Instant Pot Vegan Pho

A comforting warm Vietnamese soup filled to the brim with an aromatic broth, fresh vegetables, mushrooms, greens, bean sprouts, herbs, and spices. 

Nearly ten years ago, my husband introduced me to Vietnamese Pho when we lived in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. One of his co-workers brought some pho in one day. He excitedly described the process and ingredients over dinner that night. Then he took me to the indoor farmer’s market where his co-worker made fresh pho at her booth.

I had never had anything like it. Simple. Yet complex. Fresh. Yet Easy. And so much favor.

I remember watching in amazement as she placed very thin slices of meat in a bowl, with some noodles and vegetables on top. Then poured piping hot broth over top. The meat was cooked perfectly. she then sprinkled some herbs on top and handed me the bowl. Admittedly, I didn’t know what to do with it.

It’s incredible to think that there was a time I didn’t know how to eat Pho. Since that fateful day, we have made pho many many times and it only continues to get better with each bowl. I am not from Vietnam and I do not use an heirloom recipe. But I will tell you that this is an incredible plant-based and vegan pho that you will enjoy time and time again.

Over the years, I’ve dramatically altered the way I prepare Pho. And since transitioning to a plant-based lifestyle, I’ve learned that the resulting soup is always incredibly delicious if I follow a few important rules. Drumroll, please…..

The essential keys to a good bowl of Pho are a flavorful broth, fresh vegetables, noodles, and garnishes.

First and foremost is the broth. Traditional pho cooks meat bones and spices for hours to create a complex broth full of color and flavors. This Instant Pot Vegan Pho incorporates my Umami Vegetable Broth instead. Not only does it use kitchen scraps, mushrooms, and kombu to provide a rich and flavorful base to this pho broth, it also doesn’t contain unnecessary and excessive amounts of salt or cholesterol. Win-win.

But before we even add the Umami Vegetable Broth, we need our aromatics, which provides incredible depth and that quintessential flavor of pho. And this is where the Instant Pot comes in. You can grill or roast or broil them, but I found that the sauce function of the Instant Pot works just as well.

Simply place the halved onions, sliced carrots and ginger in the stainless steel liner of the Instant Pot and press Sauté. Turn them over when they’ve developed a nice caramelized color. Then add in the star anise, cinnamon quills, cardamom pods, whole cloves, and coriander seeds. Allow it to toast the spices for about a minute. Then add a little Umami Vegetable Broth to deglaze the bottom of the pan. Be sure to scrape up any charred bits or residue.

Add in the remaining kombu, dried mushrooms, broth, and water. Press cancel, then attach the lid with the knob turned to Sealing. Cook on High Pressure for 30 minutes. So, let’s be clear. It will take about 15 minutes to pressurize and it will take about 15 minutes to depressurize. So, in total, it’s going to take about an hour to create your fantastic aromatic pho broth. But it’s mostly hands off. It’s also important to note that this broth can be made up to a week in advance or even longer if you bottle the broth in sealed canning jars.

The second key component of this Instant Pot Vegan Pho are the vegetables. Seriously. They may not be fancy, but they are an integral part of this dish. While the broth is doing its thing in the Instant Pot or coming back up to temperature on the stove or pressure cooker, take a moment to prep your vegetables. And this is the incredible part – you can use anything you like. Really.

I like using fresh bean sprouts, shredded carrots, thinly sliced bell peppers, chopped cabbage, baby bok choy, sliced shiitake or baby bella mushrooms, spiraled or shredded daikon radish, small broccoli florets, steamed snow peas, steamed edamame, steamed green peas, sliced green onions, and so on.

Honestly, you can use any vegetable you have on hand. If you like your vegetables raw, you don’t need to steam them. If they are hardier like the snow peas, edamame, and peas, I prefer to steam them for a quick stint to make sure they are ready to enjoy in my pho.

The third key ingredient to this Instant Pot Vegan Pho is the noodle. I like using thin brown rice noodles, but you can use almost any kind of thin asian noodle you have on hand, except vermicelli, which is simply too fine. You can use thin flat noodles or even ramen noodles. Just be sure to wait until your broth is ready before you cook your noodles. If you noodles cool to much, it may decrease the temperature of your broth down too quickly.

The awesome thing about the noodles is they are already gluten-free. And if you use a rice noodle along with peas or edamame, you make a complete protein by combining rice with legumes. Plant-powered protein for the win!! You also have the option to add tofu, if you enjoy your pho with tofu. I find that my bowl is already filled to the brim with loads of veggies, noodles, and garnishes.

Once the Instant Pot depressurizes, the broth needs to be strained. You can eat the onions and carrots if you prefer. Or you can discard them. Once strained, it’s time to add your seasonings to round out the flavor profile of your broth. I like using a combination of coconut sugar, a mellow light miso paste, soy sauce or tamari, and rice wine vinegar. Together, these successfully eliminate the need for fish sauce which is traditionally used to season pho. Taste the broth and season according to your preference. If you prefer saltier foods, you may want to incorporate a little salt as well.

