Fergie's Fabulous PHO

My fellow fire wife/foodie Teresa had PHO last week and asked if I could make it and blog a recipe... so Taaahhh Raaahhh!  It was so simple and seriously delicious!  Everyone loved it (even my picky kid)!  Some of these ingredients may require a trip to the local asian market... but if you are anything like me... that will make you happy... My kids loaded up on Hi-Chews, Mochi, and Green Tea Ice Cream... I gawked at all the ingredients and bought some mystery ingredients I will be experimenting with this week.  This soup takes some time to prepare ... I suggest you do all the chopping and prepping of ingredients a day before... took me an hour to make it all. ENJOY! BTW this recipe will feed 6-8 people easy... 

Here is the long list of what you will need... 

14-16 Cups of Water 

4 Heaping Tablespoons of Knorr Powder Chicken Bouillon

1 Onion, Sliced Thin

1 Lemon Grass

1 (2 inch) Piece of Fresh Ginger, Minced or Grated 

1 Teaspoon Pepper 

2 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast 

1 -2 Pounds Shrimp, Peeled and Deveined

1 Large Package Rice Noodles

3 Tablespoons of Fish Sauce 

Toppings:

2-3 Baby Bok Choy

1-2 Cups Shredded Carrots

3 Green Onions, Finely Chopped

1/2 Cup Cilantro, Rough Chopped

1/2 Cabbage, Thinly Sliced

2-3 Cups Bean Sprouts

1 Cup Fresh Basil Leaves

1 Cup Fresh Mint Leaves

Lime Wedges

Jalapeno or Serrano Slices

2 Tablespoons of Crushed Red Pepper

Use all or just some of the toppings. 

Bring the water and the Chicken Bouillon to a Boil... 

Add the sliced Onion... 

For those of you who don't know ... this is what fresh ginger looks like... 

I buy large pieces like this and chop it into usable pieces... and you can keep them in the freezer!!!

For this recipe you need a 1 1/2 - 2 inch piece... 

Use a knife and peel the rough skin off ... 

You can either chop very fine with a knife or use a microplane... 

This is what the ginger should look like... 

The lemon grass should be crushed in some way to release the oils... 

I take a kitchen mallet and beat it a couple of times... 

Don't break it cause it is tough and you will have to dig out all the little pieces... keep it whole ... 

This is everything that will be going in the pot with the broth... 

Bring this to a gentle rolling boil... 

Add the 2 chicken breast and set a timer for 30 minutes... simmer the chicken and remove 

when the timer goes off.   Allow to cool for a bit... 

I prefer Baby Bok Choy... I think that it is much more flavorful!!

Once the chicken is cooled... slice or shred... 

These are the noodles I found at the asian market... 

Set up all of your toppings... I used a large cutting board and set it in the middle of the table... 

I have 2 types of fish sauce... Any kind is fine...

I added one portion of noodles into a medium ladle... 

I do it this way because they cook fast and it is a pain in the butt to serve the noodles out of a big pot...

I do it this way because it is good luck to eat long noodles!!! 

Submerge the ladle into the boiling liquid... cook for about 3-5 minutes... 

Add 1 serving of shrimp... 5-8 shrimp... 

Once noodles are cooked... pull out... 

Place in bowl... 

Ladle broth and add chicken... 

Add your toppings of choice...