Pho Bo Vien is my absolute favorite pho ❤ What’s better than a piping hot bowl of beef bone broth, meatballs and noodles, topped with chopped cilantro and green onions? In my opinion NOTHING. This is a dreamy bowl of comfort and DELICIOUSNESS 😋
As you may remember, I made scratch Vietnamese Instant Pot Beef Bone Broth a few weeks ago. Since the recipe made about 8 cups of broth, I froze some in preparation for making Vietnamese Meatballs, aka Bò Viên, and tonight is the night for Phở Bò Viên and boy am I excited.
To create this meal, I prepared my meatballs over the weekend and now all that’s needed is warming the rice noodles and chopping cilantro, green onions and some lime wedges. I can’t wait for this bowl of greatness, I’m actually giggy inside 😋
My Vietnamese Meatballs aren’t completely authentic, but they definitely have the Vietnamese flavors of fish sauce, ginger and garlic. These are super simple to make and a great variation from your standard Italian Meatballs.
A few serving suggestions for the meatballs:
- Phở Bò Viên – A piping hot bowl of Vietnamese Beef Broth, rice noodles, topped with chopped cilantro and green onions ❤
- Bò Viên Banh Mi
- Here’s my Breakfast Banh Mi for inspiration
- Over rice or noodles with a spicy chili sauce:
- 2TBS of chili sauce
- 2TBS of fish sauce
- 2TBS of soy sauce
- 2TBS of lime juice
- 1TBS of agave, honey or brown sugar
- Squirt of sriracha
- As an appetizer with the spicy chili sauce or another Vietnamese dipper.
I love making meatballs because you can freeze them and quickly warm them up as needed. Here’s my method for freezing:
- Simply cook the meatballs as directed below and allow to cool before placing them in the freezer on a parchment paper lined plate, baking sheet or cutting board.
- Freeze for ~2-3 hours and then bag the meatballs in an airtight freezer bag.
- These will store in the freezer for ~3 months.
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef, pork or a combination of the two
- 3 cloves of garlic, smashed and chopped finely
- 1inch of ginger, smashed and chopped finely
- 3TBS of fish sauce
- 1TBS of oyster sauce
- 1/4tsp of Chinese five spice
- 1/8tsp of ground white pepper
- 1/4tsp of sea salt
- 2 green onions, chopped finely
- 1/4 cup of chopped cilantro
- 1/2 cup of panko breadcrumbs
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine all of the ingredients for the meatballs.
- Using your hands or a large wooden spoon mix the ingredients together until fully combined.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a non stick cooking mat and form the meat into tablespoon-sized balls. Cover them with plastic wrap and place them in the fridge to firm up for ~30 minutes.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes at 400 degrees and flip at the halfway point.
- Serve as you desire or freeze for later use and cheers 🍻
