Phở gà — Vietnam's soul-warming chicken noodle soup. Chicken thigh poached in a fragrant ginger-cinnamon bone broth, served over silky rice noodles with sweet potato and carrot. No fish sauce, no star anise, no onion — pure Vietnamese comfort, made safe for your dog.
Makes 4 servings. Use the calorie calculator to find the right portion for your dog's weight.
Pour the unsalted bone broth into a large, deep pot over medium heat. Add the sliced fresh ginger and ground cinnamon. Bring to a gentle simmer and allow the aromatics to infuse for 10 minutes with the lid on. Your kitchen will fill with the warm, slightly sweet fragrance that makes pho so intoxicating — this is the soul of the dish, and dogs are just as captivated by it as people are.
Gently lower the whole chicken thighs into the simmering aromatic broth. Reduce the heat to low-medium — the broth should have gentle bubbles, not a rolling boil. Poach for 18–20 minutes until cooked through with absolutely no pink at the thickest point. Remove the chicken and let it rest on a board for 5 minutes, then shred into bite-size pieces with two forks. Poaching keeps every drop of moisture and flavour in the broth.
While the chicken poaches, add the diced sweet potato and carrot coins directly to the broth alongside the chicken. They will cook simultaneously in 12–15 minutes. Both should be completely soft and yielding when pressed with a spoon — not firm in the centre. The sweet potato releases natural sugars into the broth, giving pho's characteristic subtle sweetness without any added sugar.
Turn off the heat completely. Add the broken rice noodles to the hot broth and stir gently to separate them. Place the lid on the pot and leave for 3–4 minutes, stirring once halfway through, until the noodles are just tender but still have the faintest bite. Rice noodles cook very quickly from residual heat — do not boil them directly or they will dissolve into mush. This off-heat technique is the authentic Vietnamese method.
Return the shredded chicken to the pot. Stir in the blanched bean sprouts (they just need warming through — 30 seconds is plenty). Add the fresh coriander and coconut oil. Using tongs or a fork, fish out and discard the ginger slices at this stage — they have given their flavour to the broth and are too fibrous and pungent to serve to dogs in large pieces.
Use tongs to place a generous tangle of noodles in your dog's bowl, then ladle the chicken, vegetables and aromatic broth over the top. Allow to cool to lukewarm — hold your wrist above the bowl; it should feel neutral, not warm. Once cool, stir in the eggshell calcium powder and salmon oil for that serving. These are cold-finish only — adding them during cooking defeats their purpose entirely.
Classic Vietnamese pho uses several ingredients that are removed entirely from this recipe:
For the richest possible version of this recipe, make your own unsalted chicken bone broth: simmer a whole chicken carcass with carrot, celery and ginger in water for 3–4 hours. The resulting liquid will be gelatin-rich and packed with natural collagen, glucosamine and minerals — far superior to store-bought stock. Cool in the fridge overnight and skim the fat layer before using. This is the version that really builds joints.
Based on a 4-serving batch. Per adult medium dog serving (approx. 300g bowl).
Estimates only. Actual values vary by ingredient brand and preparation. Always use a calorie calculator to verify portion size for your dog's weight and activity level.
| Dog Size | Weight | Portion |
|---|---|---|
| 🐾 Toy | 3–5 kg | 80–100g |
| 🐾 Small | 5–10 kg | 100–160g |
| 🐾 Medium | 10–25 kg | 200–320g |
| 🐾 Large | 25–40 kg | 350–500g |
| 🐾 Giant | 40–60 kg | 550–750g |
This dish is high in broth/liquid. Adjust solid-to-broth ratio to your dog's preference. Always use the calorie calculator for exact daily portion based on your dog's ideal body weight.
This recipe provides excellent macro nutrition — high protein, moderate fat, quality carbohydrates — but like all whole-food recipes, it is not complete-and-balanced to NRC/AAFCO standards as a sole diet. Here's what to do:
Meat and poultry are high in phosphorus but low in calcium. Add ¼ tsp eggshell calcium powder per serving, cold — this corrects the Ca:P ratio to the NRC-recommended 1.2:1. Do not skip this step if feeding more than 2–3 times per week.
This recipe has plenty of omega-6 from chicken fat. Add ½–1 tsp salmon or sardine oil per serving, cold after cooking, to supply DHA & EPA. These are critical for coat health, brain function and anti-inflammation.
Rotate proteins (chicken, beef, salmon, lamb) and vegetables across the week to prevent nutritional gaps. No single home-cooked recipe is complete alone — variety is the key to long-term nutritional balance.
If this will be more than 30–40% of your dog's daily diet, ask your vet to run an annual blood panel (vitamin D, B12, iron, calcium) to catch any subtle deficiencies before they become health issues.
Breeds originating from Vietnam and the broader Southeast Asian region — including the Phu Quoc Ridgeback (Vietnam's only native breed), the Thai Ridgeback and the Shiba Inu — are often described as having sensitive digestive systems that respond particularly well to lighter, broth-based meals. The high water content of this pho-style recipe is also excellent for dogs that don't drink enough water independently. Broth is one of the most effective and delicious ways to increase daily fluid intake.