Asian Chicken Noodle Soup
by This Asian Chicken Soup with Noodles recipe is incredibly tasty and comes together fast! We use cooked chicken (or turkey), shiitake, carrots, baby bok choy, garlic, and ginger to create an incredibly flavorful broth in no time.
It’s a terrific fridge forage soup after Thanksgiving or whenever you have extra chicken on hand. It’s also one of my go-to Asian chicken noodle soup recipes that’s healthy and nutritious.
If you are looking for a traditional whole chicken soup made from scratch, my Instant Pot Chinese chicken soup is out-of-this-world delicious.
Ingredients
This easy Asian chicken noodle soup is a spin on the classic Chinese chicken noodle soup with a hint of Vietnamese chicken pho soup flavor. It’s incredibly easy and quick to make and naturally gluten-free. The soup yields the most flavorful and airy broth and the chicken soaks up all the delicious flavor.
- Garlic and shallot: They are the flavor foundation for a tasty broth. Saute them first to infuse the oil before adding the soup stock.
- Ginger: A little zesty pop of ginger flavor to brighten the dish.
- Carrot: Add sweetness, color, and nutrients to the soup.
- Fresh shiitake mushrooms: Add depth and umami flavor to the broth.
- Baby bok choy: Halve or quarter the bok choy bundle and rinse them well. See my post on how to cut bok choy.
- Cooked shredded chicken (or leftover turkey): This is the main ingredient of the soup and a great way to use up leftover cooked protein.
- Noodles: You can use rice noodles, brown rice ramen noodles, shirataki noodles, or kelp noodles for low carb.
- Toasted sesame oil: We use sesame oil to fry up the garlic, shallot, and ginger. It adds extra flavor to the broth.
- Coarse sea salt
- Chicken broth: You can use any homemade chicken bone broth or store-bought chicken broth.
- Fish sauce (optional): It adds depth to the soup. Taste and adjust. A little goes a long way.
- Lime wedges and lime juice: They are added at the end to brighten the soup with a light citrus flavor.
- Fresh cilantro (optional): A herby flavor to the Chinese soup broth. You can also use green onions.
- Jalapeno chili peppers: Slice and add to the soup before turning off the heat. They add a little heat to the soup.
Substitutions and variations
- Different noodles: I prefer thin Chinese noodles or mei fun noodles for the clear broth but it will also work for thicker and chewer noodles, too.
- Mushrooms: I recommend using shiitake – either rehydrated shiitake or fresh. If you really don’t have it, try cremini or baby bella.
- Vegetable selections: If bok choy is not available, napa cabbage or Chinese spinach are also great alternatives.
- Vegetarian options: Instead of fish sauce, use coconut aminos or a dash of light soy sauce. Add crispy tofu to the soup like my salt and pepper tofu.
- Condiments to serve on the side: Serve my garlic chili sauce, hoisin sauce, shacha sauce, sriracha, or Thai dipping sauce Nam Jim Jaew on the side to instantly boost the flavor!
How to make Asian chicken soup
- Craving a comforting bowl of chicken noodle soup with an Asian twist? This easy Asian chicken noodle soup recipe uses leftover cooked chicken or turkey along with fresh vegetables and noodles for a quick weeknight meal.
- Prepare the garlic, shallot, ginger, carrot, shiitake, and bok choy. Shred the cooked chicken and set aside. Cook the noodles according to package directions.
- Heat the sesame oil in a soup pot over low heat. Add the garlic and shallot with a pinch of salt and saute until fragrant, about 10 seconds.
- Add the ginger, carrot and shiitake. Season with salt. Saute for 2 minutes.
- Pour in the chicken stock. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat then lower heat to simmer gently for 4-5 minutes.
- Add the cooked chicken and bok choy. Simmer for 1 minute until bok choy is bright green.
Stir in the cooked noodles. Season with fish sauce and lime juice. Garnish bowls with cilantro and jalapeno if desired. Enjoy!
Tip: If using raw, uncooked chicken breasts or thighs, season the chicken pieces with a touch of salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Sear the chicken in a heavy-bottomed soup pot like a Dutch oven until browned on both sides. Then simmer the seared chicken in the pot along with the aromatics and broth until fully cooked through and tender. Remove the chicken and debone and shred the meat before adding the noodles to the soup.
What types of noodles to use
For Chinese-style chicken noodle soup that is served with a clear and light Asian soup broth, we usually use thin Chinese noodles made from wheat, such as wonton noodles, ramen noodles, Japanese somen noodles, or buckwheat soba noodles.
For low-carb, shirataki noodles or kelp noodles can be used. Learn more about what are kelp noodles and how to cook kelp noodles.
