Fast and Easy Chicken Pho, 25-Minute Shortcut for Weeknights

In this house, light, brothy Chicken Pho is a weekly craving, but we don't always have the time to hit the Asian market for fresh ingredients and the hours needed to simmer a whole chicken for a more traditional bowl. Instead, we're taking some shortcuts to make it in about 30 minutes so you can easily make something close enough on a weekday. Shall we?

Explore More

• What is Chicken Pho?
• Ingredients You Need for Shortcut Chicken Pho
• What is the Best Fish Sauce for Pho?
• Chicken Pho, Fast and Easy Recipe

What is Chicken Pho?

Chicken Pho is a light, but extremely flavorful brothy soup ladled over rice noodles, chicken, and vegetables, and served with fresh herb garnishes and sauces. Normally, the broth for Chicken Pho is made by simmering fresh chicken and aromatics for a long time, resulting in maximum umami from the bones and flavor extraction from the ginger, onion, and spices. The spices and garnishes like mung bean sprouts and Thai basil are not unusual, but they may not always be easy to find in conventional grocery stores, or out of season. Because it takes time and some effort to source ingredients, more traditional Chicken Pho is more of a weekend project in this house.

However, this "Easy" Chicken Pho lets us get to something similar with most of the flavor with a little less time and effort like boneless skinless chicken breasts and boxed chicken broth so that we can have a steaming hot bowl of brothy noodles on, say, a busy Tuesday night.

How to Make Chicken Pho Fast and Easy

Rather than simmering a whole chicken in water, essentially making a homemade chicken stock, we're relying on the quick-cooking convenience of boneless skinless chicken breasts (or boneless skinless chicken thighs) and boxed chicken broth.

We're also using ingredients that we can grab while we're in the regular ol' grocery store, rather than making additional stops for certain special vegetables and herbs. In place of bean sprouts, I use thinly shredded cabbage, which has the same crisp, crunchy texture and generally neutral flavor as bean sprouts, based on a tip I read from a Vietnamese chef but can't remember where! Thinly sliced cabbage but is definitely available year-round and in all grocery stores.

Thai basil is a type of basil that has a purple stem and flowers and it's almost always available as an import in Asian grocery stores or at the height of summer at some local farmers' markets. However, if you don't have access to it, your Vietnamese Grandma all-day authentic pho might get mad, but your weeknight express Easy Chicken Pho doesn't care.

Easy Chicken Pho Health Benefits

Depending on your health and dietary needs, Easy Chicken Pho can be part of a healthy lifestyle! The health benefits come from the savory, aromatic stock, the chicken's protein, and all the fresh vegetables and herb garnishes that come alongside each bowl.

As published, this recipe for Easy Chicken Pho is:

• dairy-free
• gluten-free

Some of this of course, depends on the boxed chicken broth. Store-bought chicken broth may contain sugar or other ingredients that contain gluten e.g. soy sauce, your Chicken Pho broth will have some degree of these ingredients as well. Read the labels!

Ingredients You Need for Shortcut Chicken Pho

The list of ingredients seems long for something deemed a "shortcut," but don't be intimidated! The chicken, noodles, and broth are required, obviously. The last section is the list of garnishes for the bowl that you can pick and choose from.

Here's what you need for the most aromatic, savory, satisfying bowl of Rotisserie Chicken Pho:

• boneless, skinless chicken breasts (or thighs), about 12 ounces
• rice noodles for pho, 10-13 ounces

For the Pho Broth - required:

• onion, ¼ for broth
• ginger, 1 1-inch piece
• garlic, 4-5 cloves-this is not traditional in pho, but I add it because I just do and when making shortcuts, we'll take added umami wherever we can get it
• cilantro, 10 sprigs separated, stems for broth and leaves for garnish
• spices, any or all of: star anise, black peppercorns, coriander seeds, cinnamon stick OR Chinese five spice powder
• fish sauce, 2 teaspoons
• sugar- optional, 1 teaspoon (if you like sweeter, restaurant style pho, use up to 1 full tablespoon)
• sea salt , plus more to season at the end

Pick and choose any and/or all to garnish your bowl, whatever is available to you

• red onion, ¼ for garnish
• green onions, ¼ cup thinly sliced
• finely shredded cabbage (or bean sprouts if your grocery has them!), 2 cups
• lime, ½
• jalapeño or Fresno pepper, ½
• hoisin sauce, for serving
• sriracha sauce, for serving

optional herb garnishes: fresh mint, and if you have access, Thai basil, 2 sprigs optional

Pho is served with rice noodles called bánh phở, which are wider and flat, similar to fettuccine or tagliatelle. They are available both fresh and dried. You may not be able to find rice noodles specifically for pho, but rice noodles labeled for pad thai can work too!

