For people who don't know me, food is probably the single most thing that intrigues me the most in Life. Not just because I love eating, but food can tell me lot of about ones cultural background which really fascinates me. Ever seen the show Bizzare Foods on the Travel Channel? Well my take on the show is that nothing really is bizzare to me. Some food practices may seem weird or bizzare to us because we cannot wrap our brains around things that are different to what is in our everyday lifestyle. I'll admit because of my upbringing I probably would not enjoy some foods, but I will always taste with an open mind. Taking into account where the food came from, who prepared it, how it was prepared, how it was presented, along with the people I expereince the food with can shape a food experience for me. I encourage you all to try this method of eating, I think it can immediately change your way of eating in addition to what you eat.  

As you can tell, food obviously is the driving factor behind my desire to blog. I also feel that one can gain a deeper understanding of oneself, the world, life, because everyone is able to relate to food. This brings me to my first food blog topic and dish which is respectively, Pho. No, you cannot find this dish at a fast food, or chain restaurant because it might be a little too fresh for those places.

Now for some brief history. It has been said that Pho originated in in Vietnam in the late 1880s after the french left. The dish started from the use of beef bones to make a broth along with beef meat to add some sustenance. After communist took over northern Vietnam, people who fled to the south evolved the dish to what we have became familiar with. After the fall of Saigon, native Vietnamese fled to the U.S. along with their culinary expertise. Over time, the pho recipes adapted to western tastes (like all other cultural dishes i.e. Tex Mex not mexican food) but the basis of the dish remained the same. Pho usually contains clear beef or chicken broth, rice noodles, various cuts of beef, chicken or your choice of meat and fresh herbs. Some of my favorite ingredients i like to add are jalepenos, chile sauce, a crapload of lime, hoisen sauce, and my favorite, the ginger fish sauce.

The things i like most about this dish are its freshness and soothing qualities. Depending on where you eat, most of everything in this dish is whole, natural, and fresh. Whether your choice of meat is beef, or chicken, you cannot go wrong with any meat additive. After discovering this dish, and eating it many times and again, i feel there is a certain art to eating Pho. Although I do not think there is a wrong way to eat anything, I feel if you eat Pho the right way you can saver the full effect of this soothing dish. This is a dish you can eat, in my opinion, anytime of the day whether you are sick, healthy, drunk. This dish is bound to instantly make you feel warm inside. Also, spring rolls are good as an ap-a-teaser(shrimp). Shared best with good company.  One of my favorite aspects (did i say that already?) about Pho is because of its freshness, you don't have that shitty full feeling after you eat as if you are coming down off a huge sugar high. Anyways, go out and try this dish, it will not disappoint, but just remember...Taste with an Open Mind.