You can also use glass noodles such as mung bean noodles (aka glass noodles) or Korean sweet potato starch noodles. See more noodle varieties in my article Types of Chinese Noodles.
How to make ahead, store, and reheat
This easy Asian-style chicken noodle soup recipe lends itself nicely to meal prep and make-ahead options. You can prepare components in advance and quickly assemble bowls of fresh soup anytime by following these make-ahead, storage, and reheating tips:
- Make-ahead: Cook and shred the chicken up to 3-4 days in advance. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator until ready to use. For cooking ideas, try my Air Fryer Whole Chicken recipe.
- Storage: After cooking, store noodles and Chinese soup broth separately to prevent noodles from absorbing broth and turning mushy. Both components will keep up to 3 days refrigerated.
- Reheat: To serve, reheat broth on the stovetop or microwave until piping hot. Add noodles and shredded chicken just before serving
What to serve with Asian chicken soup
Serve up this tasty Asian chicken noodle soup with complementary dishes for a delicious, well-rounded meal:
- Savory main dishes: Pair this soup with Chinese chicken lettuce wraps, Mongolian shrimp, or crispy rice paper dumplings for a satisfying meal.
- Refreshing side dishes: Serve up the soup with steamed bok choy, sauteed bok choy, or Chinese broccoli with oyster sauce. These crisp, fresh veggie dishes complement the savory broth.
Umami Tips
- Choose Your Noodles – Use rice noodles, ramen noodles, soba noodles, or glass noodles for an authentic Asian noodle soup. For low-carb, try shirataki or kelp noodles. Pick noodles that complement the light broth.
- Cook Noodles Separately – Cook the noodles separately to your desired doneness, then add them to the broth at the end to avoid mushiness.
- If using raw, uncooked chicken – Use bone-in skin on or off chicken thighs for the best texture and flavor in the broth. Season them simply with just salt and pepper before searing.
- Slice Vegetables Thinly – Slice the vegetables and mushrooms thinly so they cook quickly and absorb all the delicious broth flavors.
- Season Carefully – Go easy on seasoning with soy sauce or fish sauce – you can always add more, but you can’t take it out! Taste as you go.
- Garnish with Herbs – Sliced jalapenos and cilantro are perfect spicy and fresh garnishes. Don’t skip them!
- Make Extra Chicken – Make extra shredded chicken so you have leftovers for quick weekday lunches. The Asian soup broth also freezes well.
- Store Properly – Store the Chinese soup noodles and broth separately with lids tightly sealed to maximize freshness and texture.
FAQs
Chinese chicken soup is called 雞湯 (Jītāng). It’s typically made with chicken, ginger, scallions, Chinese rice wine, and sesame oil, and simmered in chicken broth for a warming, aromatic broth flavored with traditional Asian spices, herbs, and seasonings.
Chinese noodle soup is made with noodles like ramen, rice noodles, or egg noodles simmered in a broth that can be chicken, pork, seafood, or vegetable-based along with aromatics like garlic, ginger, and scallions and seasoned with soy sauce, sesame oil and Shaoxing wine.
Asian soups are made with broths like chicken, beef, seafood, or vegetables seasoned with garlic, ginger, scallions, chili peppers, lemongrass, fish sauce, soy sauce, rice vinegar, and lime. Noodles, meat, tofu, and veggies are added and garnished with herbs like cilantro, basil, and mint. There are a wide variety of Asian soup flavors and ingredients depending on the region and culture.
More Asian soup recipes you might like
Looking for more flavorful and comforting oriental chicken soups? Try out these creative recipes that add scrumptious new flavors to the classic chicken noodle soup we all adore.
- Corn egg drop soup (also use cooked chicken with sweet corn and egg flower ribbons)
- Keto egg drop soup (One of my readers’ favorite! Instant pot, stovetop, or slow cooker friendly)
- Chicken kale soup (A savory and creamy chicken soup that uses cooked chicken with bacon crumbles!)
Asian chicken noodle soup recipe
Ingredients
- 0.5 oz garlic minced, about 4 medium cloves
- 2.2 oz shallot thinly sliced, about 1 large shallot
- 0.6 oz ginger grated
- 5 oz. carrot julienned, about 1 large carrot
- 3.5 oz fresh shiitake, sliced
- 15 oz. baby bok choy, about 3 whole bundles
- 2-3 cups shredded and cooked chicken, or leftover turkey
- 14 oz. rice noodles, ramen noodles, or shirataki noodles
- 2 tbsp toasted sesame oil
- Coarse sea salt, to taste
- 32 oz chicken stock
- 2 tbsp fish sauce, or to taste
- Half one whole lime juice, or to taste
- Garnish cilantro, chopped, optional
- 1-2 whole Jalapeno pepper, sliced, optional
Instructions
- Prepare the garlic and shallot in one bowl. Ginger, carrot, and shiitake in another bowl. Halve or quarter the bok choy, rinse and set aside to drain well. Shred the chicken and set aside.
