Chinese spicy chicken noodle soup with bok choy served in a bowl

When the weather turns chilly, nothing beats a steaming bowl of noodle soup. My Chinese spicy chicken noodle soup is inspired by a classic Chinese chicken stew – 黄焖鸡饭, or chicken braised in brown sauce over rice. The chicken is usually made into a stew then served with rice. But here I used the stew base as noodle broth and made the dish into a noodle soup. The braising liquid is warming and savory. What makes it truly special is the addition of doubanjiang, which infuses the broth with a deep umami richness and a satisfying kick of spice. It’s a perfect one-bowl meal for your weeknight dinner that’s balanced with texture and color. 

Key ingredients

Ingredients for making Chinese spicy chicken noodle soup
  • Dried shiitake mushrooms: A key ingredient in the dish, they add earthy umami to the broth.
  • Chicken legs: Bone-in skin-on pieces are used to create a richer broth. You can use four bone-in skin-on thighs instead, if you prefer.
  • Doubanjiang: A key ingredient to add umami and spiciness to the dish.
  • Aromatics & spice – ginger, scallion, star anise: They add fragrance and a warm tone to the broth. 
  • Seasonings – soy sauce, Shaoxing wine: It adds an earthy umami to the broth.

Why Doubanjiang?

Doubanjiang (豆瓣酱), a key ingredient in Sichuan cuisine, is a fermented paste that is spicy, salty, and earthy. A spoonful in your soup base goes a long way to add heat and savory umami. If you’ve ever enjoyed Sichuan dishes like mapo tofu or twice-cooked pork, you’ve already tasted the magic of doubanjiang. In this noodle soup, it works the same way by transforming a simple chicken broth into something rich and restaurant-worthy.

Vegetables and alternatives

I used a combination of carrot, daikon radish and baby bok choy in my noodle soup for texture and color. Both daikon and carrots turn very tender and slightly sweet after cooking, working beautifully with the spicy broth. Instead of radish and carrot, you can also use potato instead for a filling and hearty result.

Baby bok choy adds vibrant colors and a crispy texture. Other greens such as gai lan, choy sum, and spinach work well in this dish. If using gai lan, increase cooking time until the vegetables turn tender. If using spinach, use less cooking time to avoid overcooking. 

What noodles to use

I like to use wheat noodles that are about 1/8” (3 mm) in diameter. The fresh type works the best, but for a quick weeknight meal, dried noodles work just as well. 

You can also use other types if you prefer. If you prefer the noodles to soak up a lot of flavor, use a thin type such as somen noodles. For a chewier texture, thicker noodles such as udon noodles or shaved noodles are great. 

Cooking process

  1. Brown the chicken until the skin is golden. This is an important step to render fat from the chicken skin. The fat infuses into the broth, making it richer. Once braised, the skin will have a much nicer texture without tasting greasy. To properly brown the chicken, do not move the chicken once you add it to the hot pan. Let cook for at least four minutes until the skin turns crispy. Transfer the chicken to a plate. 
Browning chicken leg pieces
  1. Your pot will have a good amount of delicious chicken fat. Further sear the aromatics and mushrooms to add more flavor to the oil, to continue developing the delicious flavor of the noodle broth. 
Saute the aromatics and shiitake mushrooms
  1. Toast the doubanjiang until the oil turns red and you can smell a strong fragrance.
Toast doubanjiang
  1. Add the rest of the braising ingredients, skim the foam, then simmer. Now you can boil the noodles in another pot. 
Simmer the chicken soup and skim the soup
  1. When the chicken and veggies have turned tender, add the baby bok choy and cook until tender.
Finish up the braising by adding baby bok choy

To assemble the noodle bowls, portion the noodles, chicken broth, chicken pieces and veggies into each bowl. In China, we usually add the bone-in chicken piece into each noodle bowl. Alternatively, you can remove the bone and slice the chicken before plating. 

Chinese spicy chicken noodle soup

Serving tips

If you want to further spice up your bowl, add your favorite chili crisp or chili oil to your bowl. On the other hand, you can use a splash of toasted sesame oil to mellow out the spiciness. 

To further add volume, you can add a poached egg as a topping by poaching eggs in the noodle boiling water. Runny eggs add a silky texture and also tone down the spiciness.  

Why You’ll Love It

This spicy chicken noodle soup has the comfort of homemade chicken noodle soup but with the bold, complex flavors of Sichuan cooking. It’s quick enough for a weeknight dinner but impressive enough to serve to friends. And if you’re a fan of spicy food, this will become one of your go-to soup recipes.

Chinese spicy chicken noodle soup close up with chopsticks

Frequently asked questions

How spicy is the soup, and can I adjust the heat?

The soup gets its heat from doubanjiang and it is quite spicy. You can adjust the spice by adding less doubanjiang – reduce from 2 tablespoons to 1 tablespoon. If reducing doubanjiang, I would also add 1 tablespoon of oyster sauce (or hoisin sauce) to compensate, so the soup still tastes rich. If you want to increase the spicy level, I would use chili oil or chili crisp at the end of the dish, you can adjust the seasoning without making the soup too salty.

