Easy Chicken Pho Recipe

To know pho is to love it. According to Pho Fever, this classic Vietnamese dish originated in Northern Vietnam in the 1880s, so it's been around for quite some time — at least long enough to generate a pretty big fan base. While the dish seems Vietnamese through and through, it also had a few other influences from Chinese and French cuisine. People traditionally made the very first pho dishes with rice noodles and beef, but nowadays, people swap out pretty much any other protein for beef. It's the ultimate dish with broth, noodles, and chicken which makes a great lunch or dinner.

Recipe developer Catherine Brookes of Blue Sky Eating came up with this fantastic recipe that is great for a family meal. "This dish is so easy to make and ready in just 30 minutes, but still feels a little fancy too! The flavors in the broth are so delicious and it's really warming for a cold day," Brookes raves. "This dish is great served all year round! It would be great as a starter at a dinner party."

You will need to grab a few items from the store for this recipe. Pick up vegetable oil, spring onions, ginger, chicken breasts, coriander seeds, star anise pods, whole black peppercorns, chicken stock, lime, fish sauce, rice noodles, red chili pepper, salt, and pepper.

Once you have those items, you can make this easy chicken pho recipe.

You will need to use a large soup pot to make this dish. Place it on your stove and turn the heat to medium. Then, add the ginger and the white parts of the spring onion to the pot. 

Continue cooking everything together for a few minutes until the onions soften and become aromatic. It's also an excellent way to get your kitchen smelling wonderful. 

There are still a few more things that you will need to add to the mix. Toss in the chicken breasts, coriander seeds, star anise, peppercorns, fish sauce, chicken stock, and lime juice. Stir the mixture well and then crank the heat up, so the liquid comes to a boil. "I think the addition of the coriander seeds, star anise pods and black peppercorns while the broth is simmering add a really unique and tasty flavor," Brookes raves. 

Once you see bubbles reach the top of the surface, reduce the heat to a simmer and leave the mixture to cook for 15 minutes.

To cook the noodles, simply read the back of the instruction packet as all brands of noodles will vary. Once you finish cooking the noodles, drain the water and set to the side for a minute. "You could use other types of noodles such as soba or egg noodles, or even add a little rice or pasta instead if preferred," Brookes notes. 

Next, remove the chicken from the liquid mixture and use two forks to shred it well. It should be pretty tender and fall off easily. 

Place a sieve over a large bowl or another pot and strain the broth. Then, season with a little bit of salt and pepper to taste.

Then, you can start putting together the pho bowls. First, add the noodles and chicken in bowls and then pour the broth over the top. By the way, the broth has a wonderful flavor. "It's a very savory umami flavor with a hint of warmth from the ginger and peppercorns," Brookes describes. 

To complete the chicken pho, top it with the green parts of the spring onion and the red chili. If you'd like, you can also add some extra lime wedges to give it a nice hint of citrus. Brookes suggests serving this dish "with crusty bread, or other Vietnamese side dishes such as spring rolls would be great." 

It's so good, you may not have much left, but if you do, be sure to keep it! "Leftovers should keep well in the fridge up to 2 days," Brookes shares. Bon appétit!