- Prepare the noodles by following the package instructions. If the noodles need to be boiled, cook them in a separate pot. Drain well and toss the noodles with a little oil to prevent them from sticking.
- Preheat a medium to large soup pot over low heat, when it feels warm, add the toasted sesame oil. Saute garlic and shallot with 2 small pinches of salt over medium heat until fragrant, about 10 seconds.
- Add the ginger, carrots., and shiitake. Season with 2 small pinches of salt. Saute about 2 minutes.
- Add the stock. Cover with a lid. Lower the heat to medium-low and bring it to a gentle simmer, for about 4-5 minutes.
- Add the cooked chicken (or turkey) and the bok choy. Simmer for another 1 minute or until the bok choy stems turn a deeper green color yet still crunchy. Add the noodles.
- Season with fish sauce to taste, one tablespoon at a time. Off heat, drizzle with lime juice, and garnish with jalapeno and cilantro. Serve hot or warm.
Notes
- Shirataki noodles don’t need to be cooked. Follow the package instructions and rinse well.
- Zucchini noodles also don’t need to be cooked separately. Add them to the hot soup.
- For all other noodles, follow the package instructions and boil the noodles separately before adding them to the soup.
- Vegetables: Don’t skip the carrots! Feel free to add celery and swap baby bok choy for broccoli, cauliflower florets, or even Chinese broccoli if you happen to have them in the fridge.
- Mushrooms: I recommend using shiitake – either dried and rehydrated shiitake or fresh. If you really don’t have it, try cremini or baby bella.
- Seasoning: I use fish sauce so it tastes more Vietnamese-inspired. If you use coconut aminos, it’ll taste more Chinese. 🙂
- Storage: After cooking, store noodles and Chinese soup broth separately to prevent noodles from absorbing broth and turning mushy. Both components will keep up to 3 days refrigerated.
- Reheat: To serve, reheat broth on the stovetop or microwave until piping hot. Add noodles and shredded chicken just before serving
Nutrition
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Thank you for sharing this delicious recipe. I followed the recipe and just added a bit more ginger but it is so good. I got a roasted chicken at the store and removed the meat from the bones and put the bones it a pot and covered them with a couple of boxes of chicken broth. I cooked them for an hour or so, to make a richer broth. I also added some chicken bouillon to taste. Our family loves it. I served a Thai Green Mango salad with it and it was great.
Wonderful! Thank you for sharing your insight with us!
Omgosh! Used this as a base for my inspiration and I’m addicted to this soup. Sometimes I make it spicy, sometimes more hoisin, sometimes a little chili oil or all the above. So delicious! Wish I could post a picture!
Absolutely incredible recipe! I didn’t have sesame oil or fish sauce. Instead, I used a deliciously buttery olive oil, rehydrated shiitakes with the water I rehydrated them in, and coconut aminos for the deep umami flavor. I also did not have bok choy so I subbed spinach to get more veggies and greens in. I had no leftover protein so did a quick roasted chicken breast and poured the drippings in as well. It was a deliciously gingery garlicky umami packed soup that even my picky eaters both loved and asked me to make again!
THank you!
This looks so good and easy to make! I’m making this for lunch today !!
This was super satisfying and easy to make! My husband liked it and it was just the 2nd time I’ve used bok choy at home, (although I always order it in my eat-out ramen bowls) So yummy, thanks
This looks SO GOOD! So hearty & comforting yet light!
So comforting and delicious! The shritaki noodles are just perfect in this.
Wow this is so good! I have leftover chicken and this comes together quickly and super yummy!
Love this soup and the aromatics, with zucchini zoodles. So comforting. Thank you!
I always thought these soups would be so complicated but you’ve made it so easy! Thanks!
I love this warm & comforting soup. Perfect use for my leftover turkey 🙂
I love a bowl of soup – this is perfect for cold days! So many delicious flavors and easy to make!
I love all the flavors! So nourishing and comforting!
THank you!
Love love love this Asian chicken noodle soup! I used zucchini noodles because that’s what we had with roasted leftover turkey. The soup came together quickly and both young kids devoured it! Will be adding this to our meal rotation because we always have some leftover cooked chicken in the fridge! Thanks!
Used left over turkey and made stock in the instant pot, had a few mushrooms and spinach. Used red pepper flakes to add some kick, a little weird at first, never had turkey soup, after I got used to it I liked it. Will be making again!
Fabulous! Thanks for sharing!
Delicious! Great use of our Thanksgiving turkey, but really this is an outstanding recipe anytime of year! The whole family loved it!