Slow cookers are so awesome, you can make a meal with little effort that comes out fantastic…and this Simple Slow Cooker Pho is no exception.
I don’t know about you, but I love using my slow cooker. When things get crazy around here, like during these very busy holiday times, getting a meal together can be a challenge. If you have a slow cooker (and if you don’t … GET ONE!!) meals are made while you are busy doing other things….like today when I was “tree trimming” and decorating the house for Christmas.
I love Asian takeout. Chinese, Japanese, Vietnamese, Thai…all so full of flavour. Since I love cooking at home, making some of these wonderful dishes is a fun way to travel the world without leaving the kitchen.
Awhile ago I came across this great recipe Crockpot Chicken Pho on the wonderful blog Served from Scratch. I filed it away and today I decided to adapt it and create my version of Simple Slow Cooker Pho.
This really is a simple soup to make. It was perfect for my busy day. Dinner cooked while I decorated, then we enjoyed a wonderful meal and looked at the house with all the Christmas decorations up. The perfect way to start the busy holiday season.
I love chicken and shrimp so I decided to use both in this soup. For the noodles I chose the kind you would find in Pad Thai. I cooked them ahead of time and placed them in the fridge. Most people will eat bean sprouts raw, but if I cannot find really fresh ones, I will slightly blanch mine and keep them in the fridge until ready to use. They still remain crisp.
Garnishes include roughly chopped Thai basil, limes, jalapeños and Sriracha sauce.
The soup cooks all day. Near the end you take out the chicken and shred it. While you are doing this place the shrimp and bok choy in the pot to cook. Add the shredded chicken back in….heat for a few minutes and it’s done.
Have your noodles ready in bowls, ladle the soup, garnish … and ENJOY!!
Vietnamese pho is such a tasty dish and this Simple Slow Cooker Pho makes it so easy to enjoy this flavourful meal at home. Packed with chicken, shrimp and spiced up with jalapeños and Sriracha, forget takeout … cook this dish yourself and save your money!!
For another great way to use your slow cooker try Extreme Pepper Chunky Chili
Simple Slow Cooker Pho
Ingredients
- 3 chicken breasts (skinless/boneless)
- 8 cups chicken stock
- 2 tbsp brown sugar
- 2 tbsp fish sauce
- 1 tbsp tamari sauce
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 10 star anise
- 1 2-3 inch piece of fresh ginger (peeled and sliced)
- 6 cloves whole
- 3/4 pound frozen cooked shrimp (thawed/tail on)
- 8 baby bok choy (chopped)
- leaves Thai basil (roughly chopped)
- 1-2 jalapenos (sliced)
- 1 lime (quartered)
- Sriracha sauce (as needed)
- Pad Thai noodles (pre cooked)
- Fresh bean sprouts (raw or blanched)
Instructions
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Place chicken breasts in slow cooker
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Combine stock, fish sauce, cinnamon, star anise, ginger, cloves, tamari, and brown sugar
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Pour over chicken breasts
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Cook on low for 9 hours
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Roughly chop bok choy
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Rinse and dry shrimp
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Remove chicken breasts from slow cooker along with spices
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Add bok choy and shrimp to pot
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Replace lid, turn slow cooker to high and cook for 30 minutes
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In the meantime, shred cooked chicken breasts
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Return shredded chicken to pot and heat for a few minutes
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Place noodles in bowls, ladle broth, garnish with jalapenos, basil, Sriracha and bean sprouts
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Enjoy
I have not had Pho for a long time because I didn’t know how ! Now I do. Can’t wait to try your recipe. Looks so delish
OMG this is SOOOOO easy….you have to give it a try.
Ooo I wish I’d seen this during the winter.. Actually it’s cold now here so maybe I’ll make it tomorrow. I love pho but hate getting takeout constantly- this sounds fantastic!
Hope you do give it a try…it’s wonderful.
Nice recipe and healthy too.
Thanks so much.
Beautifully explained. Though I am allergic to prawns, I make sure to prepare them for my family and will definitely try out this one.
You can certainly leave them out and it will still be delicious.
It sounds so good and healthy! I can’t wait to try your recipe! Yummy!
Hope you enjoy it as much as we do.
The slow cooker is an instant favorite from the very first time you use it, isn’t it? I love mine too and that sounds great.
They are awesome for sure.
Oh wow, this looks really good. Never thought to use a crockpot to make Pho. Going to share this with my sister as she LOVES Pho
It turns out so well.
I really love pho! We go to a great place in town! I have never made it at home!
YES for sure…it is really easy and tasty.
I am totally sharing this with my wife who does the cooking. I know she would love to try this, especially since we recently purchased a crock pot.
Perfect to give it a try in the new pot!!
This recipe looks and sounds so delicious. I love anything cooked in a slow cooker.
It is easy and delicious.
I must say that I have never made Asian in the crock pot. This looks like a great recipe to start with.
