Chinese beef noodle soup is one of my favorite Chinese dishes. The rich, steaming beef broth, tender pieces of meat, and soft noodles make a hearty and comforting meal.
I’ve had several bad beef noodle soups lately, so I’ve been determined to make my own. I made a big batch yesterday so that I could enjoy it for the next few days.
I’ve only made beef noodle soup a few times. I still need some practice as it’s never as good as my mom’s. But for this version, I did do some things different that I forgot to do last time.
For instance, after the initial boil of the bones, I dumped out the water. This got rid of a lot of the gray scrum that develops from the bone marrow. I also put the entire beef stock into the fridge, which caused the fat layer to form at the top, letting me scoop out a lot of the fat from the broth because the beef broth can get very oily.
As a side note, I got to use these cute new chopsticks holder. You can’t see it really well in the picture, but the chopsticks are resting on these adorable pandas from Japan and am totally loving how cute they are. There are two different ones. One that is laying face down and one that is belly up.
I loved the smell as this broth was simmering. It does take a long time to make to let the broth develop a deep beef flavor, but it’s worth it. Plus you can make a huge pot and then put it in the fridge and eat it for quite a few meals. Now if only I had some hand-pulled noodles to eat with it.
Homemade Beef Noodle Soup
Ingredients
- Chinese five spice packet can be purchased at most chinese grocery stores
- soy sauce
- beef shank
- large beef bones sold in bags at chinese grocery store freezer section
- garlic
- ginger
Instructions
- Fill a large pot with water, about 3/4 full. Then add in the beef bones. I used about 5 bones in my pot. Let the bones and water come to a rolling boil. Turn off the stove and dump out the water and gray scum that will develop from the beef bones. Then refill pot with water again to cook the broth.
- Then add in chopped garlic, salt and sliced ginger and some soy sauce (I used about 1/2 cup). Let broth simmer on a low boil for about 2 hours.
- Add in beef shank (you can use other cuts of meat but I think beef shank is the best. The meat is tender and there are some tendon sections for people who really like beef tendon) My beef shank is usually about 2 lbs. You can add in whole or cut into pieces. I usually cut mine into a few big chunks so that they would fit in my pot. Add in chinese five spice packet. Let pot simmer for another hour to two hours.
- Let the beef and broth sit overnight. The next day, add in more soy sauce and salt until it suits your tastes. I added in approximately 1/2 cup. Simmer for another 1 1/2 hour, or until meat is very soft and tender. By this time, the beef soup should be ready. If the broth does not seem to have enough beef flavor or the meat is still hard, you can cook longer. If you cooked the beef shank whole, remove and cut into small chunks against the grain, before putting the meat back.
- Boil noodles in a separate pot of hot water until cooked. Place cooked noodles into a bowl and pour hot beef noodle soup into bowl. Serve and enjoy! You can also add vegetables to your beef noodle soup. Often, bok choy is used. I used some spinach.
- Refrigerate or freeze the remaining leftover beef broth.
The nutrition information provided are only estimates based on an online nutritional calculator. I am not a certified nutritionist. Please consult a professional nutritionist or doctor for accurate information and any dietary restrictions and concerns you may have.
This looks delicious and easy! Thanks!
The noodle soup looks so comforting for this cool weather, delicious. I really like the chopstick holders, so cute 🙂
Beef noodle soup is my all time favorite! It’s unparalleled in its awesomeness =) And the pandas are so cute!