Vietnamese pho filled with shredded turkey and then topped with thinly sliced red onions, cilantro, and bean sprouts. This turkey pho is the perfect warm meal to chase away the cold.
There’s something about turkey and soups that I can’t seem to resist.
Just two days ago I posted spicy miso ramen using turkey, and today, we’re having chicken pho, but instead of chicken, we’re using leftover turkey from Thanksgiving.
Roasted turkey already has so much flavor on its own. But when they’re added to the soup, oh my god. The soup has so much more depth. I can eat this for days. For reals.
Traditional pho broth takes hours to make. You add spices, onions, ginger, and seasoning to the broth and allow the soup to simmer for hours so that the flavors have a chance to develop. I have no patience for that. I mean, if I want pho, I want it now. I don’t want to wait several hours before I get to eat it. By then, I probably have cravings for something else. So, this version of pho can be made in about 40 minutes. So simple to make and so very delicious.
I’m pretty sure this will become one of your go to recipes to keep warm this winter. =)
First, add chicken broth and water to a large pot. Add a medium sized onion, quartered, into the pot along with star anise and ginger. Allow the soup to simmer for about 20 minutes until the onion has softened and the soup has become very aromatic.
Add brown sugar, fish sauce, and a little bit of salt. Stir to incorporate the ingredients and allow them to simmer for an additional 10 minutes.
If you taste the soup, you’ll notice that it’s slightly bland. That’s done on purpose. The turkey that you’ll add into the soup will add additional flavor to the soup. If you add to much salt or fish sauce, your soup will become too salty. It’s easier to adjust your seasoning by adding more at the end then trying to fix a dish that is already over seasoned.
Add the turkey to the soup and turn the heat down to the lowest setting.
In the meantime, boil water in a small or medium sized pot. Once the water comes to a boil, place the pho noodles into a strainer and drop the noodles into the water. The noodles will cook in about a minute. I like to estimate portion sizes so that I can cook the noodles by individual portions. Once the noodles are cooked, all I have to do is place the noodles into the bowl. Use a ladle to pour soup over the noodles.
Top the noodles with bean sprouts, cilantro, basil, sliced jalapenos, or any other topping that you might like. I love my pho with Sriracha. If you ever eat pho with me, you’ll probably be shocked by how red my soup gets.
Serve the turkey pho hot. Because soups like this are meant to be eaten hot, not warm.
Enjoy!
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 1 cup water
- 1 medium sized onion, quartered
- 1 tablespoon ginger
- 2 anise stars
- 1 teaspoon brown sugar
- ½ tablespoon fish sauce
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup shredded turkey, more to your liking
- 2-3 cups dry rice noodles
- Cilantro, Jalapeno, Basil, Chili Peppers, Bean Sprouts for garnish
- Sriracha and Hoisin sauce, if desired
- First, add chicken broth and water to a large pot over medium to high heat. Add a medium sized onion, quartered, into the pot along with star anise and ginger. Allow the soup to simmer for about 20 minutes until the onion has softened and the soup has become very aromatic.
- Add brown sugar, fish sauce, and a little bit of salt. Stir to incorporate the ingredients and allow them to simmer for an additional 10 minutes.
- Add the turkey to the soup and turn the heat down to the lowest setting.
- In the meantime, boil water in a small or medium sized pot. Once the water comes to a boil, place the pho noodles into a strainer and drop the noodles into the water. The noodles will cook in about a minute. Place the cooked noodles into a bowl. Use a ladle to pour soup over the noodles.
- Top the noodles with bean sprouts, cilantro, basil, sliced jalapenos, or any other topping that you might like.
- Serve the turkey pho hot.
youthfoodblog says
Very unique Thanksgiving recipe! Just in time for a great holiday! Thanks for sharing!
equinoxio21 says
I love Pho. (Lived in Cambodia and Vietnam for a brief while). I actually knew how to do one. So the recipe is a good reminder. Now a turkey Pho? The equivalent of a Vietnamese Thanksgiving? 😉
elmdriveimages says
Pleasing to the eye and well composed.
sandyjager says
Sounds good, but turkey isn’t even mentioned in the recipe – not in the ingredients nor in the directions. Oops!
sandyjager says
Just noticed that it is in the directions, though I swear it wasn’t when I first read it. (Blame it on ageing!) But how much turkey?
Andrea| Cooking with a Wallflower says
I’ll fix that! Thanks for catching it! About a cup of shredded turkey, but you can add more (or less) depending on your preference! Happy Thanksgiving!
Pinderella says
Ooohhh I never thought of turkey pho! Great idea for taking home leftovers on Thanksgiving! 🙂
Seriously Sammy says
Love this recipe idea! Thanks for sharing!!
Globalresidence says
Love this! Thanks!
kiwidutch says
I have a plastic box in the freezer into which I throw (Cleaned!!!) veggie clippings. Onion and potato skins, the end bits of fresh herbs, stumps of celery, leeks etc.
Throw it all with water into crock-pot / slow cooker in the evening and let it do it’s magic all night. In the morning you will have golden goodness of lovely stock just strain it and freeze for use later when you need it.
It uses up old bits and pieces of veg that would otherwise be thrown away and produces easy, cheap, delicious stock. Win win. I made a step by step post about it here;
https://kiwidutch.wordpress.com/2009/07/02/keeping-all-the-balls-in-the-air-healthy-home-cooking-shortcuts/
Your Pho recipe looks heavenly !!!
dalecooper57 says
Oh that looks good. I want some now and it’s only breakfast time.
laroseedespetiteschoses says
Thank you for this idea. So far I always made Pho the traditional way which you are right, it took the whole day to make the stock!