Chicken Pho or Pho Ga is a light and refreshing soup that is also very healthy. Boneless chicken is cooked in broth, aromatics and a few whole spices, rice noodles are added and the soup is topped by fresh herbs, freshly ground pepper and limes. A gem from Vietnamese cuisine, this instant pot chicken noodle soup is going to blow your mind with its vibrant flavors. A quick, 30-minute recipe!
Chicken pho (pronounced 'fuh') is a signature Vietnamese soup and one that is very popular in the West too. I love it for its simple, yet vibrant flavor and colors. It does not have any unhealthy ingredients to spoil the fun. Make it when you're looking for a warm, comforting and one-pot meal that won't weigh you down.
I always cook my chicken pho soup in an instant pot because I want to make it quickly. I seriously don't have the time or patience to watch over the contents as they simmer their way to becoming soup (yay for instant pot chicken recipes).
Of course, the secret to any good recipe is the quality of the ingredients used and this soup is no exception. This is by no mean a traditional chicken pho recipe (it's a fast-track version), but I try to stay true to the original by choosing correct and good quality ingredients. The key ingredient in this dish is chicken broth or stock. There's nothing like homemade broth, and if you have some in your fridge, great! If not, a good option is store-bought chicken broth. I like the Pacific brand and use it often.
The second thing to remember is to use the right kind of noodles. You can make do with fettuccine if you want to but I like to stick to the rice noodles, which is the kind used in pho. Go for the rice sticks used in pad thai and pho.
Then there's the fish sauce. You wouldn't be able to make me taste it straight from the bottle at gun-point. But something magical happens when fish sauce is added to Asian recipes like this one. It gives this soup a lift and although you just need to add half a teaspoon, you can't skip it. And when you also add a teaspoon of brown sugar, you've created a distinctive savory-sweet broth.
Note: this is a light soup with mild and understated flavors. If you're looking for something rich and intense, try the other soup recipes on the blog like the chicken and wild rice soup. Or the mulligatawny, a colorful and chunky curry soup.
Ingredients in chicken pho
Note: Exact amounts of ingredients are given in the recipe card below.
- Coriander seeds
- Cloves
- Ginger root, peeled and cut thickly
- Green onions - chopped
- A mix of green herbs – parsley, cilantro and mint
- Chicken breast, cut into bite-sized pieces
- Chicken broth
- Rice noodles
- Water
- Fish sauce
- Brown sugar
- Black pepper, freshly ground
- Fresh limes, sliced thinly
How to make instant pot chicken pho
1. Switch on your instant pot and press sauté (normal). Add coriander seeds and cloves and toast the spices for a minute or two until fragrant.
2. Add the ginger, green onions and green herbs. Reserve a few leaves for garnishing. Stir for about a minute or until you see the onions and greens slightly charring at the edges. Then cancel sauté.
3. Add the broth, water and chicken and close lid. Make sure the steam release handle is sealed and press the pressure cooking button. Set the timer to 12 minutes.
4. While the soup is cooking, prepare the rice noodles. Cook the rice noodles according to package instructions and keep aside.
Tip: Add a teaspoon of cooking oil to the noodles so that they don't stick together. After they are cooked, run them under cold running water to stop the cooking process.
5. Once the timer beeps, the best thing to do is to wait for the pressure to release naturally. But if you're in a hurry, wait for at least 10 minutes, then release pressure. Take out the chicken pieces and keep them covered in a bowl. Pass the soup through a sieve or strainer positioned over a deep pot so that the liquid passes through and the solids are left behind. You can discard these solids.
6. Transfer the soup (after straining) to the instant pot and press sauté again. Add the fish sauce and brown sugar.
7. Bring the soup to a boil, then cancel sauté. Check the seasoning. If it seems to be less salty than you like, add a dash of sea-salt. Cover the soup with a lid so that it doesn't go cold.
I use this tempered glass lid for covering the instant pot inner liner. It also saves my countertop from splatters while I'm making a sauce. Of course, you can use any glass lid that fits.
7. Now assemble the soup. Divide and put the cooked rice noodles in 4 individual soup bowls. Arrange the chicken pieces on top of the noodles and pour one cup of soup into each bowl. Squeeze a little lime juice and garnish with the remaining green leaves. Finish by sprinkling the soup with a few turns of freshly ground black pepper. Chicken pho is ready to be served!
Other instant pot soup recipes you might like
Chicken Pho (Vietnamese Chicken Noodle Soup)
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoon coriander seeds
- 3 cloves
- 1 " piece ginger root peeled and cut thickly
- 2 bunches green onions - chopped
- 3 tablespoon parsley
- 3 tablespoon cilantro
- 3 tablespoon mint
- 2 boneless chicken breasts cut into bite-sized pieces
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 8 oz rice noodles
- 2 cups water
- ½ teaspoon fish sauce
- 1 teaspoon brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon black pepper freshly ground
- 2 fresh limes sliced thinly
Instructions
- Switch on your instant pot and press sauté (normal). Add coriander seeds and cloves and toast the spices for a minute or two until fragrant.
- Add the ginger, green onions and green herbs (parsley, cilantro and mint). Reserve a few leaves for garnishing. Stir for about a minute or until you see the onions and green charring slightly at the edges. Then cancel sauté.
- Add the broth, water and chicken and close lid. Make sure the steam release handle is sealed and press the pressure cooking button. Set the timer to 12 minutes.
- While the soup is cooking, prepare the rice noodles. Cook the rice noodles according to package instructions and keep aside.
- Once the timer beeps, wait for the pressure to release naturally. Take out the chicken pieces and keep them covered in a bowl. Pass the soup through a sieve or strainer positioned over a deep pot so that the liquid passes through and the solids are left behind. You can discard the solids.
- Transfer the soup (after straining) to the instant pot and press sauté again. Add the fish sauce and brown sugar.
- Bring the soup to a boil, then cancel sauté. Check the seasoning. If it seems to be less salty than you like, add a dash of sea-salt. Cover the soup with a lid so that it doesn't go cold.
- Now assemble the soup. Divide and put the cooked rice noodles in 4 individual soup bowls. Arrange the chicken pieces on top of the noodles and pour one cup of soup into each bowl. Squeeze a little lime juice and garnish with the remaining green leaves. Finish by sprinkling the soup with a few turns of freshly ground black pepper. Chicken pho is ready to be served.
Notes
- While cooking the noodles, follow the package instructions but add a teaspoon of cooking oil so that they don't stick together.
- Once the noodles are cooked, run them under cold water to stop the cooking process.
- You can substitute the rice noodles for fettuccine pasta but pho just tastes more authentic with rice noodles.
Nutrition
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Ashley says
We enjoy this recipe, but my chicken comes out dry (yes, cooked in all this wonderful broth). So next time I’ll be cooking the chicken separately