Today was an extra special lunch because chef Nicholas Toll joined me in the kitchen.  It was great to have an extra pair of very talented hands!We started by charring the yellow onions and ginger for the broth, which is a great way to get extra flavor. I learned this technique from my favorite food blog smitten kitchen – check out her recipe, which we loosely followed.A glimpse of the beautiful pho broth – anise, cloves, cinnamon and a bay leaf. We left the onion skin on which gives the broth a golden hue.Nicholas made a quick carrot and radish pickle! He flavored the brine (he used apple cider vinegar) with cilantro stems, cloves, a star anise, salt and pepper. The pickle added a much needed splash of red and orange. Oh and how can I forget to mention that we fried shallots in lard for a crispy flavorful garnish (insert heart eyes). Lard is the perfect frying oil, it’s a hardy fat that can handle high heat unlike vegetable oil, that is easily damaged. The lard did not smoke. The mainstream is finally catch up the notion that lard is in fact good for you. Check out this article by Food & Wine “Lard: The New Health Food?”. And if you’re ready to learn all about fat and oil check out the article “Oiling of America”.

Folks from the neighborhood were happy to arrive to such a cozy scene. A kitchen warmed with a stock cooking for hours and a community coming together.