Pho is a delightful, adaptable Vietnamese noodle soup. It is so flavourful, packed with seasoning and colour, and it is also really healthy.
Though traditionally the stock of the Pho is made with a whole chicken, I use chicken liquid stock to keep the fat content down, to speed up the cooking process, and to have the option of buying salt reduced chicken stock.
I always opt for chicken breast with the fat removed as this cut of meat is lean. I know it can be dry but if you make sure that you don’t let it cook for too long, then I find that it is still juicy.
There is an array of spices that can be used in Pho. I like to use star anise, but others might prefer to use cloves. I also like to add fresh ginger, coriander, cinnamon, and a lot of chilli to pack a punch. The star anise is the star spice in the dish. It sets of a beautiful aroma and you can definitely taste the aniseed flavour throughout the dish. But like I said, you can you cloves instead if you choose.
Vietnamese chicken Pho is not hard to make. It is quick and easy, and a great starter if you are cooking Asian cuisine at your next dinner party. I hope that you enjoy it. Let’s get busy cooking.
Recipe: Chicken Pho
Current ingredients (Serves 4)
| 1000.00 | ml | Stock, chicken, liquid, commercial (salt reduced) |
| 500.00 | g | Chicken, breast, lean, raw |
| 25.00 | g | Onion, spring, raw |
| 50.00 | g | Coriander, fresh, leaves & stem |
| 50.00 | g | Mint, raw |
| 3 | Chilli (chili), red, raw | |
| 1 | Onion, mature, brown skinned, peeled, raw | |
| 15.00 | g | Garlic, peeled, raw |
| 5.00 | g | Ginger, dried, ground |
| 3 | Star anise | |
| 125.00 | ml | Fish Sauce |
| 5.00 | g | Cinnamon, ground |
| 125.00 | g | Vermicelli Rice Noodles (C) |
| 5.00 | g | Sugar, raw |
| 400.00 | g | Sprouts, bean, canned, no added salt, drained |
| 25.00 | g | Lime, peeled, raw |
Method
- Gently fry the sliced chicken breast and onion until browned. Remove from heat.
- Toast the spices together in a non-stick, large pan. Add the chicken stock, fish sauce and sugar to the pan and bring to boil, stirring constantly.
- Add the chicken to the broth and reduce to a simmer. Simmer for approximately 20 minutes.
- Prepare the rice noodles as per the instructions. I like the flat rice noodles, but it doesn’t matter which noodles you choose.
- Once the noodles are cooked, drain them and place them evenly into 4 bowls.
- Strain the broth from the chicken into a large bowl. Remove the star anise from the chicken, and place the chicken evenly onto the bowls of noodles.
- To the bowls, add the fresh coriander/ cilantro, mint leaves, fresh chilli (sliced), and bean sprouts.
- Pour the broth over the bowls and your Vietnamese Chicken Pho is ready to serve. Enjoy!
Nutrition values
| Nutrient per serve | Qty per 620g |
| Energy (kJ) | 1300 |
| Protein (g) | 36.5 |
| Fat, Total (g) | 4.0 |
| Fat, Saturated (g) | 1.0 |
| Carbohydrate (g) | 25.7 |
| Sugars (g) | 6.2 |
| Sodium (mg) | 4130 |