In the last blog entry, I introduced my all-time favorite Northern Style Beef Pho and received many requests for the recipe of its beloved cousin, Chicken Pho.
Pho Ga is a Northern Vietnamese specialty originated in Hanoi. The light yet flavorful, simple yet sophisticated chicken broth is what makes Pho Ga one of the local favorites. Pho Ga brings back a lot of childhood memories to me because my mom makes the best Pho Ga in the world. Without any measuring tools, she has a nature ability to incorporate spices in a way that one doesn't overpower the other. Whenever I come back home during my winter break, she always welcomes me with a hot bowl of Pho Ga topped with chiffonade La Chanh (Lime Leaves) hand-picked from our backyard.
What makes an authentical bowl of Northern Style Pho Ga?
First of all, the broth must be clear, light, and flavorful combined with the distinct fragrances coming from grilled shallots and ginger. We never grill or sauté chicken bones because doing so tends to overpower the subtle and delicacy nature of the chicken bone broth.
In addition, I strongly recommend using shallots over onions because the sweetness from shallots goes along really well with the delicate chicken broth. After experimenting with different ingredients, I find onions to have a pungent and sulfuric taste which makes the broth somewhat unpleasant.
Why use old chicken instead of normal whole chicken?
The reason being is that Vietnamese’s chicken has a very different texture. In Vietnam, we only eat local farm-fed chicken (left) due to our texture preferences such as the chewiness of the meat and the crunchiness of the skin. On the other hand, industrial chickens (right) are often used for fried chickens such as KFC, Popeyes, etc. Since I could not find any local farm-fed chickens that have similar textures, I figured I have to find an alternative. After exploring and trying different kind of chickens, I find Old Chicken to have the most similar texture and taste.
What are the ingredients for Pho Ga?
2 chicken bones
1 old chicken (can be bought from any Asian Grocery Markets)
2-inch piece unpeeled fresh Ginger
2 Shallots
Dried Pho noodles
Seasoning: fish sauce, Chicken Stock Powder, sugar
Topping herbs: scallions, cilantro, chiffonade lime leaves (optional)
Instructions:
Step 1: Bring a large pot half-way filled with water to a boil. Then add chicken bones and whole chicken and let it simmers for 30-45 minutes (depends on the size of your chicken). One tip is to check the doneness of the chicken after 25 minutes by poking the thickest part of the chicken with a chopstick. If water runs clear, chicken is done. Set aside and continue to simmer the bones for another 30 minutes. Do not overcook the chicken since doing so will take away the chewy texture we are looking for!
Step 2: While the chicken is simmering, we can prepare and grill our ginger and shallots. I normally use a blow torch to give them some nice colors. However, if you do not already have a blow torch, oven works fine (roast whole in oven at 400-degree Fahrenheit for 15 minutes). You want the ginger and shallots skin to be about 50%-70% black. The char from the skins will intensify the smoky flavor of our broth. Place in the boiling water and simmer with the bones.
Step 3: Cook noodles to al dente. The type of Pho noodle we use in the North (left) is very different from the South (right). The width of Northern noodles is slightly bigger compared to Southern noodles. However, feel free to use any kind of your choice!
Step 4: After one hour of cooking, remove the bones and solids from the pot and discard. Season stock with fish sauce, chicken powder and sugar to taste. Like Northern Style Beef Pho, you want your broth to be more on the savory side since once noodles is added, the flavor will mellow down quite a bit.
Time to assemble!
To serve, add a handful of noodles and chicken to a bowl. Top it up with chopped scallions and cilantro (be generous!). Finally, ladle the hot broth and our Pho Ga is ready to be devoured! As I mentioned earlier, chiffonade lime leaves are optional. However, if you want to step up your Pho game, top it with a sprinkle of chiffonade lime leaves and it will change your life!
Let’s eat or shall I say: Măm măm thôi!
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