For reference the rice noodles that are round and cylindrical in shape are called "bun" and labeled as rice vermicelli. They are not always super thin like western style vermicelli pasta, and can range in diameter from super thin like angel hair to about as thick as spaghetti.

• This organic rice noodle is labeled as "pho."
• I use brown rice noodles when they are available, or like this.
• For thinner rice vermicelli, this well-known brand is available at Asian markets and online.

Pro (Am) Tip: The flat-shaped rice noodles are easier to pick up with chopsticks, i.e. not as slippery!

Like every condiment and seasoning, there are a lot of brands of fish sauce on the shelves at the market and they all range in quality, flavor, and saltiness. Here is what to look for:

• anchovies (or other fish) and salt as the only 2 ingredients
• if there are additional ingredients, choose the brand/bottle with the fewest ingredients, preferably without added sugar, preservatives, or coloring
• protein content at least 2 g means there is less dilution with water
• color/darkness doesn't indicate quality so you can ignore that.
• some popular, good brands are Squid (Thai) and Three Crabs (Vietnamese)

Almost every Asian cuisine has some sort of fish sauce, and even Italian cooking has one called colatura!

YOU MUST USE FISH SAUCE for pho, even if you think fish sauce is "fishy." The ONLY time not to use fish sauce is when you are vegan or vegetarian, in which case, use vegan fish sauce, which is made from mushrooms.

Additional Ingredients Notes and Resources

Spice Bundle: star anise, black peppercorns, coriander, cinnamon or Chinese Five Spice. Chinese five spice is an actual blend of, you guessed it, five different spices, sometimes a few more. While the exact blend and proportions vary across homemade recipes and store-bought brands, in general, Chinese five spice comprises: 1) star anise 2) fennel 3) cinnamon 4) cloves, and 5) where much of the variation comes in but usally in the "spicy heat" family like ground ginger, pepper, or Sichuan peppercorns. When I buy a prepared blend, this is one I look for, which has white pepper instead of ginger.

Hoisin Sauce. Hoisin sauce is a rich, velvety fermented soy-based sauce commonly used in Chinese cuisine, both by itself as a finishing sauce or condiment, and as an ingredient in other dishes.

Sriracha Hot Sauce. We all know the sriracha sauce that comes in the rooster bottle with the green top, but that is not the only one. I found a (mostly) organic sriracha sauce by Sky Valley at Whole Foods.

Salt. Salt is an obvious and ubiquitous ingredient. I use this Kosher salt.

All other vegetables, herbs and produce I get from the the regular grocery store.

Substitutions and Variations

This EasyChicken Pho recipe, as with most noodle soups, is generally forgiving and flexible. In terms of ingredient amounts and ratios, you can eyeball/taste a lot of it. There are a few substitutions you can make to fit the recipe into taste preferences and dietary restrictions.

I have made this recipe many times as presented, as well as with the substitutions and variations as noted below:

Chicken Bone Broth. If you, like me, make gallons of bone broth every week and have it, use half Chicken Bone Broth in addition to the water with the ginger, onions, garlic, and spices and just simmer for about 30 minutes!

Rock Sugar or Other Sweetener. Traditional pho uses rock sugar to sweeten the broth, but if you would prefer refined-sugar-free, use half an Asian pear thrown in with the ginger, onion, and garlic, then discard before serving the individual bowls.

Fish Sauce. If you don't have access to fish sauce, or have an allergy, you CAN substitute a tiny bit of soy sauce or tamari, but know that this DRAMATICALLY changes the vibe. Fish sauce and soy sauce are used for both salt as well as their flavors, and they differ a lot. Note: some soy sauces and tamari contain gluten, so make sure to read the package label if you are gluten-free.

Noodles. Pho is traditionally served with rice noodles, but if you don't have them, no one is going to call the pho-police (pho-lice?) if you throw egg noodles, spaghetti noodles, spiralized zucchini noodles, or spaghetti squash in the broth. The real point here is the broth.