Litibu Collective Chicken Pho

This recipe is from Diem Nguyen the the owner of Litibu Collective. Diem is a friend of World Spice and we're thankful she shared her Mom's recipe for one of our favorite chicken soups.

"You may have had phở bò (beef pho), but have you tried phở gà? Phở bò is a long process requiring simmering for hours, ideally overnight..Here we share how to make a less time-intensive version of phở gà (Chicken) and the techniques required for any phở. "

-Diem Nguyen

Ingredients

For the Broth:

4 cups chicken broth
8 cups water
1/3 stick Cassia Stick Cinnamon (quế)
1/3 teaspoon Indian Coriander Seed (hột ngò)
1/2 teaspoon Fennel Seed (hột tiểu hồi)
1/2 teaspoon Cloves (đinh hương)
1 Star Anise (hoa hồi)
2 inch ginger, thinly sliced lengthwise
1/2 shallot, sliced
1 yellow onion, cut in half
1 stalk lemongrass, cut into thirds and bruised
2-1/2 lbs chicken thighs (substitute wings, drumsticks)
1 tablespoon Kosher Salt Diamond Crystal
1-1/2 tbsp rock sugar or sugar
14 oz pho noodles (bánh phở)
1 lb white daikon, peeled and chopped to 1 inch crosswise (substitute Fuji apple, peeled and quartered)
1 carrot stick, peeled and chopped to 2 inches crosswise
1 tbsp fish sauce (nước mắm)

For the Garnish & Sauce:

9 sprigs of Thai basil
1 lb of bean sprouts (optional to dip bean sprouts into the simmered broth to eat them a little cooked)
12 sprigs of cilantro
1 jalapeno, sliced
1 lime, wedged
6 green onions
1/2 onion, thinly sliced
Ground Black Vietnamese Peppercorn
Hoisin (tương đen)
Sriracha (tương ớt Sriracha)

Directions

In a stock pot using a lid, bring chicken broth and water to a boil on high heat.

In a small frying pan on medium heat; add cinnamon, coriander, fennel seeds, cloves, star anise, ginger, and shallot until fragrant and golden for about 3-4 minutes. Remove and put in a spice bag. Add 2 onion halves onto the pan until lightly golden on the flat side about 2 minutes. Remove from heat.

When the stock pot boils, turn to medium heat so the broth is simmering. Place in the spice bag, the 2 onion halves, and lemongrass. Add the salt, sugar, and chicken. Let simmer for 15 minutes and occasionally skim the surface to remove scum. While waiting, bring a separate pot of water to a boil to cook the pho noodles, cook for about 4 minutes, remove and drain the water.

Remove and discard the spice bag, onion, and lemongrass. Add the daikon and carrot for 5 minutes. Make sure the chicken is cooked. Turn off the heat. Taste the broth, add fish sauce to your liking.

Remove chicken from the broth to cool then tear it into bite-size pieces, leaving chicken pieces to the side and not back in the stock pot. While waiting for the chicken to cool; prepare a garnish plate with Thai basil, bean sprouts, cilantro, jalapeno, lime, green onion, and onion.

Fill each bowl with pho noodles, broth, and chicken. This is where the personalization part takes place! Add any of the garnishes, black pepper, hoisin sauce, and Sriracha to your chicken pho bowl to your liking. Or on a dipping plate, combine hoisin sauce and Sriracha to dip the chicken.

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Tags: Asian Cinnamon Sticks Cloves Coriander Dinner Fennel Lunch Pho-Nominal Broth Mix Soup Star Anise