Ingredients

• 2.5 kg beef bones, knuckle and marrow bones
• 500 g beef brisket
• 300 g beef eye of round or sirloin
• 6 L water
• 2 yellow onions
• 100 g fresh ginger
• 5 star anise
• 1 stick cinnamon or cassia bark
• 2 black cardamom pods
• 6 cloves
• 1 tbsp coriander seeds
• 80 ml fish sauce
• 30 g rock sugar
• 1 tbsp salt
• 500 g dried flat rice noodles
• 1 bunch spring onions
• 1 bunch coriander leaves
• 1 small white onion
• 3 limes
• 4 red bird's eye chillies
• to taste ground black pepper

Method

1. 01
   Parboil the bones Put the bones in a large pot, cover with cold water, bring to a hard boil and boil for ten minutes.
2. 02
   Rinse bones and pot Drain the bones, rinse each piece under running water to remove the scum, and scrub the pot clean.
3. 03
   Char onion and ginger Char the halved onions and ginger directly over a gas flame or in a dry pan until blackened in patches and fragrant, turning often, for about ten minutes.
4. 04
   Toast the spices Toast the star anise, cinnamon, black cardamom, cloves and coriander seeds in a dry pan over low heat, shaking it, for about three minutes until fragrant, then tie them in a muslin bag.
5. 05
   Start the broth Return the bones to the clean pot with six liters of fresh water and the charred onion and ginger, bring slowly to a boil, then lower to a bare simmer and skim off any foam for about thirty minutes.
6. 06
   Simmer the brisket Add the brisket to the pot and simmer gently for about one and a half hours, until a chopstick slides in easily.
7. 07
   Cool the brisket Lift out the brisket, plunge it into a bowl of cold water for ten minutes so it stays moist and does not darken, then drain and refrigerate it.
8. 08
   Keep simmering the bones Leave the bones at a bare simmer, uncovered, for three more hours, topping up with hot water if the level drops below the bones.
9. 09
   Add the spice bag Drop the spice bag into the broth and simmer for one more hour.
10. 10
    Season and strain Remove the spice bag, stir in the fish sauce, rock sugar and salt, taste and adjust, then strain the broth through a fine sieve into a clean pot and keep it at a simmer.
11. 11
    Soak the noodles Soak the dried rice noodles in a bowl of room temperature water for thirty minutes until pliable, then drain.
12. 12
    Firm the raw beef Put the eye of round in the freezer for fifteen minutes so it firms up.
13. 13
    Slice the meats Slice the raw beef and the cooled brisket as thinly as you can, against the grain.
14. 14
    Blanch the noodles Dip one portion of noodles at a time in a strainer into a pot of boiling water for about twenty seconds, shake dry and drop into a warm bowl.
15. 15
    Top the bowls Lay brisket slices and raw beef slices over the noodles in each bowl, then scatter over spring onion, coriander, sliced white onion and a pinch of black pepper.
16. 16
    Pour the broth Ladle the boiling broth straight over the raw beef so it cooks to pink, and serve at once with lime wedges and sliced chillies on the side.