With your slow cooker, you can make your own Vietnamese noodle soup! Our Crock Pot Chicken Pho is our take on this classic with an incredibly flavorful broth but with a little added nutrition from fresh bok choy. Making this Asian chicken noodle soup at home is easier than you may think!
I will repeat, Crock Pot Chicken Pho. I know. And you're welcome. Hands down, this is one of our favorite soups to make. While I'm not claiming that this Vietnamese noodle soup is 100% authentic, (Hi, Korean Pollack over here), its flavorful broth definitely fulfills that pho craving, plus it wouldn't be a SFS recipe if we didn't sneak in a little added nutrition!
Recipe Video
Ingredients Needed
Simple ingredients, but that add SO much flavor for the broth, which all pho lovers know, is truly the key!
- Chicken Breasts - Boneless or bone-in, we've use both. We've made it with boneless chicken thighs before too, but the white meat of chicken breasts is definitely our favorite.
- Bok Choy - We prefer baby bok choy because the leaves are more tender and have a slightly sweeter flavor than that of full sized, but both are delicious. You could also use spinach, too! Yes, I know, traditional pho does not add a green, but adding a little extra greeny is how we roll around here!
- Chicken Stock - Have you made your own, yet?
- Rice Noodles - There are a lot of rice noodle / rice stick options. Your local Asian market is going to be the best place to find them as they sell Pho Noodles or you could buy Banh Pho noodles. Your favorite rice noodle will work, just keep an eye on the package instructions for how long to allow them to cook in your crock pot.
- Brown Sugar - Light brown sugar is best - and if you don't have any, did you know you can make your own?
- Fish Sauce - This salty savory sauce adds a great umami flavor to the broth.
- Fresh Ginger - Sliced big enough to be able to easily remove from broth.
- Broth Flavoring - Whole cloves, star anise, a whole cinnamon stick, whole coriander.
You can also buy pre-made pho spice packs. Most Asian markets sell them, or you can find them here on Amazon.
While this is all the base of the pho, you can't forget the accompaniments, too!
- Our favorite add-ons are:
- Hoisin - Did you know you can make your own?
- Sriracha - For some heat.
- Chili Garlic Sauce - For some garlicky kick.
- Bean Sprouts - Fresh may be hard to find in your local grocery store, but you can usually find them in your local Asian market. Note: not they are not recommended to eat raw while pregnant.
- Basil - The perfect herbal touch.
- Sliced Jalapenos - For even more flavorful heat.
- Fresh Lime - A final squeeze over the top of it all adds just the right amount of acidity to tie it all together!
Step-by-Step Instructions
As with all of our Crock Pot meals, this one is no exception, it is EASY.
Step 1: Toast your spices. This really helps enhance their flavors.
Step 2: Add salted chicken breasts to pot with broth, sliced ginger, sugar, fish sauce, and toasted spices.
Step 3: Let your slow cooker do the rest of the work developing all of the flavors of the broth.
Once done, you'll want to remove all of the ginger and the whole spices. We use a fine-mesh sieve for that, like this one.
Step 4: Remove the chicken and give it a good shred.
Step 5: Return the chicken to the pot and then add your chopped bok choy. Cook on high for 20 minutes then add your rice noodles.
Be sure to keep an eye on the noodles and only add them for the cooking time noted on the package.
And done! Crock Pot Chicken Pho ready for a large bowl and to be topped with your favorite add-ons!
Serve With
This is totally up to you, but here are our favorites!
- A heaping pile of fresh bean sprouts.
- Ripped fresh basil.
- Sliced jalapenos
- A dollop of chili garlic sauce.
- A little homemade Hoisin.
- Drizzled Sriracha.
- Finished with a squeeze of fresh lime!
Once added, then of course we give all of that Vietnamese noodle soup goodness a solid mix with chopsticks...
...to be ready for the perfect Crock Pot Chicken Pho bite!
How can you not love a chicken noodle soup? And this Vietnamese version is ridiculously easy and so flavorful, which makes it even more loveable.
Other Asian Inspired Soups
FAQs
Of course! We prefer chicken breasts for this recipe and have used boneless or bone-in but thighs would also work.
We don't recommend it for this recipe, but try our Crock Pot Beef Pho!
You don't have to, but it does make a difference in the flavor.
Definitely. Rice noodles are the most authentic for pho, but you can use whatever noodle you would like at whatever thickness. Just keep in mind the kind of noodle and their individual cooking time.
You can definitely freeze the broth and chicken, but I wouldn't recommend freezing the cooked noodles as they do not thaw well after freezing. To freeze, prepare the pho up until adding the noodles and then cook the noodles in the pho prior to serving after reheating.
Enjoy! As always, if you make this recipe or any of my others, I love to hear what you think! Leave a comment below, email me, or you can find me on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest!
Crock Pot Chicken Pho
Ingredients
- 8 cups chicken stock
- 2 lbs boneless chicken breasts or bone-in would work too
- 1 1/2 tablespoons light brown sugar
- 2 inch piece fresh ginger peeled and thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons fish sauce
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 8 star anise
- 2 teaspoons whole coriander
- 8 whole cloves
- 6-8 oz of pho rice noodles, banh pho 1/16 inch is the best, but whatever you can find will work!
- 3-4 cups baby bok choy chopped
- 1-2 teaspoons kosher salt
- bean sprouts
- fresh basil leaves
- sliced jalapeños
- lime wedges
- Sriracha
- hoisin
- chili garlic sauce
Instructions
- Heat a small pan on medium heat and add cinnamon stick, cloves, coriander, star anise, and cloves. Toast, stirring oftne, for about 2 minutes or until fragrant.
