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    Fitsian Food Life » Healthy Vietnamese Recipes

    Bo Kho Pasta (Delicious Fusion Pasta Recipe)

    Published: Oct 22, 2021 · Modified: Sep 20, 2022 by Clara · This post may contain affiliate links · 5 Comments

    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

    Bo Kho is a delicious Vietnamese spiced, stewed meat. I thought the methodology behind making it was quite similar to ragu - so I paired it with some malfadine for a delicious fusion creation -- Bo Kho Pasta. Using the instant pot to make this dish, I cut down the cooking time by hours!

    Bo Kho Pasta
    Jump to:
    • 🍏 How to Make It Healthy – The Fitsian Method
    • 💡Tips and Tricks
    • 📋 Ingredient Notes
    • 🔪 Step by Step Instructions
    • 🍳 Recipe

    🍏 How to Make It Healthy – The Fitsian Method

    Pasta is not one of those dishes people generally think of eating when trying to cut weight - but by portioning it appropriately, it’s easy to fit into your weekday diet! This is where having a food scale is important -- I typically use 55g of pasta (~200 calories). And for the meat in the recipe, I used 0.25lb of chuck beef, at ~200 calories. I use this Ozeri Food Scale, which I love because I can easily switch between units of measurement -- not to mention it’s super affordable!

    💡Tips and Tricks

    Is Bo Kho healthy?

    By keeping ingredient portioning in check, yes bo kho can be very healthy -- even when served with pasta! This recipe has only 520 calories and 41g of protein, making it a delicious and well balanced meal.

    I don't have an instant pot. Can I still make this recipe?

    Yes -- you can make it the traditional method by slow cooking it on the stove. You can follow the methodology laid out here by Wok and Kin's Bo Kho recipe.

    A note on spices and flavoring...

    To enhance the flavor for this recipe, I would highly recommend marinading the beef overnight and searing the aromatics in the instant pot for more flavor. This recipe provides you step by step instructions on creating the bo kho flavoring, but many Asian supermarkets also sell pre-made bo kho seasoning if you're short on time and/or don't have many of the ingredients listed out here.

    If you're a big pasta fan and want more healthy pasta recipes, check out my Pasta Without Pounds collection.

    📋 Ingredient Notes

    Beef and Marinade

    • ¼ lb Beef chuck
    • 1 teaspoon Five Spice powder
    • 1 clove Garlic
    • 1 teaspoon Ginger
    • 1 tablespoon Soy sauce

    Pasta and Sauce

    • 1 serving of Malfadine or pasta of choice (55g)
    • 1-2 mushrooms
    • 1 Carrot
    • 1 tablespoon soy sauce
    • ¼ Red Onion
    • 1 tablespoon Tomato paste
    • 1-2 Star Anise pods
    • 1 teaspoon Cumin (Ground)
    • 1 clove garlic
    • 2 tablespoon Fish sauce
    • 1 teaspoon Paprika
    • 1 stalk Lemongrass (Diced)
    • Cilantro, grated parmesan (For garnish)
    Ingredients for Bo Kho

    🔪 Step by Step Instructions

    1. Marinate ¼ pound beef chuck (~200 calories) in 5 spice, soy sauce, ginger, and garlic for at least 30 minutes or overnight.
    2. Turn the Instant Pot on in sauté mode and spray with cooking oil. Sear the marinated beef in the instant pot until slightly browned, then remove from Instant Pot.
    3. Continue to use the Instant Pot in sauté mode and add in the sliced lemongrass, garlic, and onions. Also add in tomato paste on the side. Cooked until the garlic is aromatic and the onions have softened, and the tomato paste is caramelized, which will take about 3-4 minutes. Add in the star anise, 5 spice, pepper, cumin, soy sauce, fish sauce and paprika and cook for about a minute so that the heat releases the flavor.
    4. Re add in the seared meat, along with the sliced carrots and mushrooms. Turn off sauté mode and close the Instant Pot. Cook on high pressure for 40 min, then allow 10-15 minutes of natural release time.
    5. While you're waiting for the Bo Kho to finish, weigh out and cook 1 serving of malfadine or your pasta/noodle of choice (55g at 200 calories) in salted water.
    6. When beef is ready, add the malfadine into the instant pot and stir thoroughly until the noodles are coated with sauce.
    7. Top with cilantro and parmesan cheese if using and serve!
    Sauté the veggies and spices
    Sear the marinated beef chuck
    Add in the noodles

