Jacques Bouillon

[Cris Luczak]

I enjoy the Hanoi Soup, or Pho, that my wife makes at home in the conventional way, with boiled beef and noodles and some sliced raw beef added at the last moment. It is similar to a French pot-au-feu and a meal in itself. One day I decided to make a version with chicken. The stock, flavored with burnt shallots and ginger, as well as star anise, has a distinctive taste. First I simmer the charred shallots and ginger and anise in chicken stock (or chicken bouillon cubes in water). Then I poach a whole chicken in the stock. Once it is cooked, I pull the meat into pieces and finish the soup at the last moment with bean sprouts, shredded bok choy, tree ear mushrooms, and cellophane noodles (also called mung bean vermicelli).

"The soup is served with an array of garnishes, including cilantro, red onion, chili peppers, quartered limes, scallions, and fish sauce, all of which guests can add at will to their hot soup. It is a complex dish, but most of it can be prepared ahead." --Jacques Ppin

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