Oh it is so good and so easy.
I love Pho and would be happy to have it every day! I definitely have to try this!
Hope you do…ENJOY!!
We also love our slow cooker. It is such a time saver. I wonder how the soup would taste without the shrimp? I’m not a shrimp eater. Thanks for sharing!
Lory
It would still be delicious for sure. Hope you give it a try.
I love soup and I love the crockpot, so this recipe will definitely be made. It looks delicious.
Crockpots are awesome…and this soup is perfect for it.
My husband loves Pho! I should try to make this for him
If he likes pho he will love this!!
I’ve never had this before, but it looks so good and so many great flavors! It may be time to bring out my slow cooker.
I love my slow cooker also. This soup would really warm you up on a cold day. I love the combination flavors in this soup and the heat that the jalapeños bring.
It’s a keeper in our house that is for sure.
I also love my crockpot but I have really only used it for a few things – chili, black bean soup, and minestrone soup! This would really be something different to try!
Crockpots are so awesome and you can make so many things in them….LOVE THEM!!
We haven’t been able to get Asian take-out in a long time because of our kids food allergies and concerns about contamination. I’ve missed it and your post has inspired me to give it a shot at making up some ourselves in the slow cooker where I know it will be safe to share with the kids. I hadn’t thought about using the slow cooker for that type of thing to be honest – use it mostly for chili. Your photos look so good we’ll be giving simple slow cooker Pho a shot with the recipe you provided.
Well thanks so much for the kind words. Hope you give it a try and enjoy it as much as we do.
This looks delicious, and I love anything I can make in my slow cooker! Definitely pinning this one to make later! Thank you for sharing!
You are welcome…hope you give it a try and enjoy!!
This looks delicious. I love using my crockpot to cook.
Crockpots are awesome that’s for sure.
My Slow Cooker and I are on a first name basis. I’m always trying to learn how I can cook anything and everything in the slow cooker! Your recipe sounds really nice with so many flavor combinations, especially shrimp which I love1
Hope you give it a try…you will love it!!
I love slow cooker recipes and this is a great way of getting all the flavours into the chicken as it cooks.
Slow cookers are so awesome….one of the best inventions ever.
What a beautiful meal. And bonus points for being made in the slow cooker. 🙂
Thanks…slow cookers are awesome for sure.
I need to bring out my slow cooker! This looks so good!
Love slow cookers.
I love Pho, but I’ve never made it. Thanks for sharing such an easy way to deliver! Yum!
It is great…I have to make it again soon.
I hadn’t thought of the slow cooer for pho, but of course it makes perfect sense!
Oh yes it certainly does.
This is making me hungry!
I don’t blame you…it is really good.
I agree – slow cookers are awesome! Love this recipe! Such a great combination of ingredients! Looks delicious! 🙂
It is awesome and easy.
Love finding new recipes to try, going to have to attempt this one soon.
It is so easy….enjoy!!
Oh my gosh – this looks delicious I will e giving this a try. Adding the ingredients to my shopping list.
Wonderful…thanks so much. Enjoy!!
We make pho quite a bit and feature a recipe on our own site. We love it, it is a soup that is a hole meal. I’ve not tried it before in the slow cooker, so will try your delicious-looking recipe out.
Thanks…we love it too. Hope you enjoy it!!
It looks so delicious! I can’t wait to try it, slow cooker is my best friend in the winter!
Yes they are awesome….love using them too.
I like that you sprinkled it with jalepenos. Thisis a great looking recipe.
Thanks…hope you try it.
Wow, this looks delicious. The guys will definitely like the jalapenos and sriracha. I should try making this for them!
I bet they would love it too!!
It’s been a long time since I had a bowl of Pho! I totally wouldn’t have thought of using the slow cooker to make it! Great recipe!
I agree I wouldn’t have thought of it either…makes things so much easier.
I had Pho for the first time a few weeks ago. It was so good! I will be trying this recipe soon! Thank you!!
I love pho….and this is so easy to do!
Wow that recipe looks great right now! It is cold outside, i bet this would warm me up – yum!
Oh yes it certainly would.
I never thought about making pho at home because the broth takes so long to simmer. It never occurred to me to use the crock pot! Genius!
Thanks…slow cookers are awesome!!
Slow cooker recipes are the best! I’ve never had pho before, but this looks delicious. i think I’m going to have to give it a try! I love that it has jalapenos and sriracha. It must have some kick to it!
It does..and the best part is you can control the intensity of the heat yourself.
Beautiful…I love that this can be made in a slow cooker.
Me too….so much better than takeout!
Pho is like one of my favorite dishes! It is a great GF choice for me!
Awesome….enjoy!!
I pinned this one! I love using my slow cooker and I wanted to learn how to make Pho. Perfect!
Well it is easy and tasty…hope you enjoy it!!
I love Asian food but I have never heard of pho! It looks outstanding! I can’t wait to try this.