- Salt chicken breasts and add to a crock pot. Add chicken stock, fish sauce, and sliced ginger. Add brown sugar and give a little stir so it dissolves. Add toasted spices.
- Set to slow cook on low for 6-8 hrs on or on high for 3-4 hrs.
- Remove chicken from crock pot and shred. While chicken is removed, use a sieve to remove ginger and whole spices.
- Return shredded chicken to crock pot and add chopped bok choy. Turn crock pot to high, cover, and let cook for another 15 minutes.
- While bok choy cooks, prep your accompaniments by slicing jalapeños, lime wedges, and add basil and sprouts to a plate. Gather hoisin, sriracha, and chili garlic sauce.
- After the bok choy has cooked for 15 minutes, open lid and add dried rice noodles. Let cook submerged in the broth for 5-6 minutes, or whatever the cooking time on the package.
- Ladle pho into large bowls. Top with your choice of bean sprouts, jalapeños, basil. Top with sriracha, chili paste, and/or hoisin to taste and finish with a squeeze of fresh lime juice.
- Enjoy!!
I used smoked turkey broth and leftover smoked turkey. Holy Cow! I hope I can recreate it
That sounds incredible!!
I made this for dinner and it was great! The broth was flavorful and I loved the texture of the shredded chicken in the soup! The balance of spices came out really well. The bok choi was a great addition, too. I plan to cook this again!
So wonderful to hear, Ruth! Thanks so much for sharing!
What Market do we find all the Ingredients
like bean sprouts fresh or canned ? ? ? ?
Your local Asian market will have everything you need. 🙂
Hi, it’s me again. I see you changed the amounts of some of the ingredients and added whole coriander. My husband was afraid of me changing it so this time I made it the old way. Haha. But I wanted to know why you changed it? What does it do to the flavor?
Hi Beth! We've been working on improving the flavor a bit and found that adding a little coriander and reducing the star anise just a little adds/balances the flavor of the broth! The coriander addition is a very subtle citrus/sweetness. If you do try it, I'd love to hear what your husband thinks!
I love this recipe and have made it a thousand times over the years. I just wanted to say, you must have accidentally added the word “garlic” after whole clove when you did your last update. That needs to be fixed. Your previous recipe said whole clove which it is...no garlic in this recipe
Beth! You are the BEST, thank you so much for catching that!! You are of course right - whole cloves! So glad you enjoy the recipe!!
Really quite delicious! I followed the recipe amounts very closely, but modified the steps a bit, using my Instant Pot (IP) from the start including making chicken bone broth. Here is what I did in case it helps anyone. I got a Costco rotisserie chicken and shredded all of the chicken and set it aside until the end. I then added the carcass along with just over 8c water and some salt and a teaspoon of apple cider vinegar (doesn’t flavor, but does help get the healthy stuff from the bones), plus the broth ingredients(anise, ginger, etc.) in my Instant Pot and set to manual/high for 120m. Nowhere in town had star anise, but I did find anise seeds, so used just a pinch knowing how many of you commented on the intensity of the anise flavor, and knowing I could always add more later if needed (it wasn’t needed). I also didn’t have any whole cloves, so used a pinch of ground cloves. After the IP beeped, I quick released the valve and strained the broth into a large stock pot and added in the shredded chicken and followed the rest of the recipe, and topped with a soft boiled egg. Delish!!!
Just buy the pho spice packets off the internet. You will find that they send enough to make 10 dishes. They come with the little purse so you are not fishing spices out of your recipe. I didn’t put the ginger in them so you will have to fish them out.
Thanks for the recipe. My fish sauce is a liquid and your video has a paste/sauce. Is there a preferred brand?
I have made this several times and it is delicious!
Hey Tracy, This Chicken Pho looks super yummy! I am in love with these pictures of recipe. Can't wait to try it out this weekend! I am having a great craving for this dish. Keep sharing recipes like this.
Can I sub ground cloves for whole cloves?
Worst recipe ever! It tastes like licorice!!!!
I tried this at my home & could not match the look you had in yours. but surely, the taste was amazing.
It is definitely a must try.
So want to try this dish for this week but have questions on what I can use (from pantry) and what is a non-negotiable change.
Forgive me for my non-culinary knowledge.
I have Udon noodles already but concerned a Japanese noodle won't work with with the Vietnamese dish. Should I still use them? Second I only bought 3 star anise vs. the 10 because of sticker shock ($178 each) and didn't have the recipe on me. Is that too little quantity? Where should I order them from because of their $$$ price? Lastly, how long do cinnimon sticks stay good for? I have some from a couple of years back. Should I toss or use?
Hi Johana! Great questions! Udon noodles are a much thicker noodle and made of wheat and not rice. You can use them - but they'll take longer to cook and also will taste different, but probably still good! They will soak up a LOT more broth though, so you'll end up with less broth. I hope you meant $1.78 each! But even still that's super expensive! You can find them on Amazon for muccchhh less. The anise definitely adds a lot of the flavor, but sometimes people find it strong so maybe you'll like it with just the three! For the cinnamon, I'd still use them! In the stick form (not ground) they last a lot longer. I hope this helps!
Hi Johana,
I am just seeing your question from 2 years ago so I doubt this helps now. I think you are probably referring to Fresh anise in the produce section. ?? Star anise is in the spice section in jars and the t is way cheaper that 178 per. I got a whole container of it with like a hundred in there for under $5 USD