Step 1

Preheat the clay pot (or other heavy-duty stockpots) until nice and hot. Add a little bit of cooking oil to sear the chicken and Jinhua ham (optional) until golden brown. This will take a few minutes on each side.

Step 2

When you flip the chicken to fry the other side, add the ginger, garlic, shallot, scallions; put them in between the chicken pieces so they can be fragrant. A large amount of ginger will make the soup very comfortable.

Step 3

When the chicken is golden brown, pour in 2 liters of boiling hot water. When the boiling water touches the hot clay pot, it will bubble violently which shakes the meat and accelerates the protein dissolution. This will instantly make your broth rich and flavorful.

Step 4

Even though the broth is already done but you still have to simmer this on low for about 15 minutes just so the chicken meat can be nice and tender.

Step 5

Meanwhile, you can slice the mushrooms and cut some bok choy.

Step 6

15 minutes later, remove the chicken from the broth and let it cool. Discard the aromatics and skim the chicken fat from the broth.

Step 7

Add the mushroom slices and 4-5 servings of noodles to the broth and cook for 4-10 minutes depending on the type and thickness of your noodles. You can also cook the noodles in a separate pot and then transfer them into the broth, so it doesn’t thicken your soup. I prefer my noodle soup to be a little bit thick and silky. That’s why I cook it in the broth directly.

Step 8

Meanwhile, Take the chicken meat off the bone and shred it into bite-size pieces. Season the chicken meat with soy sauce, fish sauce, oyster sauce, garlic powder, and sesame oil.

Step 9

When the noodles are almost done, add the baby bok choy and salt to taste. To make a serving, add noodles and broth along with the chicken meat to the bowl, top with some Lao Gan Ma chili flake for an extra spicy kick. Enjoy!