Quicker Ginger Chicken Pho Recipe
Nothing warms the soul like chicken soup. It’s a classic comfort that transcends location and cultures—no matter where you go, there’s a local version. In the chilly depths of winter, Vietnamese chicken pho is particularly soothing, with its fragrant herbs and aromatics that evoke brighter, sunnier climates.
For traditional chicken pho, or pho ga, the broth is made by simmering bones and spices together over the course of hours. But even on the most stay-indoors sort of days, all that time tethered to the stove can be a challenge. With a good ready-made bone broth, however, you can cut back on the prep time. Our recipe below condenses the long simmer to just over an hour.
P.S. If it’s too cold to even go to the store, let the soup come to you and get the ingredients delivered by FreshDirect.
Quicker Ginger Chicken Pho Recipe
Serves 4
What You’ll Need:
- 1 onion, halved
- 3-inch piece ginger
- 3 cloves garlic
- 3 pieces star anise
- One 3-inch cinnamon stick
- 3 whole cloves
- 6 cups chicken bone broth
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 7 ounces rice noodles
- Roughly chopped mint, basil, and/or cilantro
- Lime wedges
- Bean sprouts
- Sliced jalapeño
- About 2 cups shredded cooked chicken
- Sriracha
- Hoisin sauce
What to do:
Place 1 onion half and piece of ginger directly in the flame of a grill, gas stove top, or broiler. Let the outer skin char, turning to blacken all over. Let cool, then rub off any flaky black spots on the onion. Peel the ginger, then thinly slice.
In a pot, place the charred onion, ginger slices, garlic, star anise, cinnamon, cloves, and chicken broth. Set over medium heat and let simmer for about 1 hour. Strain the broth through a sieve and stir in fish sauce, soy sauce, and sugar. Taste and season as needed.
When almost ready to serve, bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add rice noodles and cook according to package instructions. Drain and divide noodles between 4 bowls.
Arrange the fresh herbs, lime wedges, bean sprouts, thin slices of the remaining onion, and sliced jalapeño on serving plates. Top each bowl of noodles with roughly a half cup of shredded cooked chicken. Pour over the hot broth and serve immediately with the fresh garnishes, sriracha, and hoisin sauce.