Authentic Pho Ga (Vietnamese Chicken Noodle Soup)

Ingredients

For 4 servings

• 1 whole chicken ((about 3-3.5 lbs))
• 3 thumb-sized pieces of ginger, peeled and sliced in half vertically
• 5 large shallots, peeled
• 1 small piece of cassia bark, or 1 cinnamon stick
• 2-3 star anises
• 1 tablespoon coriander seeds ((or 3-4 cloves, please see Notes if using cloves))
• 1 black cardamom pods, cracked open
• 2 teaspoons salt ((plus more to parboil the chicken))
• 2-3 tablespoons fish sauce
• 9 cups water
• pho rice noodles
• scallions
• half an onion, sliced very thinly
• freshly cracked black pepper
• birds-eye chili pepper, sliced
• lime wedges