soaks up the soup really well. If you can’t find these noodles (pictured above), use vermicelli noodles. Personally, I don’t think Bun Bo Hue is the same without the thick rice noodles, so I would highly recommend using them if you can.
• Pork Blood Cake – This is a VERY common topping for Bun Bo Hue that I did not use, and most restaurants will include it in your noodle bowl. It has a really interesting flavor and texture. It tastes almost like a really game-y jello, and I personally don’t like it so I don’t include it.

How to make homemade Bun Bo Hue powder

In my most recent test of this recipe, I found it pretty difficult to find pre-made Bun Bo Hue powder, so I ended up making my own. Here’s how you do it!

1. Combine 2 tbsp of paprika, 1 tsp garlic powder, 1 tsp onion powder, 1/2 tsp of star anise powder, 1/4 tsp ginger powder, 1/4 tsp of powdered cloves in a bowl.
2. Mix until combined and set aside.

Making my traditional Bun Bo Hue recipe (with tips!)

I am not going to lie, making Bun Bo Hue from scratch takes a lot of work. It has a lot of ingredients and more than a few steps. But in the end, the effort is well worth it. Here’s how you make it!

1. Clean the meat. Put the pork leg, beef shank, and beef chuck into a big soup pan and add water until it just covers the meat. Bring it to a boil. Once the water boils, remove it from the heat and pour out the water. Take out all the meat and set aside.
   • Tip #1: This is the key to any good Vietnamese soup. Add meat to water and bring it to a boil then throw away all the water. All the gross stuff from the meat will go away with the water. As an extra bonus, you can also clean the pot you used to make sure all the impurities don’t get into your broth.
2. Add 3 cloves of garlic, 3 tbsp bun bo hue powder, 1 tbsp of shrimp paste and 1 tablespoon of oil to a soup pan. Cook for 30 seconds until fragrant. (You can use the same one you used to parboil the meat to save time.) Add in the beef shank and beef chuck, and cook until the beef is brown on all sides.
3. Add in water until it just covers the meat. I added 3 quarts or 12 cups of water. Bring to a boil, and scoop away any impurities that you see.
4. Lower the heat, and add the pork hocks back to the pot. Also, add 1 onion, 1 daikon, and 2 stalks of lemongrass. Simmer for 2-3 hours.
   • Tip #2: Another key tip! The key to a clear, clean broth is to not boil the broth too much. When I make broths, I typically keep it on a very low simmer so everything cooks slowly. Over boiling the broth tends to make it cloudy.
5. After 2 hours, check that the meat is cooked through. Leave them in the broth if they need to be cooked more. Once cooked through, take out the meat. Slice the beef and set aside. The beef is cooked through once it’s tender and falls off the bone.
6. Add 2 tsp of salt, 2 tbsp of fish sauce, 1 tbsp of sugar, and 1 can of chicken broth to the soup. Simmer the soup for another 30 minutes.

1. While the soup is simmering, make the sate chili. Combine 1/4 cup of vegetable oil and 2 tsp of annatto seeds in a small sauce pan. Cook for 1-2 minutes until the oil turns red. Discard the seeds and add the rest of the ingredients for the sate chili to the pan. Cook for 1-2 more minutes and remove from the heat.
2. After 15 minutes of simmering, add 1-2 tbsp of the sate chili to the broth and stir. Alternatively, serve it on the side and allow guests to add it if they want to.
3. Taste the soup and see if it has enough flavor. If not, add more fish sauce until it tastes just right. Turn off the heat.
   • Tip #3: If you can, make the broth a day ahead. Broths especially Vietnamese broths taste better the next day. All the ingredients marinate overnight, and the flavors are so much better the next day.
4. Now it’s time to assemble your bowls of soup! Grab a handful of cooked noodles and put them in a bowl. Top it with some of the beef slices, a piece of the pork hock, cilantro, green onions, bean sprouts, cha lua, and a small teaspoon of shrimp paste (optional). Ladle some soup over these yummy ingredients and serve.

How to properly boil rice noodles

This is not talked about a lot but there is a method to boiling rice noodles. First combine water and pinch of salt in a pot. Make sure you use a big enough pot so your water doesn’t boil over. Once boiling, add the noodles and cook until cooked through. Taste the noodles to test if they’re done.

Once done, pour the noodles out into a colander and run it under cold water. This step is VERY IMPORTANT. Rice noodles are not like pasta. You must rinse off the starch or they will be gummy and sticky.

Customizing this recipe for more people

This recipe serves 5-6 people depending on how much each person eats. To make this recipe for more people, simply add more chicken broth to increase the quantity of soup. This is something my mom did for us growing up. Also make sure you have enough of the noodles and toppings for the extra people.

How my family enjoys Bun Bo Hue

Bun Bo Hue is normally served with a side of herbs, lime, chili, and a dollop of shrimp paste, so you can customize your bowl to your taste. I typically add everything except the chili to my bowl. Very traditional people like my uncle will bite a piece of chili and then spoon some noodles into his mouth, so he gets a very spicy bite. I however cannot handle that.

Did you make this dish?

If you made this dish, I would love to see!

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