Vietnamese Chicken Noodle Soup

You will need: (Makes 3-4 hearty soup bowls)

▪ Oil – 2 tsp (I use sesame oil, you can use any kind)
▪ Whole spices – 2ʺ″ piece of cinnamon, 3-4 cloves, 1 star anise, 8-10 black
pepper corns
▪ Onion – 1, roughly chopped
▪ Ginger – 2ʺ″ piece, roughly chopped
▪ Carrots – 1-2, diced
▪ Chicken thighs – 1-2 (bone-in preferred)
▪ Water – 6-7 cups
▪ Soy sauce – 2 tbsp
▪ Fish sauce – 2-3 tsp
▪ Mushrooms – 1/2 lb, chopped
▪ Baby bok choy – 2-3 stalks, halved
▪ Noodles – 1/2 lb
▪ Salt and pepper – to taste
To garnish/top the noodle bowls,
▪ Red onion – 1 small, thinly sliced
▪ Ginger – a few thin slices
▪ Thai chilies – 3, cut into thin rounds
▪ Cilantro leaves – a few stalks, roughly torn
▪ Lime – 1, cut into thin slices or wedges
▪ Sriracha, chili sauce, chili oil, etc – as needed
How to:
▪ Begin by making the broth. In a large pot, heat oil and lightly saute the
whole spices, onions and ginger till onions are translucent and spices are
aromatic. Then add the carrots and chicken. Add water (6-7 cups or as
much as to comfortable submerge the pot contents), soy sauce and fish
sauce. Bring to a rolling boil and continue for 5 minutes. Reduce heat to
low and simmer covered for at least an hour.
▪ Remove the cooked chicken thighs to a plate. Shred the chicken meat and
set aside. Strain the broth to remove the spices and vegetables. Discard
the spices, but retain the vegetables to be consumed along with the soup
or later.

▪ Return broth to the pot and continue simmering. Add the chopped
mushrooms and cook till they are just softened. Check and adjust
seasoning now.
▪ While broth is simmering, prepare the bok choy by charring them on a
grill pan or skillet over high heat. Toss with salt, pepper and a touch of
oil. Set aside.
▪ Also, heat a large pot of water and cook noodles as per package
instructions. Drain and toss with a teaspoon of sesame oil. Set aside.
▪ Once you have the broth, vegetables and noodles, it is time to assemble
the soup bowls. Divide the shredded chicken equally among the bowls.
Top with cooked noodles and bok choy. Ladle hot broth over this. Top
with some red onion slices, ginger, chilies, cilantro and lime wedges. Serve
immediately with your favorite condiments on the side. Enjoy!
Notes:
▪ Traditionally, pho is flavored with way more star anise and other spices
than is mentioned here. But I personally like only a mild flavor in my
soup. Feel free to add more if you want to.
▪ The onions and ginger are charred on a grill or open flame before adding
to the broth. But I have simply sauteed them as a shortcut.
▪ It goes without saying that if you were to use red meat, the broth cooking
times will need to be adjusted.
▪ Use your favorite noodles in this recipe. The cooking method will vary
depending on whether you use rice noodles or egg noodles or any other
kind. But remember to cook the noodles just before you are ready to
serve the soup. The broth can be reheated before pouring over the
noodles and meat.
▪ Feel free to add more vegetables like bean sprouts, tender bamboo shoots,
etc. I happened to use bok choy this time.
Vietnamese Pho Ba Soup



For the soup

3 whole star anise
3 whole cloves
1 cinnamon stick
1 onion, quartered
2 cm piece ginger, sliced
2 litres beef broth
2 tbsp fish sauce
1 packet (200-250g) dried rice stick noodles (banh pho)
350 g trimmed sirloin, thinly sliced
To garnish
100g bean sprouts
2 bird’s eye chillies, finely sliced
1 spring onion (scallion), finely sliced
1 large handful of coriander (cilantro) leaves
1 large handful of basil leaves
1 large handful of mint leaves
1-2 limes, cut into wedges
hoisin or Siracha sauce to serve (optional)
Instructions
In a small fry pan / skillet, dry roast the star anise, cloves and cinnamon stick until
aromatic.
Transfer the spices to a large saucepan, then add the onion, fresh ginger and beef broth
and bring to the boil over a high heat.
Add the fish sauce to the stock, then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 20-30
minutes.
Strain the broth through a fine sieve and discard the spices, ginger and onion. Return the
broth to the saucepan and continue to simmer over a low heat until ready to serve.
Meanwhile, follow the cooking instructions on the rice noodle packet. When cooked,
drain the noodles then divide between four large bowls.
Place about 4 slices of beef in each bowl, then cover the noodles and beef with stock.
Leave the soup to sit for a couple of minutes to allow the beef to partially cook.
Garnish each bowl with bean sprouts, spring onions, and the fresh herbs (coriander, mint
and basil leaves)*.
Serve with chilli slices, lime wedges and if desired, hoisin or Sriracha sauce on the side.
Notes
*Alternatively serve the bean sprouts, spring onions and fresh herbs together with the
chillies and lime wedges on a plate in the centre of the table and allow people to
individually select their garnishes.