How to Make Vietnamese Chicken Stock
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Turn chicken meat, bones, and other simple ingredients into a delicious Vietnamese chicken stock.
This stock is great for Vietnamese and other Asian dishes. You can use it as a base for soups, stews, and sauces, or just swap it in for water to give your dish more flavor.
Store-Bought Western Stock
I am not a big fan of store-bought chicken stock for my Vietnamese and Asian dishes.
These western stocks are too strong with the aroma of carrots, celery and herbs such as bay leaves and thyme, none of which fit well with Asian and Vietnamese cuisines.
Plus, store-bought stock is cloudy. It isn’t as important as flavor, but a clear stock is highly prized in Vietnamese cooking.
Whenever I have enough chicken bones piled up in the freezer, I make my own chicken stock.
Ingredients and Substitutes
Chicken Meat and Bones: You can use either a whole chicken, chicken bones or a combination of both. However, just chicken bones are highly recommended for an amazing bone broth.
You can find chicken carcasses at Asian grocery stores. They are ideal for making chicken stock and usually sold for very cheap.
Yellow Onions: Yellow onions add a natural and subtle sweetness to the stock. If you don’t have yellow onions, use shallots instead.
Ginger: A quintessential ingredient in Vietnamese, Chinese and Southeast Asian cooking, ginger lends a warm and soft kick to the stock.
Green onions (Optional): Also known as scallions or spring onions, throw them into the pot if you have them. It’s a great way to use sad-looking green onions that have been sitting in the fridge.
Daikin (Optional): To provide more of depth to the stock, but don’t use too much as it can get overpowering.
How to Make It
Step 1: Prep Your Ingredients
Peel the most outer layer of the yellow onions. You can leave the ginger and daikon unpeeled. Slice the ginger into thick coins and smash each coin to help release its aroma. Cut the daikon into small chunks.
Step 2: Simmer and Skim
Add everything to a large stock pot and cover with water. Bring the pot to a boil then reduce the heat to low simmer.
Occasionally, skim off any foam or impurities that rise to the surface with a spoon or fine mesh strainer and discard.
Allow the stock to simmer, uncovered, for about 2 hours if it’s just bones.
If you are using whole chicken, the meat is done in about one hour. Remove the chicken meat from the bones to not overcook them and save it for another dish.
Return the bones back to the pot and continue cooking.
Step 3: Strain and Store
Remove all the solids from the stock. Let it cool before transferring it to the fridge or freezer for storage so you have it ready for your dish.
Seasonings to Turn Stock into Delicious Broth
Use the following seasonings, a little at a time to taste, to turn this chicken stock into a wonderful Vietnamese broth:
Chicken or mushroom bouillon powder (sometimes MSG is used instead or a combination of bouillon powder and MSG)
And a bit of granulated sugar for balance.
Dishes that Use Chicken Stock
Here are some dishes you can make using this chicken stock:
Noodle soups such as Vietnamese chicken rice noodle soup (chicken pho/pho ga) or chicken glass noodle soup (mien ga)
Enjoy it with pot stickers and wontons
Any of the Vietnamese vegetable soup (canh) — Instead of water, use the stock for more flavorful base.
FAQs
Why aren’t you charring the ginger and onions before adding to the stock?
You can, but I find that the roasted flavor is subdued when boiling so it’s something I don't mind skipping.
To char or roast, you can do so in a dry skillet (no oil) or with a tiny bit of neutral oil over medium heat, char the onions and ginger until they're nicely browned and fragrant, about 5 minutes.
Or place it over an open flame like in traditional Vietnamese kitchens. You can also roast them in the air fryer or oven.
How long does the chicken stock last?
Properly stored in the fridge, homemade chicken stock can last up to 4 days.
For longer storage, you can freeze the stock for up to 5 months.
Vietnamese Chicken Stock
Ingredients
Instructions
- Peel the outer layer of the yellow onions. There's no need to peel the ginger and daikon. Slice the ginger into thick coins and give each one a smash to help release its aroma. Cut the daikon into chunks.
- In a large stock pot, add the chicken, yellow onions, ginger, green onions, daikon, and water.
- Bring the pot to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to low and let it simmer gently, uncovered for one hour if using meat with bones or two hours if using just bones.
- Occasionally, skim off any foam or impurities that rise to the surface with a spoon or fine mesh strainer and discard.
- At the one-hour mark, chicken meat should be done. Avoid overcooking, as it may become dry. Remove the meat and save them for another dish. Return the bones to the stock pot and continue cooking.
- After a total of two hours, remove all the solids so you have a clear broth.
- Let the stock cool completely before refrigerating or using it immediately in your favorite Vietnamese and Asian dishes.
