Vietnamese-Style Chicken Noodle Bowl

Here is a perfect Summer dish – a Vietnamese-style Noodle Bowl with Chicken. Herbs like mint and cilantro bring a freshness while lime brings brightness, chili brings heat, carrot sweetness, and the dressing tons of flavor to support it all. And let’s not forget the chicken; cooked in oyster and hoisin sauces before grilling or searing to add even more flavor. You have to agree there is a lot of flavor in this meal. Go ahead and take the challenge by making this dish. The lengthy recipe is not difficult and the results are spectacular!

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Prep time: 20 mins

Cook time: 2 hours 10 mins

Total time: 2 hours 30 mins

Serves: 1

Ingredients

Chicken and cooking sauce

8 oz chicken breast (approximately 1 medium breast)
1 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tbsp hoisin sauce
1 tbsp peanut oil

Dressing

1 tbsp ginger, fresh and cut into thick slices
1 tbsp garlic (1 large clove) cut into thick slices
lemongrass, 2 inch slice and smashed
1 tbsp sugar
1½ tsp fish sauce
¼ cup rice vinegar

Noodles and accompaniments

3 oz rice vermicelli
1 medium carrot, grated
½ cup cilantro
¼ cup mint
1 - 2 small chilis, sliced thinly
1 scallion, sliced
2 tbsp peanuts, crushed

Instructions

Prepare the chicken

Setup your sous vide for 146.5 degrees.
In a small bowl, whisk together the hoisin sauce, oyster sauce, and peanut oil.
Add the sauce into a zip top bag and add the chicken breast.
Massage gently to coat the breast with sauce before using the displacement method to create a vacuum package.
Place the bagged chicken breast into the sous vide and cook for 2 hours.
Perform the remaining steps once the chicken nears completion.

Prepare the dressing/sauce

In a small bowl, add the sugar, rice vinegar, fish sauce, garlic, ginger and lemongrass.
Stir gently to dissolve the sugar and heat in the microwave for four 30 second@50% turns.
Remove the sauce from the microwave and allow to cool to room temperature.
Using a slotted spoon, discard the garlic, ginger, and lemongrass.
Refrigerate the remaining sauce for up to 3 days.

Cook the noodles

Using a large sauce pan, bring water to a boil.
Add the noodles and stir gently to cook, approximately 3 - 5 minutes.
Drain in a fine colander and rinse with cold water.
If the chicken is not ready, cover with cool water until ready to use.
Drain well before using.

Grill or sear the chicken

Heat the grill using High heat, cleaning an oiling the grate OR heat a small/medium skillet over Medium-High heat.
After 2 hours of sous vide cooking, remove the bag from the pot and remove the chicken from the bag.
Grill or sear the chicken just to get marks - approximately 2 minutes on each side.

Putting it all together

Remove to a cutting board and slice into ¼ to ½ inch slices diagonally.
Drain the noodles well and place in the bottom of a large bowl.
Drizzle the dressing over the noodles and toss lightly to coat.
Top with sliced chicken and grated carrots.
Garnish as desired with cilantro, mint, chili peppers, scallions, lime wedges, and peanuts.

Notes

I based this recipe on this Simply Recipes version.

Prepare the chicken

Setup your sous vide for 146.5 degrees. In a small bowl, whisk together the hoisin sauce, oyster sauce, and peanut oil. Add the sauce into a zip top bag and add the chicken breast.

Massage gently to coat the breast with sauce before using the displacement method to create a vacuum package. Place the bagged chicken breast into the sous vide and cook for 2 hours. Perform the remaining steps once the chicken nears completion.

Prepare the dressing/sauce

In a small bowl, add the sugar, rice vinegar, fish sauce, garlic, ginger and lemongrass. Stir gently to dissolve the sugar and heat in the microwave for four 30 second @ 50% turns.

Remove the sauce from the microwave and allow to cool to room temperature. Using a slotted spoon, discard the garlic, ginger, and lemongrass. Refrigerate the remaining sauce for up to 3 days.

Cook the noodles

Using a large sauce pan, bring water to a boil. Add the noodles and stir gently to cook, approximately 3 – 5 minutes. Drain in a fine colander and rinse with cold water. If the chicken is not ready, cover with cool water until ready to use. Drain well before using.

Grill or sear the chicken

Heat the grill using High heat, cleaning an oiling the grate OR heat a small/medium skillet over Medium-High heat.
After 2 hours of sous vide, remove the bag from the pot and remove the chicken from the bag.
Grill or sear the chicken just to get marks – approximately 2 minutes on each side. Remove to a cutting board and slice into 1/4 to 1/2 inch slices diagonally.