Pho Cuon Hanoi

Ingredients

• 500 g fresh uncut pho noodle sheets, cut into 12 cm squares
• 400 g beef sirloin or flank, sliced very thinly across the grain
• 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 2 tbsp neutral oil
• 1 tbsp oyster sauce
• 1 tbsp fish sauce
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 tsp ground black pepper
• 1 head soft lettuce, leaves separated
• 1 large handful cilantro
• 1 large handful Vietnamese balm (kinh gioi) or mint
• 1 handful perilla leaves
• 80 ml fish sauce for the dipping sauce
• 80 g sugar for the dipping sauce
• 250 ml warm water
• 3 tbsp rice vinegar
• 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped, for the sauce
• 2 red chillies, finely chopped
• 1 small green papaya or kohlrabi, thinly sliced
• 1 tbsp Hanoi chilli paste, to serve

Before you cook

• Freeze the beef for 20 minutes to firm it, then slice it as thinly as possible across the grain.
• Toss the sliced beef with the chopped garlic, oyster sauce, 1 tbsp fish sauce, 1 tsp sugar and black pepper, then leave it for 15 minutes.
• Cut the fresh noodle sheets into rough 12 cm squares and keep them under a damp cloth.
• Wash the lettuce and pick all the herbs.
• Slice the green papaya or kohlrabi paper-thin.

Steps

1. Stir the 80 g of sugar into the 250 ml of warm water until it dissolves completely.
2. Add the 80 ml of fish sauce, the rice vinegar, the chopped garlic and the chilli, then taste and balance it so it is light, sweet and clearly sour.
3. Drop the sliced papaya into the dipping sauce and leave it there to soften.
4. Heat a wok or heavy frying pan over the highest heat until it smokes.
5. Add the 2 tbsp of oil and swirl it around the pan.
6. Tip in half the marinated beef in a single layer and leave it untouched for 45 seconds.
7. Stir-fry the beef for another 45 seconds until it is just browned and still pink inside, then tip it onto a plate.
8. Repeat with the second batch of beef so the pan stays hot.
9. Lay a noodle square flat on a board.
10. Put a lettuce leaf across the lower third of the square.
11. Add a few cilantro, Vietnamese balm and perilla leaves on top of the lettuce.
12. Lay a small line of the stir-fried beef over the herbs.
13. Fold the bottom edge of the noodle sheet over the filling and tuck it in tightly.
14. Fold both sides inward and roll the parcel up to close it.
15. Repeat until all the noodle sheets and beef are used, setting the finished rolls seam side down.
16. Arrange the rolls on a platter without letting them touch, since they will stick together.
17. Serve immediately with the dipping sauce and the chilli paste on the side.