Beef / Instant Pot / Noodles / Vietnamese
Da Nang-Style Spicy Beef Noodle Soup (Bún Bò Huế Đà Nẵng)
What is Bún Bò Huế Đà Nẵng Style?
Bún bò Huế is the bold, spicy lemongrass beef noodle soup from central Vietnam. This Đà Nẵng-style version keeps things simple and hearty with beef bones, beef plate, tendon, thinly sliced beef, and pork blood, simmered with lemongrass and a store-bought bún bò Huế seasoning to get that signature flavor without a long list of spices.
The finishing touch is a fragrant chili oil: green onion whites fried until golden, then mixed with the bún bò Huế seasoning packet and stirred into the broth for its signature red color and heat.
I've included both a stovetop version (about 3½ hours) and a faster Instant Pot version. Looking for the classic version? Try my Vietnamese Spicy Beef Noodle Soup (Bún Bò Huế).
Da Nang-Style Spicy Beef Noodle Soup (Bún Bò Huế Đà Nẵng)
Ingredients
Meats
- 3 lb beef bones
- 1 lb beef plate
- 1 lb beef tendon
- ½ lb raw beef thinly sliced
- 1 box pork blood about 1 lb, cut into cubes
- ½ lb pork liver optional
Broth
- 5 stalks lemongrass pounded
- 1 whole onion for the Instant Pot version
- 2 tablespoon salt plus more to taste
- 1 teaspoon MSG
- 1 oz rock sugar
- 1 tablespoon crushed dried peppers
- 1 box bún bò Huế seasoning cubes
- 1 tablespoon chicken powder to season
- 6 qt water or fill the Instant Pot to the max line
Chili oil
- ⅓ cup oil
- 1 bunch green onions white parts, sliced
- 1 packet bún bò Huế seasoning for the oil
To serve
- 2 lb bún bò Huế noodles (thick rice vermicelli)
Instructions
Stovetop
- Cook the liver (if using) and pork blood separately and set aside.
- Parboil the rest of the meat separately, then drain and rinse.
- Add the meat to a pot with salt, MSG, rock sugar, lemongrass, and water. Bring to a boil.
- Lower the heat and add the crushed dried peppers. Let simmer for 30 minutes.
- Add 1 box of bún bò Huế seasoning cubes and let cook for 3 hours.
- Remove the meat, bones, and lemongrass from the broth.
- Add the cooked pork blood and season with more salt and chicken powder to taste.
- For the chili oil, sauté the sliced green onion whites in oil until browned. Turn off the heat and let cool slightly.
- Stir the bún bò Huế seasoning packet into the cooled oil, then add the oil to the broth.
- Serve the broth over bún bò Huế noodles with the sliced meats.
Instant Pot
- Parboil the beef plate, bones, and tendon in the Instant Pot for 2 minutes. Wait 5 minutes, then release the pressure (waiting first prevents spilling and spraying).
- Drain and wash all the meats.
- Add the bones, beef plate, and tendon to the clean Instant Pot with pounded lemongrass, a whole onion, salt, rock sugar, MSG, and the bún bò Huế seasoning cubes. Add water.
- Pressure cook on high for 15 minutes.
- While it cooks, cook the pork blood separately.
- Let the pressure release naturally.
- Remove all the bones, lemongrass, and onion.
- Season with more salt and chicken powder to taste.
- Add in the cooked pork blood.
- For the chili oil, fry the green onion whites in oil until golden. Turn off the heat and let cool. Stir in the bún bò Huế seasoning packet and add the oil to the broth.
