I was introduced to Vietnamese Chicken Pho Soup over a decade ago while eating at a Vietnamese restaurant in Los Angeles and have loved it ever since. I was living in a small town at the time and wanted to re-create the awesome flavor at home with what I could find at my local grocery store.

Pho (or Phở), pronounced “Fah” in American English, is a Vietnamese soup consisting of a broth simmered with aromatic spices, rice noodles, herbs, and meat, although, some people make it vegetarian.

This pho recipe is my at-home Vietnamese-Inspired soup made in my American kitchen, and it’s delicious!

Homemade Chicken Pho Soup is the perfect food for when you’re feeling under the weather or if you simply want a savory dinner that’s full of flavor and wholesome ingredients. If you love Pho soup from restaurants, then you’ll love this recipe.

This at-home Chicken Pho Soup recipe is comforting, flavorful, and totally customizable.

Ingredients

A quick tip: Pho broth requires a lot of whole spices, which can cause your grocery bill to skyrocket. To make this affordable, I recommend buying your spices from the bulk spice section in the supermarket, which is much more affordable than buying them in big jars. Plus, they’re usually fresher. Smaller, local grocery chains often have bulk spice sections.

• Bone-in Chicken: Simmering the broth with bone-in chicken adds the depth of flavor you need for chicken pho soup. You’ll need 2 raw, bone-in chicken leg quarters and 2 bone-in chicken breasts, or one whole raw chicken. If you use a whole raw chicken be sure to remove the bag of organs in the cavity.
• Carrots: You’ll also need 2-3 carrots that are cut in half to fit in the pot to help make the stock.
• Onion: Add one white or yellow onion for the stock. Cut it in half or quarters to simmer in the stock to release all of its flavors.
• Garlic: Add 3 cloves of garlic for the broth. Smash them open to get the most flavor.
• Ginger: For this Homemade Pho-Style Chicken Soup, you’ll need 1-2 inches of chopped ginger. You don’t need to peel it, just make sure it’s clean and chop it up to increase the surface area to simmer in the stock.
• Lemongrass: You’ll also need 1 stalk of lemongrass, which I even found at my small local grocery store near the herbs.
• Cloves: Add 4-6 whole cloves. These will add depth of flavor to your broth and enhance the flavors of the other spices.
• Cardamom: Add 5 whole cardamom pods. Use whole pods. You can also buy powdered cardamom but in this recipe, you’ll want to use whole pods because they release a different flavor.
• Cinnamon: You’ll also need 1 small cinnamon stick. All of the spices here come together to add a wonderfully complex flavor to your broth. If you don’t have a cinnamon stick you can leave it out.
• Star Anise: Add 3 whole star anise. Star anise is sometimes sold as “broken” pieces which are more affordable and totally ok to use. They might be missing a corner or a small section, but they work just as well in recipes.
• Black Pepper: Add 6-7 of whole black peppercorns to your Homemade Pho-Style Chicken Soup. You can use ground pepper if you don’t have whole peppercorns, but I recommend using them whole if you have them because they add such a fresh aroma and taste.
• Salt: Add 2 teaspoons of sea salt or more depending on your preference.
• Apple Cider Vinegar: You’ll need 2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar. This is not traditional but it helps to release collagen from the bones. You can always use distilled vinegar instead of apple cider vinegar.
• Fish Sauce: This step is optional but I highly recommend adding 1-2 teaspoons of fish sauce to taste after the stock has simmered. I use the brand Red Boat.
• Rice Noodles: I also recommend using one (12-ounce) package of rice noodles for this Homemade Pho-Style Chicken Soup.
• Lots of Veggies to Garnish: This is where you get to customize your pho soup recipe! You can add cilantro, basil, sliced jalapenos, bean sprouts, chopped green onions or sliced red onions, and/or chicken meat from the broth.

How To Make Chicken Pho Soup at Home

1. Start by simmering the broth for at least 6 hours, up to 24 hours. I like to make the broth in a slow cooker for ease and efficiency, but you can also keep it at a low simmer on the stove.
2. To make the broth:
   • Add the chicken pieces or whole chicken to a 6-quart slow cooker or soup pot, then add the carrots, onion, fresh garlic, fresh ginger, whole spices, and apple cider vinegar to the pot.
   • Remove most of the green part of the lemongrass, and leave approximately 4 inches of the thicker white stalk. Score it vertically with a sharp knife and smash it just enough to loosen it then add it to the pot.
   • Reserve the fish sauce (if you’re using it) until the end.
   • Add filtered water to the pot, until about ½ inch from the top, and set the temperature to high. (If making on the stove, bring to a boil then reduce to a low simmer.)
   • After about 2-3 hours of cooking, remove the chicken meat from the bones, then add the chicken bones and skin back to the crock pot. The meat will be poached at this point, and you’ll want to remove it to reserve to eat in the soup when it’s done.
3. Continue to simmer the broth at a low simmer for at least 6 hours or up to 24 hours. Turn the slow cooker to low if cooking for more than 6 hours.
4. Once cooked, add 1 teaspoon of fish sauce to your broth.
5. Strain the pho broth through a colander over a large heat-safe bowl, then add the strained broth back to the Crockpot or pot.
6. Add 2-3 teaspoons of salt to the pho broth; adjust the seasoning to taste.
7. When it’s time to eat, cook the rice noodles according to the package instructions. I often pour boiling water over the rice noodles in a separate heat-safe bowl. Let them sit for 5 minutes until soft. Then drain and rinse them then add them to your broth.
8. Add some of the reserved cooked chicken to the soup when you add the noodles.
9. Garnish with lots of chopped green onions (aka scallions), fresh cilantro, fresh lime juice, slice jalapenos, and other pho garnishes that you like.

*Note: It’s best to cook the noodles separately before adding them to the broth to prevent them from creating too much starch in the broth. Store the cooked chicken meat in a covered container in the refrigerator. You can use this chicken in your pho or any other recipe.

If you’re looking for a way to use your leftover cooked chicken, check out my Crockpot Shredded Chicken Tacos recipe.

Pho Broth Cooking Time

6 to 24 hours.

The longer you let your broth cook, the better it will taste. This Homemade Pho-Style Chicken Soup takes quite a long time to cook but it actually takes very little effort on your part. You basically put everything in the crock pot and let it do its thing. I highly recommend letting it simmer all day and even overnight.

Once your broth is made, you’ll need about 15 minutes to make the rice noodles and chop the veggies/garnishes for the soup.

Storing

The great thing about this Homemade Pho-Style Chicken Soup is that you can store it in the refrigerator, covered, for up to 5 days. It’s best to store the broth separately from the rice noodles. This broth freezes well for up to 4 months.

You can also store the cooked chicken meat in a covered container in the refrigerator to use in other recipes for up to 3 days.

Yield

This Homemade Pho-Style Chicken Soup recipe makes approximately 5 quarts of stock or 12 servings of soup.

When serving, ladle broth into individual bowls. Add the cooked rice noodles, cilantro, jalapeno, bean sprouts, and chicken, and any other garnishes as desired. Sliced green onions are also a great addition.

Video Tutorial

If you want to see a full demonstration of how to make this soup, check out this episode of my cooking show:

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