Vietnamese Chicken Noodle Soup with Jalapeños (optional) from Saigon Noodle in Salinas, California by Ruth Paget
I view the chicken with rice noodle soup at Saigon Noodle in Salinas, California as a tonic recharge when I eat it mid-week, especially if I add in sliced, fresh jalapeño peppers that come with the dish one the side as an add-in item.
The defatted, chicken bone broth comes in a quart-size container while the cool rice noodles and pulled chicken breast come in a large delivery bowl. The rice noodles take up 2/3 of the delivery bowl while the chicken breast takes up 1/3 of the delivery bowl. Optional add-ins come in a separate bag.
The add-in items I use include:
-lemon quarters to squeeze lemon juice into the soup
-Thai basil leaves that are still attached to stems. I remove the leaves and tear them in half so their oil will come out and place them in the soup. Thai basil has a lemon-pepper flavor unlike its Italian basil cousin that has a savory not tangy flavor.
-sliced, fresh jalapeño peppers. I eat these with mouthfuls of rice noodles and chicken breast to cut down on the stinging, heat.
Other items that come in the add-in bag that other family members eat include:
-sriracha sauce
-soy sauce
-fresh bean sprouts
-sometimes Sichuan pepper corn oil with pepper corns still in the sauce (You might have to order this separate.)
I prefer eating chicken thigh meat, but I recognize that white breast meat has two important nutrients with less fat that I should eat: protein and selenium. Selenium promotes thyroid wellness. (See the following selenium guide from the National Institutes of Health for further information: https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Selenium-HealthProfessional/)
Fresh jalapeño peppers have a citrus flavor and a pleasant crunch when you get past the heat. Their nutritional value is high in Vitamin C and capasaicin. These nutrients promote immunity. (See the following website for information: https://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/health-benefits-jalapenos)
If you are not allergic to chile peppers, the Vietnamese chicken noodle soup with added jalapeños is very healthy. It is simply seasoned with salt and white pepper and delicious.
I predict that Vietnamese chicken noodle soup is going to become as popular as pizza and tacos on American dining room tables thanks to restaurants like Saigon Noodle in Salinas, California.
By Ruth Paget, author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France and developer of the Vienna Coffee Games and Darjeeling: The India Tea Game