And finally, the last component of this Instant Pot Vegan Pho is the garnishes. You literally have limitless options!! To start, I like having an assortment of fresh herbs, namely Thai basil, sweet basil, fresh mint, and/or cilantro.

I also like to include lime wedges, sliced green onions, sliced red chili peppers, and sliced jalapeño peppers. This allows each individual to add as much or as little flavor as they choose to their bowl of pho. If you or your guests don’t enjoy extremely spicy foods, I highly recommend you remove the seeds from the chili peppers and jalapeños. It will make for a much more enjoyable meal.

And finally, I like to add in a little hoisin sauce and sriracha. Coupled with a burst of freshly squeezed limes, these sauces work in tandem to provide an incredibly flavorful pho. Feel free to add in as much or as little of any of these as you like. I love that each bowl will look and taste slightly different as you continue to try new flavor combinations.

It’s important to note that this pho is a great make-ahead meal. You can make the broth on the weekend when you have more time,. Then you can prep the vegetables when you’re making another meal or salad one to two days in advance. That way, when you want to enjoy this Instant Pot Vegan Pho, it comes together rather quickly.

As noted previously, the broth stores extremely well in canning jars. It also freezes well in a freezer-safe container. If you aren’t canning or freezing, the broth can be stored in an air-tight container for up to one week in the refrigerator. Then, when you want to make the pho, simply bring it to a simmer and label over your noodles and vegetables.

Oh, and the bowl should be fairly deep to allow an adequate amount of fillers and broth without allowing the broth to cool too rapidly. I like using an asian soup spoon and chopsticks because it feels more authentic since that’s how it’s served in a restaurant. You can absolutely use a regular spoon or fork if you prefer. It’s really up to you.

I hope you enjoy this Instant Pot Vegan Pho as much as I do.  

I would love to see your results! Please leave a comment and rate it down below, tag a picture @pebblesandtoast and #pebblesandtoast on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook!   Enjoy!!   

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Ingredients

Aromatics and Spices:

• 2 large onions, halved
• 1 carrot, sliced in large segments
• 3-4 oz ginger, sliced in large segments
• 10 star anise
• 4 cinnamon quills
• 4 cardamon pods
• 3 cloves (the spice cloves!)
• 1 Tbsp coriander seeds
• Dashi kombu
• 3 dried mushrooms

Broth:

• 2 quarts Umami Vegetable Broth*
• 1 quart water

Seasoning:

• 1 Tbsp coconut sugar
• 1 Tbsp miso
• 1 Tbsp soy sauce or tamari
• 2-3 tsp rice wine vinegar
• 1-2 tsp salt (optional)

To serve:

• 7-8 oz thin rice sticks/noodles
• Fresh Herbs: Thai basil, mint, cilantro
• lime wedges
• red chili or jalapeno, thinly sliced
• Sauces: Hoisin sauce, Sriracha
• Fresh vegetables: bean sprouts, shredded carrots, peppers, cabbage, baby bok choy, shiitake mushrooms, Daikon radish, broccoli, snow peas, green onions, etc.
• Tofu (optional)

Broth Instructions

1. Press the sauté button on the Instant Pot.  Place the onions, ginger, and carrots face down in the pan for 3-5 minutes, lipping over when browned.  Remove the onions, ginger, and carrots for a moment.
2. Transfer the star anise, cinnamon quills, cardamon pods, cloves, and coriander seeds to the Instant Pot.  Allow them to cook for 2-3 minutes, then pour in 1 cup of broth.

1. Using a spatula or wooden spoon, scrape off any burned bits on the bottom of the liner.  Pour in the remaining broth, water, shitake mushrooms, and dashi kombu.
2. Press cancel. 
3. Add the onions, carrots, and ginger back into the Instant Pot. Lock the lid in place and ensure the sealing knob is turned to sealing.
4. Cook on “Soup/Broth” setting for 30 minutes, then allow to release the pressure naturally. (approximately 60 minutes total cooking time)

1. When the valve has dropped, remove the lid.  Strain the broth into another pot, discarding the onion, ginger, carrots, and spices.
2. Stir in the coconut sugar, miso, soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, and salt (if using).  Adjust seasonings to taste. Broth should be very fragrant, savory and barely sweet. 
3. Simmering on medium-low heat, covered, until ready to serve, or allow to cool and store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

Serving Instructions:

1. Prepare rice noodles per package directions just before serving.

1. Meanwhile, cook the heartier vegetables.  Using medium-high heat, saute the sliced mushrooms, broccoli, cabbage, peppers, etc for 4-5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until desired doneness.  Remove from heat.
2. Add some noodles to a large bowl. Top with tofu (if using) and cooked vegetables.
3. Ladle in 10-14 oz very hot broth and serve with herbs, vegetables, and lime wedges on the side.  Season individually to taste with lime juice, sriracha, and hoisin. 

Notes

* I recommend using my homemade Umami Vegetable Broth made from kitchen scraps and without any artificial coloring or sodium. 

This recipe was adapted from RecipeTin Eats.