Obviously, if you've just been to Vietnam, pho is going to be much on your mind. I'm actually relatively new to vietnamese food -- I think I had my first pho maybe 6-8 years ago, and only in the last year or two have I grown to like it so much that I wanted to visit the country.


But in Vietnam, we took it to a whole new level. Pho there is an anytime meal -- breakfast, lunch, dinner, or anything in between -- and we had it all over, whenever the urge came upon us. By our last couple of days in Hanoi, our approach was to wander around, snacking as often as possible at any likely-looking street stand. Good times. Even though here in Seattle I think of Pho as just the thing for our wet winter days, in Hanoi it somehow made sense to eat it in the heat and humidity, when we were hot and sweaty. E tried to explain something to me about how hot foods make you feel cooler but whatever, it worked.

Anyway, when I got back I was eager to make my own pho, and gave it a try last weekend. I've been reheating it ever since. Pretty good, could be better.