    🍳 Recipe

    Bo Kho Pasta

    Instant Pot Bo Kho Pasta

    Developed by Clara
    Bo Kho is a delicious Vietnamese stewed meat that I thought was quite similar to ragu - so I paired it with some malfadine for a delicious fusion creation -- Bo Kho Pasta. I used instant pot to make this dish, cutting down the cooking time by hours!
    5 from 1 vote
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Prep Time 10 minutes mins
    Cook Time 40 minutes mins
    Course Main Course
    Cuisine Vietnamese
    Servings 1
    Calories 520 kcal

    Equipment

    • Instant Pot

    Ingredients
      

    Beef and Marinade

    • ¼ lb Beef Chuck
    • 1 tablespoon Soy sauce
    • 1 teaspoon Five spice powder
    • 1 teaspoon Ginger (Minced)
    • 1 clove Garlic

    Pasta and Sauce

    • 55 g Malfadine (Or pasta of choice)
    • 1-2 Mushrooms
    • 1 Carrot
    • ¼ Red onion
    • 1 tablespoon Tomato paste
    • 1 clove Garlic
    • 1-2 Star Anise pods
    • 1 stalk Lemongrass (Diced)
    • 1 teaspoon Cumin (Ground)
    • 2 tablespoon Fish sauce
    • 1 tablespoon Soy sauce
    • 1 teaspoon Paprika
    • Cilantro (For garnish)
    • Grated parmesan (For garnish)

    Nutrition & Macros

    • 520 Calories
    • 41 g Protein
    • 20 g Fat
    • 50 g Carbs

    Instructions
     

    • Marinate ¼ pound beef chuck (~200 calories) in 5 spice, soy sauce, ginger, and garlic for at least 30 minutes or overnight.
    • Turn the Instant Pot on in sauté mode and spray with cooking oil. Sear the marinated beef in the instant pot until slightly browned, then remove from Instant Pot.
    • Continue to use the Instant Pot in sauté mode and add in the sliced lemongrass, garlic, and onions. Also add in tomato paste on the side. Cooked until the garlic is aromatic and the onions have softened, and the tomato paste is caramelized, which will take about 3-4 minutes. Add in the star anise, 5 spice, pepper, cumin, soy sauce, fish sauce and paprika and cook for about a minute so that the heat releases the flavor.
    • Re add in the seared meat, along with the sliced carrots and mushrooms. Turn off sauté mode and close the Instant Pot. Cook on high pressure for 40 min, then allow 10-15 minutes of natural release time.
    • While you're waiting for the Bo Kho to finish, weigh out and cook 1 serving of malfadine or your pasta/noodle of choice (55g at 200 calories) in salted water.
    • When beef is ready, add the malfadine into the instant pot and stir thoroughly until the noodles are coated with sauce.
    • Top with cilantro and parmesan cheese if using and serve!

    Nutrition

    Calories: 520kcal
    Tried this Recipe? Tag me Today!Mention @fitsianfoodlife or tag #fitsianfoodlife!
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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Lisa

      August 18, 2022 at 8:48 pm

      5 stars
      Yummy! This is so delicious

      Reply
    2. Lauren K Karazija

      November 29, 2021 at 11:40 pm

      Hi! When do you re-add the beef chuck to the instant pot (after searing and removing)?
      Thank you!!!

      Reply
      • fitsianfoodlife

        November 30, 2021 at 5:16 am

        Hi Lauren -- great question. You re-add the beef chuck in the Instant Pot right before you start putting the Instant Pot into high pressure cooking mode (ie. when you add in the carrots and mushrooms). I modified the recipe to make that clear. Hope that helps and let me know if you have any additional questions!

        Reply
    5 from 1 vote

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