Do I need doubanjiang, or can I substitute it?

Doubanjiang gives the broth its signature depth and fermented umami flavor. If you can’t find it, you can substitute it with guchujang, or miso plus chili oil, though the flavor won’t be exactly the same.

Can I use other chicken cuts?

Bone-in skin-on chicken thighs add richness to the broth, but you can also use boneless skinless thighs instead. If using boneless pieces, you can also increase the amount to 6 chicken thighs to make sure the soup will still taste rich. Reduce the cooking time from 20 minutes to 15 minutes to keep the chicken tender and juicy.

Other weeknight noodle dishes

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This Chinese spicy chicken noodle soup features juicy braised chicken, tender vegetables and chewy noodles in a spicy and savory broth. It has the comfort of homemade chicken noodle soup but with the bold, complex flavors of Sichuan cooking.

Chinese Spicy Chicken Noodle Soup

By Maggie Zhu
5 from 1 vote
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 40 minutes
Servings: 4 servings
Print
This Chinese spicy chicken noodle soup features juicy braised chicken, tender vegetables and chewy noodles in a spicy and savory broth. It has the comfort of homemade chicken noodle soup but with the bold, complex flavors of Sichuan cooking.

Ingredients 

  • 4 dried shiitake mushrooms
  • 2 bone-in skin-on chicken legs (or 4 bone-in skin-on thighs)
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon peanut oil (or vegetable oil)
  • 1 thumb ginger , sliced
  • 2 scallions , sliced, white and green parts separated
  • 1 star anise pod
  • 2 tablespoons doubanjiang
  • 4 cups chicken broth
  • 2 tablespoons Shaoxing wine
  • 2 tablespoons soy sauce
  • 2 teaspoons sugar
  • 2 carrots , roll cut into 1/2” pieces (*Footnote 1)
  • 4 ” daikon radish , roll cut into 1/2” pieces
  • 12 oz dried wheat noodles (*Footnote 2)
  • 4 baby bok choy heads , halved lengthwise (*Footnote 3)

Instructions

  • Add shiitake mushroom into a medium-sized bowl and add warm water to cover. Rehydrate until turning tender throughout, 15 to 20 minutes. Once done, squeeze water out of the mushrooms, remove the tough stems and discard them. Slice the mushroom caps into thin pieces.
  • Separate the chicken legs at the joint, pat dry, and sprinkle evenly with salt.
  • Heat oil in a medium-sized pan over medium-high heat until shimmering. Carefully add the chicken pieces without overlapping, skin side down. Cook without touching until the bottom side is browned, 4 to 5 minutes. Flip to cook the other side for another 2 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a plate.
  • There should still be enough oil in the pot. If not, add 1 tablespoon of oil. Turn to medium-low heat. Add the rehydrated shiitake mushrooms, ginger, scallion whites, and star anise. Cook and stir for 1 to 2 minutes until the aromatics turn light golden. Add the doubanjiang. Keep stirring until the doubanjiang evenly coats the aromatics.
  • Pour in the chicken broth to deglaze the pan. Add the cooked chicken, Shaoxing wine, soy sauce, and sugar. Cook over medium-high heat until brought to a boil. Add the carrots and daikon. Skim the foam from the top of the broth. Simmer, covered, for 20 minutes, until the chicken has turned tender.
  • While cooking the chicken, boil the noodles in another large pot according to the package instructions. Drain noodles thoroughly and set aside.
  • When the chicken is finished cooking, add the baby bok choy and cover again. Let simmer for 1 to 2 minutes, until the bok choy has turned tender. Turn off the heat.
  • To assemble the noodles, divide chicken braising liquid among the individual bowls. Portion the noodles into each bowl, top with chicken and baby bok choy. Garnish with scallion greens and serve immediately.

Ingredient Substitution Guide

Notes

  1. Hold your knife at about a 45 degree angle relative to the carrot. Cut 1” from the end. Roll the carrot towards you until the cut side is facing up then cut again 1” from the end at the same angle. Repeat the rolling and cutting. All the carrot pieces should be roughly triangular in shape. This is a common knife technique in Chinese cooking, to create more edges on tougher vegetables so they soak up flavor while braising.
  2. I like to use wheat noodles that are about 1/8” (3 mm) in diameter. You can also use other types if you prefer. If you prefer the noodles to soak up a lot of flavor, use a thin type such as somen noodles. For a chewier texture, thicker noodles such as udon noodles or shaved noodles are great.
  3. Other greens such as gai lan, choy sum, and spinach work well in this dish. If using gai lan, increase cooking time until the vegetables turn tender. If using spinach, use less cooking time to avoid overcooking.

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving, Calories: 513kcal, Carbohydrates: 74.9g, Protein: 31.4g, Fat: 10.4g, Saturated Fat: 2.1g, Cholesterol: 65mg, Sodium: 1503mg, Potassium: 462mg, Fiber: 3.8g, Sugar: 7.3g, Calcium: 42mg, Iron: 1mg

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