I'm one of those people who will gladly have soups year-round. It can be 95 degrees outside but if I'm in the mood for some noodles and soup, I will have it. So, even though the temperatures are starting to climb, I'm digging into this lemongrass turmeric chicken noodle soup. With ingredients like lemongrass, lime leaves, and fried shallots, this chicken broth is aromatic and so full of flavor. Top the soup with a poached egg and fresh herbs and you have one comforting dish!
Recipe
Lemongrass turmeric chicken noodle soup
Ingredients
- ¼ cup oil
- ½ cup fried shallots
- 6 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 3-inch ginger, minced
- 2 teaspoons cumin
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- 3 chicken thighs, skinless, bone-in
- 8 cups chicken broth
- 3 lime leaves
- 1 stalk lemongrass, bruised
- 1 teaspoon black peppercorns
- 3 chili de arbol
- 2 tablespoons fish sauce
- ¼ cup coconut milk
- 4 cups napa cabbage, chopped
Remaining ingredients
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 6 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
- 1 lb egg noodles
- 4 poached eggs
- ¼ cup scallions, chopped
- ¼ cup cilantro, chopped
Instructions
- Make the chicken broth. Heat ¼ cup oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the fried shallots, garlic, ginger, cumin, and turmeric, and saute for 1 minute or until aromatic.
- Add the chicken thighs, chicken broth, lime leaves, lemongrass, black peppercorns, and chili de arbol to the pot. Cover and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and continue to simmer for 30 minutes or until the chicken is tender. Discard the lime leaves, lemongrass, and chili de arbol. Remove the chicken and shred the meat.
- Meanwhile, make the garlic chips. Heat ¼ cup in a small saute pan over medium heat. Add the sliced garlic and cook until lightly golden brown. Remove from heat and let cool completely. The garlic will continue to cook in the hot oil.
- Season the soup with fish sauce, coconut milk, salt, and pepper. Add the shredded cabbage to the soup and cook until tender, about 2 minutes.
- Cook the egg noodles and portion them into 4 bowls. Ladle the soup on top along with the shredded chicken, poached eggs, fresh scallions, and cilantro. Garnish the bowls with the fried garlic chips, drizzling a bit of the garlic oil on top. Serve with lime wedges on the side.
**Helpful tips and common mistakes
As much as I love classic chicken noodle soup, sometimes I want something different. I just so happened to have extra lemongrass and lime leaves on hand so I decided to go an Asian route with this lemongrass turmeric chicken noodle soup.
To make the broth, start by sauteing all of the aromatics including the fried shallots, garlic, ginger, cumin, and turmeric. Some of the ingredients might be foreign to you, but you should be able to find everything in an Asian market. If you can't find fried shallots, use fresh thinly sliced shallots instead.
Add the chicken thighs on the bone into the pot along with chicken broth, lime leaves, lemongrass, black peppercorns, and chili de Arbol. If you can't find lime leaves, simply omit them. You can also throw a bay leaf into the pot instead.
I like to remove the skin from the chicken to keep the broth clear and less fatty but that's a personal preference.
While the broth is simmering, prepare the remaining ingredients. Fry thinly sliced garlic until golden brown and let it cool completely.
Once the chicken is tender, remove it from the pot and shred the meat, discarding the bones. Season the lemongrass turmeric chicken noodle soup with fish sauce, a touch of coconut milk, salt, and pepper. Finish the soup by adding chopped napa cabbage or use any other greens such as bok choy, spinach, or kale. Meanwhile, cook the noodles, poach some eggs, and you're ready to assemble the bowls.
Portion the noodles into bowls and ladle the soup on top. Top the bowls with the shredded chicken, poached eggs, fried garlic chips, fresh scallions, and cilantro. Serve the lemongrass turmeric chicken noodle soup with lime wedges on the side for a bit of acidity and dig in!
This may be the fanciest lemongrass turmeric chicken noodle soup I've ever made but by golly is it delicious! It actually reminded me a bit of laksa with the hint of coconut milk in the broth. This will definitely be added to my regular menu rotation it's so delicious!
For a more traditional chicken soup, check out this Korean version, dak kalguksu!
Alice
Hi, you refer to chicken brother but nowhere do you state how much broth or liquid to use so in a little lost. I love all your other recipes and use loads. This one looks great and I don’t want to mess it up, can you help please?
Cherry on My Sundae
I'm so sorry about that! I edited the recipe to state how much chicken broth to use (8 cups). Let me know if you have any other questions!