Phở Gà (Chicken Pho)
Updated Oct. 11, 2023
- Total Time
- 1 hour 20 minutes
- Prep Time
- 5 minutes
- Cook Time
- 1 hour 15 minutes
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
Yield:4 servings
- 2yellow onions
- 1small bunch cilantro
- 1jalapeño
- 8whole star anise
- 5whole cloves
- 1cinnamon stick
- 1teaspoon black peppercorns
- 1(4-inch) piece fresh ginger, scrubbed and sliced
- 2½pounds chicken drumsticks and wings
- Kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal)
- 1tablespoon Chinese rock sugar or 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
- 2tablespoons fish sauce, plus more to taste
- 14 to 16ounces dried rice noodles (¼-inch wide)
- Bean sprouts and fresh basil leaves, for serving
- Lime wedges, hoisin and Sriracha, for serving
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)
917 calories; 28 grams fat; 7 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 11 grams monounsaturated fat; 6 grams polyunsaturated fat; 103 grams carbohydrates; 5 grams dietary fiber; 7 grams sugars; 60 grams protein; 1249 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Powered byPreparation
- Step 1
Trim the brown root ends off the onions, but keep the clean part of the root intact. Quarter the onions lengthwise with their skins on and through the roots so the wedges stay connected. Trim the stems off the cilantro and tie with kitchen string; save the leaves with tender stems for serving. Trim and reserve both ends of the jalapeño; thinly slice the remaining chile and save for serving.
- Step 2
Toast the star anise, cloves, cinnamon and peppercorns in a large pot over medium heat until fragrant, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer to a medium bowl. Place the onions, ginger and reserved jalapeño ends in the pot, raise the heat to medium-high and char, turning occasionally, until evenly charred, 5 to 7 minutes. Transfer to the spice bowl.
- Step 3
Add the chicken, 1 tablespoon salt and 6 cups water to the pot and raise the heat to high. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to maintain a steady simmer. Skim off and discard the foam and dirty bits on the surface.
- Step 4
Add the spices and charred vegetables to the pot, along with the sugar, fish sauce and cilantro stems. Cover almost all the way and simmer gently on the lowest heat setting possible until the chicken is cooked through, about 35 minutes.
- Step 5
Using tongs, transfer the chicken to a sieve and rinse under cold water to help keep the meat from turning gray and to make it cool enough to handle. Slip the meat off the bones and place the meat in a bowl (it’s OK if some meat remains on the bones). Return the bones and skin to the broth. When it returns to a simmer, taste and add more fish sauce or salt if needed. The broth should be intensely flavorful, bordering on salty, because the rice noodles will temper its savoriness. To prepare this dish ahead, you can strain the broth and refrigerate it and the chicken meat in separate containers for up to 5 days.
- Step 6
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the noodles and cook until pliable but not soft all the way through, about a minute less than the package directions. Drain, rinse under cold water until cool, then return to the pot. Add the chicken meat and pour in the broth through a sieve. Bring to a boil over high heat, then divide among serving bowls. Top with the bean sprouts, basil and cilantro sprigs and serve with the lime wedges, jalapeño slices, hoisin and Sriracha for seasoning to taste.
Private Notes
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Cooking Notes
idk
in step 5, how long do the bones simmer after the meat has been removed? i
John-Bob
"a large pot over medium heat", "raise the heat to medium-high and char" - Have toasted spices in my cast-iron skillet, but never done (on the stovetop, at least) this technique of dry charring the vegetables without oil. Any suggestions on good pot types/materials? I've got an enamel-coated cast-iron (Le Creuset-style) and a heavy-bottomem plain stainless - would either of those work OK (or get nasty because of the charring)? Thanks -
Helen
About using expensive enameled cast iron pots for dry charring or even browning: I’ve taken to using a cast iron skillet for such jobs, and after adding the charred or browned pieces to the casserole, I add some water to the skillet, bring it to a boil, deglaze it and add the result as a part of the liquid for the casserole.
LTF
Getting the right flavors in the Pho broth is a test of patience and skill. My suggestion - buy the broth from a Vietnamese place you like. Assemble the rest at home to your liking. E.g., I don't like rice noodles. I prefer skinny egg noodles.
