The smell and taste of Vietnamese chicken pho is something that needs to be experienced. It is made with an aromatic broth enriched with chicken, root vegetables and spices. Bowls of steaming hot pho are filled fresh rice noodles and tender chicken pieces, topped with fresh herbs and served with hoisin sauce, chilli sauce and lemon wedges. If there is ever a pure comfort dish, this is definitely it.

Vietnamese Chicken Pho

This recipe is an update on a post I did years ago. In the time since I have learnt a lot and have refined the recipe. This post includes absolutely everything I know about making chicken pho. Hopefully you guys will find it informative and helpful!

Getting Depth of Flavour

Through the many years of cooking this dish, here are a few crucial factors I have learnt by trial and error in developing a delicious Vietnamese chicken pho soup.

Star Ingredient

The star ingredient I must have when making chicken pho is the swede (rutabaga)! This root vegetable not only gives the soup incredible flavour but also a yellow tinge. I know this is not traditional and you are probably thinking WTF… but I promise you won’t regret it.

Preparing the Vegetables

The best tip for extracting as much flavour as you can from your vegetables is to cut them into smaller pieces. This creates more surface area which means more contact with the soup. This is especially important for this dish because you will only be cooking the veg for a short time, so extract as much flavour as you can as quickly as you can!

Good Quality Chicken

The best type of chicken for this recipe is a free-range corn-fed chicken. These are more expensive but really do produce the best flavour and colour. If you can’t get it then I highly recommend any free range chicken within your budget.

Add the Fish Sauce at the End

Yes. Sounds weird but when you boil fish sauce for too long it gives off a sour taste. I was very skeptical of this at the start but when someone drew my attention to it I realised they were right. So add it at the end and don’t allow the soup to go on a rolling boil once you have added it in.

Toast Your Spices

It doesn’t take much to toast your spices… so please do it! It will release more aroma into the soup.

To add the toasted aromatics to the soup use a cheesecloth or a “Chux” cloth to hold the spices together like a tea bag so it doesn’t spread all over the soup when cooking. This makes it easier to remove at the end.

Note: I have researched if it is dangerous to use “Chux” cloths as a “spice bag” for soups and it appears to be safe. Of course do your own research for your own piece of mind.

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Flavour Enhancers

I know a lot of people have their reservations when it comes to flavour enhancers. I won’t go telling you “why you should or shouldn’t use” them. Truth be told, any time you have had chicken pho at a restaurant it most likely had either MSG, chicken bouillon powder or a combination of both.

In my opinion, these products really do elevate the flavour of the soup to that extra level. Of course the soup will still taste delicious without them but if you want to go that extra mile then I suggest adding these to your soup. My chicken bouillon powder of choice is Knorr which is found at most Asian groceries.

Condiments

Vietnamese chicken pho without condiments is not as good. Some people will add them directly to the soup or have them in a separate dipping bowl or both. Whatever the case giving people the option to tailor their pho is very important. I typically serve chilli sauce, sriracha and hoisin sauce with my chicken pho which should be available at mainstream grocers and definitely at Asian groceries.

Getting a Clear and Golden Soup

For many Vietnamese people a clear and golden coloured soup is a sign of a good chicken pho. I personally don’t mind when I am at home as long as it tastes good. But when there are guests you want to put your best foot forward so everything matters! Here are a few things to consider:

• Use swedes to help give the soup a golden colour.
• Use a good quality free range chicken for soup clarity and colour. Lower quality chickens tend to produce a lot more scum / impurities when boiling.
• Wash and clean the whole chicken before adding it to the soup. Be sure to clear out the dark coloured parts from inside the chicken with your fingers.
• The chicken should not be frozen when adding it into the soup.
• Wash the charred vegetables under the tap to remove any overly burnt parts. If you don’t remove most of it then it will darken the soup and small charred bits will float around in the soup.
• Simmer the soup on low heat.
• Skim off the scum as it builds up on the surface of the soup.
• Strain the soup at the end to remove the impurities.

Fresh vs Dried Pho Rice Noodles

For some reason nearly every pho recipe will tell you to use the dried pho noodles. This is really weird to me since my family has predominantly only ever used the fresh version. This is also true with most Vietnamese restaurants I have been to in Australia. My dad was the only one in my family that preferred the dried type but we can confirm that he is weird.

I personally prefer the fresh version because it is much softer and has a better taste than the dried version. But in saying that, there are a few cons. Fresh noodles are usually only available at the Asian groceries and have a shorter shelf life. The dried stuff is much more readily available in mainstream grocers and can be stored for much longer. So, each has their place and it really comes down to personal preference and availability.

Tailoring Pho Bowls

One thing I love about pho is you can tailor it to your taste. I have seen people add nothing to their soup and others add a million different things. In some cases, people have added so many things that the original pho taste has been completely destroyed and you wonder why you went through all that effort to make it taste nice. Whatever the case, as long as it is enjoyed what does it matter? Right….?

This is how I typically tailor my chicken pho:

Tailoring Your Bowl of Pho

1. Make your dipping bowl by adding either hoisin sauce, chilli sauce or a combination of the two.
2. Add the desired herbs and vegetables into your bowl. Note this will dilute the broth.
3. A small squeeze of lemon. Not too much (optional).
4. Taste the pho soup.
5. Adjust by adding small amounts of the following condiments. Remember to mix it in and taste check repeatedly.
   • Hot sauce / sriracha for saltiness and spice.
   • Hoisin sauce for extra sweetness.
   • Fish sauce for saltiness

Some Good Tips to Consider

• For this recipe, the chicken should be just cooked. This will keep the texture of the meat springy and elastic. Do not cook the chicken for hours or to the point where the meat is falling off the bone.
• There will be leftover boiled chicken. It will be good to have some recipes in mind to use it up.
• You can make this dish as expensive or as cheap as you like. You do not have to include all the optional ingredients for it to taste great. My only recommendation is to spend a little more on the chicken.
• The pho soup is meant to be on the salty side. This is because the noodles / vegetables / herbs will water down the soup greatly.
• If you planning to serve this at a dinner party then consider making the chicken pho soup in advance (1 -2 days) and store it in the fridge. Make it even easier on yourself by also preparing all the garnishes, veg and chicken meat in advance as well.

Other Recipes Similar to Vietnamese Chicken Pho

• Quick Chicken Pho
• Chicken and Egg Noodle Soup
• Quick Beef Pho
• Chicken and Mushroom Glass Noodle Soup – Mien Ga
• Quick Chicken and Mushroom Glass Noodle Soup
• Vietnamese Pork Thick Noodle Soup – Banh Canh

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Scruff & Steph