There’s no better way to end a cold winter day with a warm, comfort-food meal and this DIY Easy Pho Bar is just the thing!

With the daily demands of working full time and my kids’ activities, my to-do lists keep growing daily. Or, they never end. For me, as soon as I finish cleaning the kitchen from a meal, I‘m usually trying to get a head start on preparations for the next one.
Of course, we all try our best to power through our daily to-do lists, because what we really want to do is enjoy some downtime with the family on the sofa with big bowls of soul-warming food.

I realize that everyone’s idea of the perfect comfort food is different, but in winter, soup always does the trick for my family. Some of our favorites are my White Chicken Chili, Mexican Soup, and Slow Cooker Chicken Noodle Soup.
When I look at these recipes, one of the things they have in common is that they all start with a simple recipe.

I love starting my recipes with simple broths or homemade chicken stock or broth made easily at home or lower-sodium versions from the store.
As you know, I’m a big advocate of finding ways to simplify mealtimes, and for me, using high-quality broth is one of them. A few months ago, I went out to lunch with a friend at a local Pho restaurant, and I was immediately smitten by the complex and comforting flavors found in a single bowl.

When I came home, I told my kids about it, and they were skeptical. I told them that it was basically a soup with noodles and meat. “Like Chicken Noodle soup?” They asked.
“Almost, except it has all the flavors we love from our favorite Asian restaurant plus the things we love about chicken noodle soup,” I told them. They seemed like they were almost convinced.
To make it more fun for them to try for the first time, I decided to deconstruct the recipe and let them build their own bowl. Because what kid doesn’t like to build their own meal? I’m a grownup and I love to do this!

By the way, Pho is a Vietnamese soup made with fragrant broth, herbs, rice noodles, and beef or chicken. It’s one of those meals that both refreshes and fills you up! Not to mention it comes together in a matter of minutes -especially when you use the slow cooker to cook the chicken in the broth and then “set it and forget it.” and keep it warm.

What my kids and I love is that everyone gets to choose from a variety of fresh ingredients, then ladle over the warm, savory broth, and there you have it! A delicious bowl of comfort food!
And this my friends is one bowl of comfort food you can feel good about eating. It’s not heavy and also happens to be gluten-free. The bonus is that Asian rice noodles don’t need cooking and they get added to the bowl before pouring the broth. My kids love watching them soften and get excited with anticipation.
I’m telling you, the aroma and combination of savory, fresh flavors will have everyone asking for seconds. Don’t be surprised if your family requests this easy meal to be added to their regular rotation.
What are some of your favorite recipes that start with broth?
PrintDIY Easy Homemade Pho

This easy recipe for homemade pho is simple to make and comes together fast!
- Yield: 8 bowls 1x
Ingredients
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts or thighs
- 8 cups low sodium Chicken Broth (64 oz)
- 3 cloves garlic, grated
- 2 teaspoons freshly grated ginger
- 1 tablespoons soy sauce (or coconut aminos or Tamari)
- 1 tablespoons fish sauce
- 12 ounces dried rice noodles
- 2 green onions, sliced, whites and greens divided
- 2 cups bean sprouts
- ½ cup fresh cilantro leaves
- ½ cup fresh mint leaves
- 1 jalapeno, thinly sliced
- 2 limes, sliced into wedges
Instructions
- Cut chicken thighs into smaller pieces and trim excess fat off.
- To the slow cooker, add the chicken and 6 cups of Chicken Broth. Grate garlic cloves and fresh ginger into the bowl, add in soy sauce, fish sauce, and stir to combine. Cook on low for 8 hours.
- Prior to serving, assemble rice noodles, sliced onions, bean sprouts, cilantro, mint, jalapeño, and limes into smaller bowls.
- Prepare individual bowls with uncooked rice noodles, top with sprouts, cilantro, and other toppings desired. Ladle chicken and broth over the rice noodles and serve. Rice noodles will cook in about 1 minute.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 bowl
- Calories: 314
- Sugar: 3.5g
- Sodium: 514mg
- Fat: 3.6g
- Saturated Fat: 0.9g
- Carbohydrates: 49g
- Fiber: 1.6g
- Protein: 17.1g
- Cholesterol: 47.3mg
Stephanie R
I added this to our meal plan next week. Thanks!
★★★★★
Talia
I love pho!
I use broth a lot to make yummy sauces and gravies.
Genevive
We made this Pho last night. It was really good! Swanson Low Sodum Chicken broth is a staple in our kitchen. Use it for everything from rice to add flavor to soups.
★★★★★
Jenna
Super easy to make and the whole family loved it. We added shaved carrots too since I had those on hand. I used the low sodium version of Swanson’s chicken broth. We always have it in the pantry.
★★★★★
Julie
Hi Laura,
I would love to finally try Pho as I hear about it all the time. Thanks for the recipe.
WHAT IS FISH SAUCE???
Laura Fuentes
Hi Julie! Fish sauce is a salty “sauce” made from anchovies. A substitute would be Worcestershire sauce, even though in this case I don’t recommend it. It’s inexpensive and a little bit goes a long way in many Asian dishes.
Sammy
My family loved this recipe. thanks!
★★★★★
Stella
This recipe was delicious. Added it to our monthly recipe rotation!
★★★★★
Sarah
This soup was yummy. I’m 14 and I made dinner for my family with this recipe. Thanks!
★★★★★
Lexi
So a doubled the recipe and it called for 2 tablespoons freshly grated ginger and as it’s cooking it smelling very much like ginger… is it going to taste a lot like ginger as well?!
Laura Fuentes
Hi Lexi, aromatics like ginger aren’t always necessary to “double” since they are potent. I’ll add a note to the recipe itself for anyone trying to double it.