March 14: National Chicken Noodle Soup Day

MMMMM----- Recipe via Meal-Master (tm) v8.06

Title: Quick Chicken Pho
Categories: Poultry, Soups, Vegetables, Herbs, Pasta
Yield: 2 Servings

1 (3/4"/2 cm) section ginger
2 md (to lg) green onions
1 sm (1/2 oz/15 g) bunch cilantro
- sprigs
1 1/2 ts Coriander seeds
1 Whole clove
4 c (1 l) chicken broth
2 c (480 ml) water
8 oz (225g) boned, skin'd chicken
1/2 ts Fine sea salt *
5 oz (150 g) dried, narrow, flat
- rice noodles
2 ts (to 3) fish sauce
1/2 ts Sugar or 1 ts maple syrup
- (optional) *
Pepper (optional)

MMMMM----------------------OPTIONAL EXTRAS---------------------------
Bean sprouts
Mint sprigs
Thai basil
Cilantro leaves
Lime wedges

PREPARE THE BROTH INGREDIENTS: Peel then slice the ginger
into 4 or 5 coins. Smack with the flat side of a knife or
meat mallet; set aside. Thinly slice the green parts of
the green onion to yield 2 to 3 tablespoons; set aside for
garnish. Cut the leftover sections into pinkie-finger
lengths, bruise, then add to the ginger.

Coarse chop the leafy tops of the cilantro to yield 2
tablespoons; set aside for garnish. Set the remaining
cilantro sprigs aside.

TOAST THE BROTH INGREDIENTS: In a 3 to 4 quart pot, toast
the coriander seeds and clove over medium heat until
fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the ginger and green onion
sections. Stir for about 30 seconds, until aromatic.

ADD THE BROTH AND BRING TO A SIMMER: Slide the pot off
heat, wait 15 seconds or so to briefly cool, then pour in
the broth.

Return the pot to the burner, then add the water, cilantro
sprigs, chicken, and salt. Bring to a boil over high heat,
then lower the heat to gently simmer for 30 minutes.

While the broth simmers, soak the rice noodles in hot
water until pliable and opaque. Drain, rinse, and set
aside.

Remove the chicken from the broth once cooked: After 5 to
10 minutes of simmering, the chicken should be firm and
cooked through (press on it and it should slightly yield).

Transfer the chicken to a bowl, flush with cold water to
arrest the cooking, then drain. Let cool, then cut or
shred into bite-size pieces. Cover loosely to prevent
drying. [NOTE: If the chicken isn't quite cooked through
when you begin to shred it, just split it into a few
pieces and put it back in the broth for another few
minutes until cooked through. The split pieces will
quickly cook through.]

STRAIN THE BROTH: When the broth is done, pour it through
a fine-mesh strainer positioned over a 2-quart (2-liter)
pot; line the strainer with muslin for superclear broth.
Discard the solids. You should have about 4 cups (1 l).

Season with fish sauce and sugar (or maple syrup), if
needed, to create a strong savory-sweet note.

FINISH THE PHO: Bring the strained broth to a boil over
high heat. Put the noodles in a noodle strainer or mesh
sieve and dunk in the hot broth to heat and soften, 5 to
60 seconds. Lift the noodles from the pot and divide
between the 2 bowls. [NOTE: I didn't find it necessary to
soften my noodles any further. I just added them to the
bowls and poured the hot broth over top. However, dunking
them in the broth would make them more flavorful!]

Lower the heat to keep the broth hot while you arrange the
chicken on top of the noodles and garnish with the chopped
green onion, cilantro, and a sprinkling of pepper. Taste
and adjust the broth's saltiness one last time. Return the
broth to a boil and ladle into the bowls.

Enjoy with any extras, if you like.

[NOTE: I just left the broth at a low simmer during this
last step, rather than bringing it to a boil again. I
thought it was plenty hot!]

* I didn't have sea salt at hand - so I used popcorn salt.
I did NOT add the sugar or maple sirup. Since I had some
bean sprouts, limes, and cilantro leaves to hand, those
and the sliced chilies were my garnishes -- UDD

RECIPE FROM: http://www.simplyrecipes.com

Uncle Dirty Dave's Kitchen

MMMMM

... I sprinkled some baking powder over a potato but it didn't work.
--- MultiMail/Win v0.52
* Origin: SouthEast Star Mail HUB - SESTAR (1:3634/12)