Tangy Golden Mushroom and Chicken Pho

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 25

Servings

2 tbsp olive oil
8 oz mushrooms, thinly sliced or torn*
¼ tsp kosher salt
2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced or smashed
2- inch piece ginger, thinly sliced into strips
2 cinnamon sticks
2 whole star anise**
½ tsp ground turmeric
½ tsp black pepper
4 cups water
3 tbsp soy sauce or tamari
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp fish sauce
1 tsp maple syrup
10-12 oz thinly sliced chicken breast, thigh, or sirloin steak***
Cooked rice or soba noodles, for serving
Chopped cilantro and/or scallions, for topping
Toasted sesame oil, for topping
Sesame seeds, for topping
*I like to use a variety of mushrooms - oyster, shiitake, maitake, etc…but any old variety will work! If you don’t like shrooms, skip them (see subs section)!
**Star anise is a key ingredient in pho broth, but if you can’t find it, you can sub with chinese five spice (about 1-2 tsp) or 2 tsp fennel seed and ½ cinnamon stick.
***Pro tip! The best way to thinly slice meat is to do it from a just thawed/still slightly frozen piece of meat with a sharp knife. Add to the broth frozen, it’s so thin it doesn’t matter.
Make it creamy! ~ Top your bowl with an egg yolk and stir it into the broth.
Note: ~ for a brothier bowl, add an extra cup of water to the broth to stretch it. It should still taste well seasoned.

In a medium to large pot over medium heat, warm the oil. Add the mushrooms and salt, give it a stir, then spread everything out and let it cook 5-7 minutes, stirring every couple of minutes, or until they start to turn golden brown in spots.
Stir in the garlic, ginger, cinnamon, anise, turmeric, and pepper for about 30 seconds. Pour in the water, soy sauce, vinegar, fish sauce, and maple syrup. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to medium-low to maintain a simmer for 20 minutes.
Stir in the sliced meat, bring back to boil, then reduce to a simmer for another 2-5 minutes or until cooked through. Add more water if it is looking too low.
Use tongs to remove the cinnamon sticks, star anise, and ginger (just do your best, it’s ok if you can’t fish it all out). Taste the broth and season with more soy sauce or fish sauce, if needed.
To serve, add cooked noodles to your bowl and ladle the broth/mushrooms/chicken over top. Top with cilantro, a drizzle of sesame oil, and sesame seeds.

Substitutions:

To make vegetarian/vegan, skip the fish sauce and replace the chicken with sliced tofu (about 1.5-2 cups). You can bake the tofu, then add it in, or just add it raw.
Skip the mushrooms if you don’t like them! The first time I tested this was without mushrooms. Stir in some leafy greens at the end for a veg boost.
Serve with cooked rice instead of noodles.

Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge or freezer:
- Broth/chicken/shrooms: up to 4 days in the fridge or freeze up to 2 months
- Noodles: up to 6 days in the fridge

Add some more water to the broth to stretch it a bit. Warm it up on the stove or in the microwave. Warm the noodles slightly in the microwave (the hot soup will warm it up some more). Serve with herbs, sesame oil, etc…
Top with a fried or boiled egg for more protein
Top with sriracha for some spice.
Mung beans or thinly sliced radish would be yummy on top.