Pork Loin Pho

I absolutely love the Vietnamese soup, pho. However, it is difficult to find in Lake Oswego, the small city that I live in just outside Portland, Oregon, so I decided to try and make it for myself. I found a recipe online and took my own spin on it to make a delicious version.

INGREDIENTS
5 cups chicken broth
9 ounces of Udon noodles with seasoning included
1 cup bean sprouts
1 cup thinly sliced cooked pork loin
(I bake a small pork loin for 30 minutes at 350 degrees, let stand for ten to fifteen minutes, and then thinly slice)...you can most definitely use chicken or beef as an alternative
8 ounces of mushrooms, thinly sliced, stems removed
2 Tbl. grated fresh ginger
2 tsp. low sodium soy sauce
1 Tbl. seseme oil
2 small green onions, diced
1 tomato, diced
1 tsp. lemon juice
1/2 a bunch of cilantro leaves, minced
10 leaves of basil, shredded by hand
1 jalapeno, sliced
1 lime, cut into 6 sections

PREPARATION
Saute sliced mushrooms in 1 Tablespoon of butter and 1 Tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil until cooked 3/4 of the way through
Cook the udon noodles according to directions on the package, including the seasoning
Bring the chicken broth, ginger, soy sauce and seseme oil to a running boil
Add the sauteed mushrooms and the udon noodles and water to the chicken broth mixture and maintain a boil
Serve the broth and noodle mixture in a large bowl and top with the thinly sliced pork, jalapenos (optional), cilantro, shredded basil leaves, minced scallions and chopped tomatoes and the juice of several lime wedges.
I love spicy food, and so I add Sriracha sauce in addition to the jalapenos.

Serves: 2