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Improper Prep Work

Proper preparation is crucial for a clear and fragrant broth. Typically, people buy bones, rinse them, and then immediately put them in the pot to simmer. This method often results in a cloudy broth with lots of foam due to residual impurities not properly cleaned. Others may rinse the bones superficially, barely removing surface impurities.

According to chefs' experience, bones should be thoroughly rinsed and soaked in diluted saltwater for about 30 minutes to release excess blood. Then rinse again and simmer to make the broth. For beef and chicken pho, roasting the bones helps enhance the aroma and richness of the broth.

Skimming Foam Incorrectly

When simmering bones at high heat, large foam often appears, consisting of impurities and residual blood from the bones. It's good to skim off these impurities to keep the broth clear. However, if not done properly, you may inadvertently remove the nutritious protein.

It's essential to know how to distinguish and skim off foam correctly. Typically, during boiling, if foam appears in the first few minutes due to the release of substances from the bones and meat, it should be skimmed off as these are impurities. When simmering at low heat, there is little to no foam.

If making bone broth for children's porridge, adding a bit of dried onions and ginger can help prevent bloating since bone broth contains a lot of fat and inorganic calcium, which are difficult for young children to digest.

Boiling Too Hard and Covering the Pot

Many people have the habit of simmering bones at high heat and covering the pot, thinking that high heat and heat retention will soften the bones quickly, reducing cooking time. However, this method makes the broth cloudy, unable to extract all the sweetness and results in a less flavorful dish.

It's essential to understand that broth (stock) is the essence of slow cooking animal bones or meat. Depending on the type of bone, the simmering time varies, with fish bones being the shortest and beef bones being the longest. Simmering should be done at low heat, uncovered, to break down the collagen structures from cartilage and tendons inside the bones into gelatin, resulting in clear broth. Therefore, when properly simmered, beef and chicken pho broth always have a rich flavor, and if stored in the refrigerator, natural gelatin will often solidify.

Simmering Bones Too Long

Some believe that simmering bones for a long time, over 12 hours, even up to 48 hours, will extract all the delicious sweetness from the marrow bones. However, this method inadvertently alters the broth and diminishes its quality. According to many studies and scientific culinary textbooks, cooking broth for over 12 hours reduces its nutritional value compared to simmering for 8 hours. Cooking longer breaks down proteins, some of which create toxins and affect the taste of the dish.

Typically, fish bone broth is simmered for about 20-30 minutes, chicken bone broth for about 2-2.5 hours, pork bone broth for about 3-4 hours, and beef bone broth for the longest, about 6-8 hours, to achieve sweetness and ensure nutritional quality.

Adding Seasonings Incorrectly

Seasonings to enhance the aroma, color, and taste of the broth include aromatic spices (dried shallots, onions, ginger, lemongrass, cinnamon, cloves, star anise, fennel seeds, cardamom, thyme, bay leaves, coriander seeds, dill seeds, etc.) and sweeteners such as rock sugar, fish sauce, stock cubes, or umami mushrooms.

Many people add aromatic spices and sweeteners too early, resulting in a strong or unpleasant odor in the broth.

The correct method is to add shallots, dried onions, and roasted ginger near the end of simmering to enhance the aroma and sweet taste. Fish sauce should also be added last to create a deep sweet flavor. Adding a bit of rock sugar helps soften the broth without making it overly strong.