Chicken Sotanghon Soup

Excellent for colder days, Chicken Sotanghon Soup is a popular Filipino dish that you can easily make at home.  Bits of chicken with bean thread noodles — it’s an Asian twist to your usual chicken soup!

We don’t have winter in the Philippines, but what we have is rainy season — and I’m talking, nonstop rain for days, and it’s not just drizzling either.

Growing up, when classes were canceled and we were stuck at home, I always looked forward to chicken sotanghon soup. 🙂

A delicious, warm bowl of soup that’s a bit salty, a bit sweet, and a bit bitter (with crunch) — depending on how you serve it.

So, how do you serve sotanghon soup with chicken?

You can add two kinds of garnish (or combine them like I usually do):

• Chopped green onions
• Crispy, fried garlic

Try both, and let me know which one you like best!

IF YOU WANT MORE CLASSIC FILIPINO RECIPES, YOU WILL LIKE THESE POSTS!

Ingredients

• Chicken – I typically use chicken breast for preparing sotanghon soup — just the meat, though, get rid of the skin and bones.

• Achiote (achuete) – same as annatto seeds.

• Oil – canola, sunflower, or any other kind of vegetable oil would be great.

• Garlic – minced or thinly chopped.

• Carrot – peeled, rinsed, and julienned.

• Onion, celery & cabbage – thinly chopped.

• Sotanghon noodles – commonly known as bean thread noodles.

• Fish sauce, bay leaf, ground black pepper & bouillon – for seasoning the chicken and sotanghon soup.

Preparation

Start making sotanghon soup by cooking the chicken.

Combine the chicken breast, four to six cups of water, and bay leaf in a medium saucepan.

Cover with a lid, boil, then simmer for about twenty-five minutes or until the meat is cooked.

Remove the chicken from the pan and set the chicken stock for later.

Once the chicken is cool enough to handle, separate the meat from the bones and tear them into smaller bits.

Combine the achiote seeds with three-quarters cup of warm water, then set aside.

Place a medium to a large pan over medium-high heat, then pour oil.

Once the oil is ready, add garlic and onion.

Cook until the onion is soft.

Add celery and bouillon cube, and sauté for a couple of minutes.

Add carrots and cooked chicken.

Mix to combine everything.

Pour about five cups of the stock from cooking the chicken earlier.

Strain the achiote seeds and add the reddish liquid as well.

Cover, boil, then simmer for ten minutes — taste and adjust the seasoning by adding fish sauce and pepper.

Add the chopped cabbage and sotanghon noodles.

Stir gently to submerge the cabbage and sotanghon in the soup fully.

Cover for a couple of minutes or until the noodles are cooked.

Transfer your chicken sotanghon soup into bowls and serve!

Helpful tips

• You can use the same pan for cooking the chicken and the soup.   Just remove the liquid once the chicken is done and pour the oil to start with the soup.

• Use your fingers to rub the achiote seeds together and get as much color from them into the water.

• Feel free to add more liquid to the soup if you want; remember to taste it and adjust the seasoning accordingly.

• Do not hesitate to add another bouillon cube if you think it’s needed to balance the taste of your chicken sotanghon soup.

Recipe variation

• Chicken legs.  If you prefer to use chicken legs instead, that’s completely fine since the locals commonly do so.

• Peppercorns.  To add more depth to the stock, you can add peppercorns when cooking the chicken.

• Salt.  You can add salt to the stock or use it instead of fish sauce for seasoning the soup.

Looks absolutely tempting, right?  So, give this chicken sotanghon soup recipe a try this week!

OR GET IDEAS FROM THIS LIST OF SOUP RECIPES FROM AROUND THE WORLD!

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📖 Recipe