Vietnamese Chicken Noodle Soup
INGREDIENTS
- 1 whole chicken (3lbs or 1 1/4kg)
- 8 cups (2 litres) chicken stock
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 3 scallions
- 1 tbsp freshly grated ginger
- 1 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 1/2 tbsp fish sauce
- 10 oz (300g) dried rice stick noodles (4 1/2 cup cooked noodles)
- 3 cups (240g) fresh beansprouts, blanched
- 2 tbsp fresh cilantro (coriander)
- 1/2 yellow onion, very thinly sliced (optional)
- 3 scallions, sliced into 2 cm pieces for serving
- 1 cup fresh Thai basil leaves
- 1 lime, cut into wedges (optional)
Traditionally, this meal-in-a-bowl soup is made with beef and beef bones, but the Vietnamese have perfected a lighter non-beef version using chicken. This soup is popular at any time of day or night and is often enjoyed for breakfast in Vietnam.
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To prepare:
- Place chicken and chicken stock in a large stockpot with cinnamon, scallions, fresh ginger, salt & sugar
- Bring to boil over medium heat
- Reduce heat to low and continue cooking for 1 more hour
- Add fish sauce and set aside
- Meanwhile, to cook the noodles, bring a large pot of water to boil, put in noodles and cook till tender (8 mins)
- Remove from heat, drain, rinse in cold water, set aside
- Half an hour before serving, remove the chicken from stock and when it is cool enough to handle, shred meat by hand, set aside
- To serve, place handful of noodles in a large soup bowl
- Top with some beansprouts and shredded chicken
- Garnish with fresh cilantro leaves, onion slices if desired, scallions and basil
- Ladle soup and sprinkle with fresh lime juice if desired
- Add more fish sauce to taste
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