WOW you have never heard of Pho? Give it a try…you’ll love it!!
I have never heard of pho before, but it sounds really tasty! I would love to try it.
Well if you like Asian…you will love it!!
I have never tried or made pho before but after reading the recipe I realized there are a ton of ingredients in this dish that I love! Can not wait to make a batch for myself.
It is so easy….and oh so tasty!
Definitely going to try this one. My husband can never pass up a bowl of Pho. He will go nuts if I make it at home!
Hope he loves it….we do!!
This looks amazing! I love my slow cooker, I use it at least once a week.
I love using mine too.
This looks so fresh and tasty. I have never made pho, but this recipe looks so easy!
It is easy….and tasty!!
Oh I love adding jalapeno here for some heat! This looks like something I could make for my boyfriend and he would LOVE it.
Amazing! Thank you so much!
Krista
Yum, this looks delicious! I’ll definitely be adding this to my to-do list for dinner. Thanks for sharing!
Hope you enjoy it!!
My mouth is watering just looking at these pics! I also love that this is a slow cooker recipe. Thanks for sharing!
I was literally just looking up simple Pho recipes yesterday. I like this one a lot. I have to be careful with Asian food since so many Soy and Fish sauces have gluten in them. I need to make them myself.
My moto: It always tastes better when you make it at home!! ENJOY!!
Yum, this looks so good! And anything I can do in the slow cooker is always great for convenience sake!
YES….slow cookers are awesome!!
Yum!! I finally got a crock pot for Christmas, and this is going on the list of recipes to try!!
You will LOVE your crockpot…they are the best!!
Pho is one of my favorite dishes, I totally need to try this!
We love it!!
yum! I love pho, but never thought it could be done in a crock pot! this is awesome! I know what I’m making this week!
Thanks….and ENJOY!!
Pho is my absolute favorite and I never thought about cooking it in a slow cooker! Awesome idea! Thanks for sharing!
xo
Lee Anne
YES it can….ENJOY!!
I love using my slow cooker and finding new recipes for it. I will definitely be trying this out. Thank you so much.
Hope you enjoy it as much as we do!!
Oh My this looks amazing!! Found you on facebook!! Pinned!
Thanks so much….please make it an ENJOY!!
this is so yum!! I love Pho and slow cookers really add to the flavor thousand times!
I love slow cookers too….enjoy!!
I am seriously drooling! I love Pho and homemade tastes even better!! Definitely have to give your version a try – it’s perfect for winter! 🙂
And so EASY….Enjoy!!
I LOVE the look of this recipe. Clean, wholesome and fresh….perfect!
Thanks so much. It really was easy and tasty.
I love Pho – it always mkes me feel so healthy! Making it in the slow cooker is a great idea.
Great tip about the bean shoots too!
I know….got to love slow cookers.
Mmmm, PHO! I adore pho and I can’t wait to try this slow cooker version. There’s nothing like a warm bowl of this yummy goodness this time of year!
So true…and I love the fact dinner cooks while I am busy doing other things!!
Never made pho at home, but I love ordering it outside. This recipe looks simple enough to try!
This was my first time too…it was easy and yummy!!
I am a pho-aholic. I can’t go a week in winter without at least having it once and I have been meaning for ages to see if I could find an easy slow cooker recipe for it (I love my slow cooker too!). This is perfect! I will have to try it so I don’t have to walk 4 blocks in the rain when I want it for dinner!
Well hello Melissa….so happy you stopped by. This was actually the first time I made it…and we loved it. I decorated and trimmed the tree…and dinner cooked. Totally awesome. Hope you enjoy it as much as we did. Happy Holidays!!
Pho is one of my favourite things! I bet it is equally as flavourful when made in the slow cooker, great idea.
Love slow cookers….everything always turns out…and it doesn’t even feel like you were cooking at all!!
Do you know I’ve never had Pho! How can that be? Love that you used shrimp and chicken! I think i can do this!
I have never made it before either…but will be making it more now!!
Oh my gosh, it’s been way to long since I’ve had pho. Definitely bookmarking this one to come back to later.
This was my first time…and we LOVED it!! An awesome way to cook dinner while I was busy decorating for Christmas!!
I love Pho, but nerver had it with shrimps. Can’t wait to try and see!
I love the chicken and shrimp combo in this soup….hope you enjoy it too!!
Can I use frozen chicken?
I would thaw the chicken first.
So I’ve been wanting to try Pho for a long time – and this looks like an easy way to do it. I’m dusting off my crock pot… Thanks!
Yeah I love slow cookers….and it is really a simple and tasty dish. My first time making Pho!!
First time? You did such an amazing job with it!
Thanks it was so easy!!
Gloria – I just recently got a slow cooker and I love it. Your recipe is definitely on my list to make in the future! Thanks for sharing.
Thanks Julia….aren’t slow cookers amazing….totally love using it!!
Thanks so much for including me in your roundup!!