Soy Sauce Chicken Noodle Soup
By Maggie ZhuPublished on October 1, 2025
Time
55 minutes
Yield
Serves 4 to 6
Ingredients
Before You Begin
We prefer the chewy texture of fresh noodles that are about ⅛ inch thick, but if they are unavailable, substitute 8 ounces of dried Chinese wheat noodles or spaghetti and increase the cooking time to 6 to 10 minutes. Dark soy sauce is made from soybeans that have been fermented longer than those used to make regular soy sauce, and it sometimes also contains sugar. It’s darker, more viscous, and less salty than soy sauce, and it’s worth seeking out to add to your pantry. If you can’t find it, use ¼ cup regular soy sauce plus 1 additional tablespoon brown sugar in its place.
Instructions
- Combine 1 cup water; 1 cup soy sauce; ⅓ cup dark soy sauce; 2 tablespoons Shaoxing wine; 2 tablespoons packed brown sugar; 1 star anise pod; 1 cinnamon stick; and 1 piece ginger, peeled and halved crosswise, in 10-inch skillet, stirring to dissolve sugar. Place 6 trimmed bone-in chicken thighs skin side up in poaching liquid.
- Bring to simmer over medium-high heat. Cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer for 10 minutes. Flip chicken skin side down, reduce heat to low, and continue to simmer, covered, until thighs register 175 degrees, 10 to 15 minutes longer. Transfer chicken to cutting board. Measure out and reserve 1 cup chicken poaching liquid; set aside.
- Meanwhile, bring 2 quarts water to boil in large saucepan. Add 1 pound fresh Chinese wheat noodles to boiling water; reduce heat to maintain very gentle simmer; and cook, stirring occasionally, until almost tender (center of noodles should be slightly firm), 3 to 5 minutes. Drain noodles well in colander and rinse with running water.
- Bring 6 cups chicken broth to boil in now-empty saucepan over medium-high heat. Add 4 heads baby bok choy, quartered, and cook until tender, about 2 minutes. Transfer bok choy to plate, then whisk ⅔ cup reserved poaching liquid into broth in saucepan. Carve chicken from bone and slice ½ inch thick; discard bones.
- Divide noodles among 4 individual serving bowls. Pour broth over top, then add chicken and bok choy. Cut 2 trimmed scallions crosswise into 1-inch pieces. Then slice thin lengthwise. Sprinkle soup with sliced scallions and drizzle with sesame oil. Serve, seasoning with remaining reserved poaching liquid to taste.
Time
55 minutesYield
Serves 4 to 6Ingredients
Ingredients
Ingredients
Why This Recipe Works
This recipe is a twist on a classic Cantonese favorite, soy sauce chicken, which requires slow poaching a whole chicken that’s fully immersed in a soy sauce–based broth. Here, we poached chicken thighs to speed up the process and combined them with fresh Chinese wheat noodles and baby bok choy to create a hearty one-bowl dish. To poach the thighs, we used only enough liquid to partially cover them in a skillet. Dark soy sauce, used in combination with regular soy sauce, helped tint the chicken skin an appealing golden brown. We started the thighs skin side up and then flipped them skin side down partway through cooking so that more of the flavorful fat under the skin could render into the poaching liquid. We then used this liquid, aromatic with Shaoxing wine, star anise, cinnamon, and ginger, to create a rich-tasting broth for the soup.
Before You Begin
We prefer the chewy texture of fresh noodles that are about ⅛ inch thick, but if they are unavailable, substitute 8 ounces of dried Chinese wheat noodles or spaghetti and increase the cooking time to 6 to 10 minutes. Dark soy sauce is made from soybeans that have been fermented longer than those used to make regular soy sauce, and it sometimes also contains sugar. It’s darker, more viscous, and less salty than soy sauce, and it’s worth seeking out to add to your pantry. If you can’t find it, use ¼ cup regular soy sauce plus 1 additional tablespoon brown sugar in its place.
Instructions
- Combine 1 cup water; 1 cup soy sauce; ⅓ cup dark soy sauce; 2 tablespoons Shaoxing wine; 2 tablespoons packed brown sugar; 1 star anise pod; 1 cinnamon stick; and 1 piece ginger, peeled and halved crosswise, in 10-inch skillet, stirring to dissolve sugar. Place 6 trimmed bone-in chicken thighs skin side up in poaching liquid.
- Bring to simmer over medium-high heat. Cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer for 10 minutes. Flip chicken skin side down, reduce heat to low, and continue to simmer, covered, until thighs register 175 degrees, 10 to 15 minutes longer. Transfer chicken to cutting board. Measure out and reserve 1 cup chicken poaching liquid; set aside.
- Meanwhile, bring 2 quarts water to boil in large saucepan. Add 1 pound fresh Chinese wheat noodles to boiling water; reduce heat to maintain very gentle simmer; and cook, stirring occasionally, until almost tender (center of noodles should be slightly firm), 3 to 5 minutes. Drain noodles well in colander and rinse with running water.
- Bring 6 cups chicken broth to boil in now-empty saucepan over medium-high heat. Add 4 heads baby bok choy, quartered, and cook until tender, about 2 minutes. Transfer bok choy to plate, then whisk ⅔ cup reserved poaching liquid into broth in saucepan. Carve chicken from bone and slice ½ inch thick; discard bones.
- Divide noodles among 4 individual serving bowls. Pour broth over top, then add chicken and bok choy. Cut 2 trimmed scallions crosswise into 1-inch pieces. Then slice thin lengthwise. Sprinkle soup with sliced scallions and drizzle with sesame oil. Serve, seasoning with remaining reserved poaching liquid to taste.
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