One of the things I've always wanted to try but never can have in restaurants is pho. I even made it a point to try to find some in Pakistan the last time I was there but it seems like vietnamese food isn't that popular there. There were lots and lots of chinese places though. You probably get more westernized chinese food in Pakistan than you would in Canada so I guess I had to much hopes for vietnamese food. A girl can dream right?
Yesterday, it was hot in the morning, the wind was nice and breezy at night time and what could be better than enjoying the night with some soup? I didn't have all the proper ingredients so I don't know how well of a job I did in imitating pho.
I knew it was going to take long to make it but was a caught a bit off guard by just how long it took. When I make chicken or veggie stock, it doesn't take me any longer than an hour, maybe even 2, but this bad boy took me nearly 5! It was well worth the wait, I've never had chicken stock with such a strong flavor.
It actually wasn't that hard to cook at all, just a very long wait for everything to be done. When you're hungry, 4 hours feel like 4 eons.
Everyone in my house enjoyed this so much, they all asked me to make it again. I think it'll be a while until I make it again because I usually don't have 5 hours to spare all the time but I'll definitely be making this on special occasions!
Chicken Pho adapted and modified from Momofukufor2
Ingredients
1 stewing hen (see note below)
5 quarts of water
5 quarts of water
2 onions, halved
1 3-4 inch chunk of ginger
1 tsp whole coriander seeds
1 tsp whole cloves
4 whole star anise (see note below)
2 tbs sugar
2 tbs fish sauce
1 stick of cinnamon
1 3-4 inch chunk of ginger
1 tsp whole coriander seeds
1 tsp whole cloves
4 whole star anise (see note below)
2 tbs sugar
2 tbs fish sauce
1 stick of cinnamon
2 legs of chicken (see note below)
pho noodles
pho noodles
Garnish
sliced green onions
roughly chopped cilantro
red chilis
thinly sliced white onions
Thai basil
sliced limes
hoisin sauce
sriracha
sliced green onions
roughly chopped cilantro
red chilis
thinly sliced white onions
Thai basil
sliced limes
hoisin sauce
sriracha
Instructions
1. Toast your ginger and onions in a toaster oven on broil until the onions are sweaty everything is nicely charred. Peel the ginger and onions and set aside until you’re ready to start your broth.
2. Toast the coriander seeds, cloves, and star anise in a dry pan on low heat until they are aromatic, about 2-3 minutes. Tie the spices up in cheesecloth for easy removal from your soup.
3. Put your stewing hen in a large pot with cold water and bring to a hard boil for 5-10 minutes to force the scum and impurities out. Drain, rinse your chicken and wash your pot.
4. Fill your clean pot with about 5 quarts of water and add your stewing hen, ginger, onions, and spice packet. Bring to a boil and lower to a simmer. If any scum floats up skim it off. Simmer for as long as you can; reducing it will intensify the flavour. I let my broth simmer for about 4 hours, but 2 is probably sufficient.
5. Meanwhile, place your chicken legs in a pot and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil and then lower to a simmer and cook until the chicken is cooked, about half an hour. When the chicken is cooked, remove it from the water and let it cool. Don’t throw the chicken-y water away! Skim off the foam and add it to your pho broth.
1. Toast your ginger and onions in a toaster oven on broil until the onions are sweaty everything is nicely charred. Peel the ginger and onions and set aside until you’re ready to start your broth.
2. Toast the coriander seeds, cloves, and star anise in a dry pan on low heat until they are aromatic, about 2-3 minutes. Tie the spices up in cheesecloth for easy removal from your soup.
3. Put your stewing hen in a large pot with cold water and bring to a hard boil for 5-10 minutes to force the scum and impurities out. Drain, rinse your chicken and wash your pot.
4. Fill your clean pot with about 5 quarts of water and add your stewing hen, ginger, onions, and spice packet. Bring to a boil and lower to a simmer. If any scum floats up skim it off. Simmer for as long as you can; reducing it will intensify the flavour. I let my broth simmer for about 4 hours, but 2 is probably sufficient.
5. Meanwhile, place your chicken legs in a pot and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil and then lower to a simmer and cook until the chicken is cooked, about half an hour. When the chicken is cooked, remove it from the water and let it cool. Don’t throw the chicken-y water away! Skim off the foam and add it to your pho broth.
6. When your chicken legs are cool enough to handle, shred it off the bones and add the bones to the chicken stock. Keep the chicken in the fridge until you’re ready to eat.
7. When you’re ready to eat, taste your broth and season it. Add the sugar and fish sauce in increments until you’re happy with the flavour. Strain the broth and discard the bones. Keep the broth on the heat. You want your pho broth to be super hot. Add the shredded chicken the broth to heat it up at bit.
8. Prepare your noodles according to the package, strain and top with broth, chicken meat and garnishes. Enjoy!
*I didn't have too much chicken at home so I just used 2 lbs of chicken instead of using both a stewing hen and 2 legs of chicken. I did step #3 and then cooked the chicken in the stock with the onions and the spices for 35 minutes. Don't cook any longer, the chicken will become stringy and just...bleh. I took the chicken pieces out of the stock, shredded the meat off and then put the bones back inside the stock. Don't throw away the bones as most of the chicken flavor will come from the bones. Once my stock was done, I strained everything and added the shredded chicken back to my stock and let it sit for 4-5 minutes.
*I couldn't find star anise so instead, I opted to used 1 teaspoon of anise seed and 1 teaspoon of fennel seed. From my understanding, anise star is stronger in flavor but this makes a good substitute. http://momofukufor2.com/2010/05/chicken-pho-recipe/
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