Pho

Pho is a Vietnamese soup built from broth, rice noodles, herbs, and meat—most often beef, sometimes chicken. It is eaten across Vietnam in homes, from street stalls, and in restaurants. The dish first appeared in written records in the early 20th century in northern Vietnam, and after the Vietnam War, refugees helped spread it around the world. Its exact beginnings are debated, with influences from both French and Chinese cooking thought to have shaped it, along with the name itself. Northern (Hanoi) and southern (Saigon) versions differ in noodle width, broth sweetness, and the herbs and sauces used. In 2017, Vietnam designated December 12 as the "Day of Pho."

Pho originated in northern Vietnam in the early 1900s. It may have evolved on its own or share roots with beef noodle soups from neighboring countries, such as Thailand’s kuay teow reua or China’s ngau naam ho fun and niu pahu from Guangdong and Yunnan. While the rice noodles and broth spices connect to Chinese cooking, beef was not common among Vietnamese, who traditionally used water buffalo for farming. Beef demand rose under French colonial rule (1887–1954), when the French introduced pot-au-feu, a slow-cooked beef stew, and the use of beef bones for broth mirrors French consommé techniques. However, similar dishes using water buffalo meat, like xáo trâu, had long been rural staples, and villagers in Nam Định claim they ate pho long before the French arrived. The modern form emerged between 1900 and 1907 in Nam Định Province, southeast of Hanoi, then a major textile market. The traditional home of pho is said to be the villages of Vân Cù and Giao Cù (or Cự Đà) in Đông Xuân commune, Nam Trực District.

Cultural historian Trịnh Quang Dũng believes pho’s popularization came from several factors in the early 20th century: French demand for beef made beef bones available, which Chinese workers bought to make a beef noodle soup called ngau juk fun (牛肉粉 or 牛腩粉). Yunnan-style herbal beef soup, niupahu (牛扒呼), also influenced it. The dish was initially most popular with workers from Yunnan and Guangdong, who liked its similarity to home cooking, which eventually familiarized the general population with it.

Pho was first sold as a snack at dawn and dusk by street vendors carrying mobile kitchens on poles. From the pole hung two wooden cabinets: one held a cauldron over a wood fire, the other stored noodles, spices, cookware, and space to prepare a bowl. The heavy poles were always carried by men, who wore distinctive felt hats to keep warm. Hanoi’s first two fixed pho stands were Cát Tường on Cầu Gỗ Street (Vietnamese-owned) and a Chinese-owned stand in front of the Bờ Hồ tram stop. Two more opened in 1918 on Quạt Row and Đồng Row. Around 1925, a Vân Cù villager named Vạn opened the first "Nam Định style" pho stand in Hanoi. Peddlers declined in number between 1936 and 1946 as stationary eateries took over.

In the late 1920s, vendors experimented with sesame oil, tofu, and Lethocerus indicus extract, but this version never became mainstream. Pho served with rare beef appeared by 1930. Chicken pho arrived in 1939, likely because beef was not sold at markets on Mondays and Fridays. After Vietnam’s partition in 1954, over a million people fled north to south, and pho—previously less common in the South—suddenly became popular. Variations in meat and broth emerged, and garnishes like lime, mung bean sprouts, culantro, cinnamon basil, hoisin sauce, and hot Sriracha sauce became standard. Rare beef began to rival fully cooked beef in popularity. Northern migrants also popularized bánh mì sandwiches.

In North Vietnam, private pho restaurants were nationalized and used noodles made from old rice. Street vendors were forced to use noodles from imported potato flour. Officially banned as capitalism, these vendors prized portability, carrying their wares on poles and setting out plastic stools for customers. During the subsidy period after the Vietnam War, state-owned pho eateries served a meatless version called "pilotless pho," referencing U.S. reconnaissance drones. The broth was boiled water with MSG, as meat and rice were often scarce. Bread or cold rice was served as a side, leading to the modern practice of dipping quẩy (deep-fried wheat flour dough) in pho. Pho eateries were privatized under Đổi Mới, though many street vendors still keep a light footprint to avoid police enforcing street tidiness rules.