By Grocery List Plus Editorial Staff | Published on October 3, 2026
Serves 6
239 cal · 27 min
Vietnamese-Style Beef & Noodle Broth
Recipe GLPR2d51dab97e050e
Rate this recipe
Average rating: 4.3 (1)
A light and aromatic Vietnamese-inspired broth featuring tender sliced beef, chewy rice noodles, and fresh vegetables. The beef is seared quickly in a hot pan to develop flavor, then combined with a savory chicken broth infused with fresh basil and bok choy for a satisfying, low-fat meal that comes together in under 30 minutes.
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Ingredients
1 pound beef flank steak, very thinly sliced against the grain
2 teaspoons canola oil
4 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 cup water
4 ounces wide rice noodles
4 cups chopped bok choy (about 1 small head, 1 pound)
1½ cups mung bean sprouts
2 teaspoons reduced-sodium soy sauce
4 tablespoons fresh basil, chopped, or to taste
Directions
Bring the chicken broth and water to a boil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the rice noodles and cook according to package directions until just tender, about 4 minutes. Drain the noodles and set aside, leaving the broth in the pot.
Heat the canola oil in a large skillet over high heat until shimmering. Working in batches to avoid overcrowding, add the thinly sliced beef and sear for 1–2 minutes per side, just until the outside is browned. Transfer the cooked beef to a plate.
Return the broth to a gentle simmer and stir in the soy sauce. Add the chopped bok choy and cook for 2–3 minutes until just tender-crisp.
Divide the cooked rice noodles among six bowls. Top with the seared beef slices and ladle the hot broth and bok choy over the noodles.
Garnish each bowl with mung bean sprouts and fresh basil. Serve immediately while the broth is hot.
Comments
The 27-minute claim ignores the fact that beef flank steak needs at least 15 minutes of simmering to become tender, plus slicing time, making realistic prep closer to 40 minutes for a weeknight. Fresh basil is your constraint: Harris Teeter stocks it reliably in their produce section, but if you're at Food Lion or ALDI on a Tuesday evening, you may need to substitute with cilantro or mint, which changes the dish meaningfully. At roughly $2.50 per serving, this is genuinely affordable—flank steak at Charlotte grocers runs $6–8 per pound, and you're stretching one into six bowls with cheap noodles and broth. It reheats decently, though the noodles soften further; best eaten fresh the same night or chilled as a next-day cold noodle salad if you keep the broth separate.
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