Quick Chicken Pho Recipe | Easy Vietnamese Noodle Soup
This weeknight chicken pho builds deep, aromatic broth fast with charred onion and ginger, toasted spices, and fish sauce. Tender sliced chicken and silky rice noodles are finished with bright herbs, lime, and chiles for a cozy, flavorful bowl in about 30 minutes.
Ingredients
Ingredients
- 1 large yellow onion, halved
- 1 large thumb of fresh ginger, sliced lengthwise
- 6 cups low-sodium chicken stock
- 2 cups water
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 4 whole cloves
- 4 whole coriander seeds or 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
- 3 star anise
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce, plus more to taste
- 1 teaspoon sugar or 1 small piece rock sugar
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt, to taste
- 12 ounces boneless, skinless chicken breast or thighs, very thinly sliced
- 8 ounces dried flat rice noodles (banh pho, small or medium width)
- 1 cup bean sprouts
- 1 small bunch fresh cilantro and Thai basil
- 2 scallions, thinly sliced
- 1 lime, cut into wedges
- Fresh chili (Thai bird or jalapeño), thinly sliced
- Hoisin sauce, optional
- Sriracha, optional
- Thinly sliced white onion, optional
- Freshly ground black pepper, optional
Instructions
Instructions
- Place a dry skillet over medium-high heat and char the onion halves (cut side down) and ginger slices 3–5 minutes, flipping once, until lightly charred.
- In the same dry skillet, toast the cinnamon, cloves, coriander, and star anise for 60–90 seconds until fragrant, then place them in a tea infuser, spice bag, or cheesecloth.
- Add chicken stock and water to a pot with the charred onion and ginger, then add the spice bundle, fish sauce, sugar, and salt; bring to a boil, reduce to a gentle simmer, and cook 15 minutes, skimming foam and adjusting seasoning to taste.
- Place dried rice noodles in a large bowl, cover with very hot water, soak until just tender but springy (5–10 minutes), then drain, rinse briefly, and toss with a splash of water to prevent sticking.
- Remove the spice bundle, onion, and ginger from the pot, bring the broth to a light simmer, add the thin chicken slices in batches, and cook 1–2 minutes until just opaque; transfer cooked chicken to a plate.
- Divide noodles among warm bowls, top with cooked chicken and optional raw white onion slivers, ladle hot broth over, and garnish with scallions, herbs, sprouts, and chilies; serve with lime wedges, hoisin, and Sriracha.
Notes
Slice chicken very thin for tenderness; briefly freeze it to make slicing easier. For a flavor boost at the table, add a few drops of fish sauce and a pinch of sugar. Keep leftover broth and noodles stored separately; refrigerate broth and chicken 3–4 days and noodles up to 2 days. Freeze broth (without noodles) up to 3 months. Reheat broth to a simmer and warm chicken briefly; loosen noodles with hot water before serving. Variations: use rotisserie chicken, add vegetables, turmeric, or lemongrass, or swap in fresh pho noodles. Make it gluten-free by using rice noodles and gluten-free fish sauce; choose a gluten-free hoisin if needed.