Melanie
2 1/2 lbs. chicken = about 6 very large drumsticks
Equilibrist
The very very very best is to have a stock that you’ve already made, preferably from feet, necks, and backs. Then you can make this recipe with that as the base, creating a double stock. Heaven in a bowl.
Jackie
I've made this twice for rave reviews! I char the vegetables under the broiler instead of the pan. The second time I made this, in Step 5 I let the chicken bones simmer in the broth on low heat for several hours. I'm sure I will be making this many more times as it's now a family favorite!
G
Used thighs and wings. Used about 1/4 of a cinnamon stick given one of the comments. So delicious. Tastes like the stuff in Pho cafes but better! Put chicken and cooked noodles in a bowl and covered them with the broth.
Anna E
I ended up with too much chicken for my taste using drumsticks, next time I'll use wings instead and add an extra few cups of water at the start for more broth. Otherwise, it came out deliciously! I used Chinese five spice powder per another commenter (4 tsp that I tossed in the hot empty pot before adding the chicken but I would guess a lot of it was skimmed out in the foam)
vivian y.
Dry charred in a heavy bottom stainless steel pot that I used for all the cooking. Less washing dishes for me! I used rotisserie chicken and subbed black peppercorns with Szechuan (all I had in house). I found that there was too much noodles to broth ratio. I was left with enough broth for 2 servings, and 7 oz of noodles was still way too much. I would use about 4 oz next time and double the volume of water and stock ingredients. I may have over boiled the stock and lost volume there.
sid
5 whole cloves of what?
Julia
Clove is a small brown spice with strong aroma and flavor
keith
I use Frontier 5 Spice powder from WF instead of dealing with the individual spices for my Pho.
Pho MME
Pho Ga! I could eat this everyday.
Carol
Tried very hard to do everything in the directions religiously (although I did not have whole cloves, so I had to use crushed clove). It was certainly nice soup, but not delicious enough for all that effort :-(
Luan Do
The more you make this, the easier it gets. Making a spice bag takes 5 minutes. It is hard to mess up soup, because it is purely based on personal preferences, and you can always add condiments to your bowl to make it whatever you want.
Luan Do
Also, put the spice bag in early so that the broth can have more flavor. Cooking the broth for about 2 hrs or more but remove chicken meat from broth and leave bones in the pot to avoid overcooking the meat. The longer the spice bag is left in the pot, the stronger the broth will be.
Luan Do
If you add a whole stick of cinnamon, the broth would not be balanced, as that much cinnamon will overpower other spices. I'd recommend added a few black cardamom, a thumb-size piece of ginger, and a teaspoon of green cardamom. You can also add a teaspoon of coriander seeds. Spices should be contained in a spice bag made of cheese cloth or the like. If you like the broth to be stronger, leave the spice bag in the pot longer. You want a balanced broth that does not have one dominant spice.
Priscilla
This recipe was a revelation. I love Vietnamese food and never had the confidence to make it at home. Don’t skip toasting spices and onion/ginger because it really made a difference. I only did so gently until you can see a bit of char on all sides and it still worked. Used chicken carcasses as that’s what I had on hand. So so good.
Stephanie
Loved the bright flavors and deep broth. Hoisin sauce added welcome sweetness contrasting the saltiness. I have never eaten or made Pho and this was a very good first.
Mel
I followed the directions to the letter. The broth was lovely by itself. The chicken was bland and didn't absorb the flavors of the broth, as were the noodles. A few cilantro leaves as a garnish in my bowl overwhelmed the delicate flavors of the broth.Adding more salt didn't help. I thnk I would sub a delicate white fish for the protein and use wild or bhasmati rice cooled until very soft instead of noodles, as one would for a jook.
Barbara Boyko
I cooked the bones for another 1/2 hour and it was perfect.
Keith
Can save on time and lack of flavor by adding some Better than Bullion or chicken stock to water. Also Five Spice powder fills in nicely for anise, cinnamon, cloves, et al. I also prefer Huy Fong Garlic Chili Sauce to Siracha, it adds kick but also texture to the broth.
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