Bún Gỏi Dà

Spring Noodle Soup



2 lb pork bones
3 quarts cold water
1/2 cup dried shrimp
5 T hoisin sauce
2 T tamarind paste
2 T fine shrimp paste
2 T fish sauce or to taste
salt to taste
3 shallots
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 T vegetable oil
3 red hot chili pepper
1/3 cup roasted peanuts, crushed
1/2 lb fresh pork ham, cooked and thinly sliced
20 medium shrimps, cooked, remove shells
10 oz fine rice vermicelli
2 cups chopped green salad
1 cups bean sprounts, rinsed and drained
2 cups shredded banana blossom
1/2 cups chive, cut into 3-inches length


Place pork bones, dried shrimp and shallots in large pot, add water, bring to a boil over high heat, skim off foam, lower the heat and let simmer for 2 hours. Add tamarind paste, shrimp paste, fish sauce, bring back to boil. Strain broth with a double layer of cheesecloth. Add 2 T hoisin sauce into strained broth and let it simmer.

Put rice vermicelli in boiling water and cook for 3 minutes. Turn off heat and let it sit for 3 more minutes. Rinse over water.

In a small pan, add oil and cook garlic until fragrant, add 3 T hoisin sauce, 1 T broth, stir well until cooked, about 2-3 mins.

To serve: distribute salad greens, banana blossom, bean sprouts into large bowls, noodle on top, place shrimps, pork, and chive on top, ladle the hot broth over.
Add peanut, garlic hoisin sauce, hot chili pepper as desired.