This is a classic Filipino noodle soup added with a splash of milk to make the dish rich, creamy, and filling.
*Note: This is a rough recipe based off of my eyeballed cooking of sopas (be sure to adjust the measurements and seasonings according to taste). Will finalize the blog and measurements soon!
Instructions
In a large pot, bring the chicken stock to a boil. Add in your whole chicken, cover, and lower the heat to medium-low to simmer until the chicken has fully cooked.
Once cooked, remove the chicken and let cool briefly for about 15 minutes. Drain the chicken stock and reserve. When the chicken is cool enough to handle, remove the meat from the bones and shred. Set aside.
In the same pot, melt the butter. Add in the onion, celery, and carrot, and saute until softened, about 7-10 minutes. Add in the garlic and continue to saute until the garlic is golden and fragrant, about 2-3 minutes.
Add in the cabbage, shredded chicken, ham, fish sauce, black pepper, and chicken stock. Stir well with a spatula or wooden spoon to combine. Bring this to a boil, then cover, and let simmer on medium-low for 20 minutes.
In the meantime, prepare the macaroni. Bring a pot of water to a boil. Once boiling, add in the macaroni and boil until softened, about 10-12 minutes. When cooked, drain using a fine meshed sieve and set aside.
After the sopas has simmered for at least 20 minutes, pour in the evaporated milk and stir well to combine. Taste the soup and season with more salt and/or black pepper to taste.
To plate, add a generous serving of the macaroni to your bowl and pour over the sopas broth. Top with crispy garlic chips and green onions, if desired.
Ingredients and Substitutions
Chicken stock: go for the unsalted stocks so you can control how much salt goes into your soup.
- Substitutes: You can also go for chicken bouillon cubes or the instant chicken stock powders.
Whole Chicken: Doing so allows you to flavor the soup even more, since the bones act as a natural flavor enhancer.
- Substitutes: You can also go for ready-cut chicken thighs, chicken breasts, or wings, if you prefer. You can also skip this step entirely and just go for rotisserie chicken!
Butter: This gives the soup more richness. Go for the unsalted kind to better control the amount of salt in your soup.
- Substitutes: You can also use any neutral oil.
Onion, celery, carrot, garlic, cabbage: A combination of these aromatics and veggies will make for a more flavorful and filling sopas.
Cooked ham: This ingredient is more as an additive to further make the soup more meaty and filling.
- Substitutes: Other recipes may use sliced hotdogs, which also works.
Fish sauce, salt, black pepper: These will be the basic seasonings required for the sopas. Feel free to add more or less according to your tastes.
Evaporated milk: To get that characteristic white, milky look to the sopas, we add a bit of evaporated milk. This makes the sopas creamy, rich, and more mellow in taste.
- Substitutes: You can also use regular milk if desired.
Elbow Macaroni: This will be the noodle component of the sopas.
- Substitutes: Smaller varieties of noodles work better for this recipe, such as penne, rigatoni, or bowtie.
Chicken Sopas Recipe
Course: Appetizers, MainCuisine: PhilippinesThis is a classic Filipino noodle soup added with a splash of milk to make the dish rich, creamy, and filling.
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Ingredients
7.5 cups unsalted chicken stock
1 whole chicken, organs removed
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 yellow onion, minced
2 stalks celery, minced
1 medium carrot, minced
5 garlic cloves, minced
2 cups cabbage, chopped
1/2 cup cooked ham, chopped
1/2 tablespoon fish sauce
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup evaporated milk
Raw elbow macaroni
Salt and pepper, to taste
Directions
- In a large pot, bring the chicken stock to a boil. Add in your whole chicken, cover, and lower the heat to medium-low to simmer until the chicken has fully cooked.
- Once cooked, remove the chicken and let cool briefly for about 15 minutes. Drain the chicken stock and reserve. When the chicken is cool enough to handle, remove the meat from the bones and shred. Set aside.
- In the same pot, melt the butter. Add in the onion, celery, and carrot, and saute until softened, about 7-10 minutes. Add in the garlic and continue to saute until the garlic is golden and fragrant, about 2-3 minutes.
- Add in the cabbage, shredded chicken, ham, fish sauce, black pepper, and chicken stock. Stir well with a spatula or wooden spoon to combine. Bring this to a boil, then cover, and let simmer on medium-low for 20 minutes.
- In the meantime, prepare the macaroni. Bring a pot of water to a boil. Once boiling, add in the macaroni and boil until softened, about 10-12 minutes. When cooked, drain using a fine meshed sieve and set aside.
- After the sopas has simmered for at least 20 minutes, pour in the evaporated milk and stir well to combine. Taste the soup and season with more salt and/or black pepper to taste.
- To plate, add a generous serving of the macaroni to your bowl and pour over the sopas broth. Top with crispy garlic chips and green onions, if desired.
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