Phở Gà
I finally did it! I made a recipe blog post. Sharing recipes with you has been on my to-do list for the longest time but I just cbf’d. I had an entire plan to create Tumblr just to share recipes for you but then realised I could just do it through here bc let’s face it how many more accounts can I really manage….
There’s something about Phở Gà that touches my heart. I love the iconic beef version but sometimes chicken phở is just so light and refreshing. I firmly believe that chicken soup is very healing. I often get people who come in and ask me why I don’t make Phở Bò and I’m like lol…there’s so many other shops who make yummy beef phở…why do I also have to make it. I just wanna cook my chicken phở haha Many people don’t realise how much work goes into Phở Bò. Do you know how heavy beef bones are??? Everyday, my mum carries 80kg of bones up the stairs just to make beef bone broth. She is always complaining about how her arms and body hurt but she can’t stop because it’s what her customers want to eat. Chicken pho is more gentle on the body - even though my muscles still suffer from carrying that huge pot.
My Phở Gà is always evolving. I don’t have a set recipe because I like to experiment and listen to the ancestral wisdom stored deep in my body. Whenever I cook, I will splash in the fish sauce until my ancestors whisper me ‘stooooop’. I even put fish sauce in my pasta (pls don’t cancel me, sorry Italians). Tbh, I rarely trust myself and the decisions I make but when I am in the kitchen cooking Viet food, I trust myself and my ancestors completely. I have fucked up enough times to learn from my mistakes lol (sounds so cheesy but it's true!) For me, cooking is about learning to trust yourself. I hope to make recipes that are easy enough to follow so that you can also learn to trust yourself <3
At the core of it, Phở needs to have a balance of flavour - herbal (spices), sweet (rock sugar), salty (fish sauce and salt) and umami (chicken and grilled onion). Just keep these things in mind and your broth will thrive! There’s no perfect way to make Phở so it’s okay if you’re not happy with it yet…just keep cooking and trying out different Phở restaurants to see which one you like most. No two recipes will ever be the same. Season to your taste! Some days I prefer a lighter broth, other days I crave a heavier meaty broth.
Anyways, I am rambling now. I get why all the blog posts have soooo much text before you actually get to the recipe now hahah sorryyy.
Thank you for reading and joining me on this journey! If you get a chance to try this recipe, tag us on IG! Let me know what you think! Trust yourself and use the recipe below as a guide to making our Phở Gà.
I believe in you <3
Phở Gà (makes 8-10 serves)
9L water
1 boiling chicken
1 x whole chicken
1 x leek
1 x carrot
1 x daikon
8-10 x dried shiitake mushrooms (rehydrated)
2 x brown onion
120g fresh ginger (large knob)
15g cassia or cinnamon stick (medium sized stick)
7 x star anise
3 x black cardamon
5 tbsp coriander seeds
5 x cloves
3 tbsp fennel seeds
3cm x 3 cm dried mandarin peel (optional)
2 tbsp goji berries
10cm x 10cm kombu seaweed
7 x makrut lime leaves
1 x lemongrass
1 bunch coriander (Chopped, leave roots for broth)
1 bunch spring onion (Thinly sliced, leave roots for broth)
60g rock sugar (2 medium rocks)
Fish sauce
Salt
Chicken powder
Pepper
Fresh or Dry rice noodles
Garnish
6 Lime leaves (Chiffonade)
Beanshoots
Lemon wedges
Thai basil
Instructions
Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil.
Wash and roughly cut leek, carrot and daikon.
Clean both chickens by scrubbing salt all over. Remove the tail, pin feathers and trim excess fat. Rinse with cold water.
Place chickens into boiling water for 1-2 minutes until skin turns white and scum forms at the surface. Strain and rinse the chicken in cold water to remove excess scum. Place whole chicken in fridge for later use.
In a large pot (12-15L), add 9L of water and bring to a simmer.
Add boiling chicken, leek, carrot, daikon and rehydrated mushrooms.
Allow pot to come to a boil and immediately turn heat down to a gentle simmer. Regularly remove scum from surface to maintain a clear stock.
Add 2 tbsp salt, rock sugar, lemongrass, spring onion roots, coriander stems/roots and makrut lime leaves. Allow stock to simmer for 3-4 hours.
Add your whole chicken and let the stock come to a boil. Reduce heat immediately.
Let the chicken poach chicken in the simmering stock for approximately 1 hour. Once cooked remove, let it cool, shred and leave aside. Add leftover bones back into the stock.
While your stock is simmering, roast onion and ginger on an open flame until charred. Remove charred layers and smash ginger before adding to your pot.
Smash the black cardamon and pick out the seeds. Discard the pod.
In a pan, toast your spices and kombu. Secure spices in a tea bag/cheesecloth then add to your simmering stock.
Add goji berries. Allow your stock to continue simmer for 1-2 hours.
Prepare rice noodles according to packet instructions.* Blanch noodles in hot water before serving.
Season your broth with 2 x tbsp salt, 1 x tbsp chicken powder and 2 x tbsp fish sauce. Simmer for at least another 15 minutes, allowing the flavours to steep.
Adjust the seasoning to your taste.
Place rice noodles in bowls. Top with shredded chicken and a few drops of fish sauce. Garnish with spring onion, coriander, lime leaves and pepper.
Ladle your hot steaming broth over a strainer into the bowl.
Enjoy your Phở Gà!
*Note: Fresh noodles are amazing but if you can’t access, use dry pho noodles instead. A trick I learnt when cooking dried noodles is to rehydrate them for at least an hour before cooking them!