Serious Eats / Lorena Masso

Why It Works

• Roasting the chicken bones and searing the meat triggers the Maillard reaction, building a deeper, richer broth.
• Cooking the soup’s components separately—broth, chicken, noodles, and vegetables—keeps their flavors bright and textures distinct.

I am a sucker for Filipino holiday feasts. I revel in the preparation—from collaborative lumpia-making marathons to day-long pig roasts to the day-of scramble to get the table ready just in time for Noche Buena, the traditional Christmas Eve midnight feast shared with family and friends —my favorite holiday among them. It takes a barangay (village) to pull this off.

At the center of the Noche Buena feast—surrounded by vibrant platters of fresh fruit, cured ham, cheeses, breads, and roasted and fried dishes—a humble noodle soup stands out: chicken sotanghon, which takes its name from the rice noodles (sontanghon) that are a crucial component of the dish. This seemingly simple soup, with its delicate garlicky amber broth enveloping glass noodles and slivers of chicken, mushrooms, and cabbage, carries within it the layered history of culinary influences that make Filipino food so distinctive.

Serious Eats / Lorena Masso

More than just another offering on the table, chicken sotanghon is a cornerstone of the Noche Buena tradition—a symbol of family, unity, and gratitude during the joyous holiday season. This is not a weeknight soup. It’s a labor of love—a slow, intentional process of coaxing deep flavor from roasted chicken bones and vegetable trimmings. The broth alone is worth the time it takes: rich, golden, and fragrant from garlic and the Maillard reaction that happens when you sear and roast the chicken before simmering. You could use a store-bought stock or skip roasting the bones, but it just wouldn’t be the same.

Building a broth from chicken bones and vegetable scraps ensures you extract every ounce of flavor and honor a zero-waste kitchen practice (something I’m passionate about). When cooking, save your vegetable peels and trimmings—carrot ends, celery tops, cabbage scraps, mushroom stems, and scallion roots—for flavoring the broth. (The broth keeps well frozen for future soups.) Collect and reserve the golden chicken fat that’s rendered during roasting—it adds incomparable depth when you sauté the aromatics. Cooking each component—the broth, vegetables, noodles, and aromatics—independently preserves their texture and freshness, resulting in a soup that feels fresh and vibrant even after freezing and reheating.

Serious Eats / Lorena Masso

Beyond its technique and flavor, chicken sotanghon also tells a story—a reflection of trade, adaptation, and the shared histories that shape Filipino cuisine. Chicken sotanghon is made with mung bean thread noodles, chicken, and your choice of vegetables—usually carrots, cabbage, and mushrooms—and a broth colored with annatto seeds. Historically, the mung bean thread noodles (sotanghon) were imported from China and prized as a luxury ingredient compared with the more common rice vermicelli. Their presence on the holiday table signified abundance and celebration. The dish itself reflects centuries of trade and exchange: noodles from China, annatto from the Manila-Acapulco Galleon Trade, and the Filipino genius for adaptation and hospitality.

Noodle dishes were introduced to the Filipino diet through trade between the Philippines and China during pre-colonial times. Sotanghon is derived from the Hokkien word suwatanghon (pronounced sua-tan-hun), meaning “small, wrinkly noodles,” which are opaque when raw and translucent when cooked. The use of annatto to color the broth was a product of the Manila-Acapulco Galleon Trade during the Columbian Exchange. Every bowl is a celebration of that history and of the care that turns a humble chicken soup into the heart of a Filipino feast.

Keep Screen Awake

For the Stock and Chicken:

3 pounds (1.36 kg) chicken backs/carcass

3 pounds (1.36 kg) chicken quarters (approx 4)

1 head garlic cloves (about 1 ounce; 28 g), peeled and smashed

Vegetable trimmings from soup components below (see notes)

Diamond Crystal kosher salt for seasoning chicken, plus 2 1/2 teaspoons; for table salt, use half as much by volume

For the Soup Components:

1/4 cup (60 ml) rendered chicken fat and drippings reserved from preparing chicken stock above

1/2 teaspoon annatto seeds or annatto powder

1/2 medium red onion (4 ounces; 113 g), finely chopped, trimmings reserved for stock

5 cloves garlic, smashed and chopped

1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper

8 ounces carrot (226 g; about 2 medium carrots), peeled and julienned, trimmings reserved for stock

8 ounces Napa cabbage (226 g; about half a head), sliced into 2-inch thick chunks, trimmings reserved for stock

4 ounces (113 g) shiitake mushrooms, sliced 1/8-inch thick, trimmings reserved for stock

4 ounces (113 g) wood ear mushrooms, sliced 1/8-inch thick, trimmings reserved for stock

8 ounces (226 g) enoki mushrooms, separated and ends trimmed, trimmings reserved for stock

4 ounces (113 g) celery, thinly sliced, trimmings reserved for stock

1 tablespoon plus 1/2 teaspoon Diamond Cystal kosher salt; for table salt, use half as much by volume

1/2 cup (120 ml) fish sauce, divided

2 tablespoons fried garlic, optional

1 scallion, finely chopped

For the Noodles:

6 ounces mung bean thread noodles (180 g)

For the Eggs (optional; see notes):

12 quail eggs

1 tablespoon (15 ml) white vinegar

**For the Stock and Chicken: **Adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat oven to 450°F (230°C). On a rimmed baking sheet, spread chicken backs or carcass pieces evenly and season liberally with salt. Roast until browned all over, flipping halfway through, 30 to 40 minutes total. Set aside, then pour the rendered fat from the sheet pan into a small bowl.

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Sprinkle chicken quarters all over with salt. In a large skillet, add 1 tablespoon oil and heat until shimmering.. Add chicken quarters to skillet, in batches if needed, and sear on both sides until browned, about 5 to 7 minutes. Transfer rendered chicken fat to bowl with the other chicken fat.

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In a large (8-quart) stockpot or Dutch oven, bring 5 quarts water to a boil over high heat. Add seared chicken quarters and 1 teaspoon salt to pot and lower heat to medium. Simmer, partially covered, until the chicken registers 175°F (80 °C) with a digital thermometer, 25 to 30 minutes. Use tongs to transfer chicken quarters to a cutting board and let cool, about 20 minutes. Using two forks or your fingers, shred the meat into bite-size pieces; reserve the bones and skin separately.

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To the pot with chicken stock, add vegetable trimmings, smashed garlic, reserved roasted chicken bones, reserved chicken quarter bones and skin, and 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt**.** Bring to a boil, then reduce heat as needed to maintain a gentle simmer. Cook, partially covered, until reduced by about one-third (you should have about 3 quarts stock), 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Strain stock through a fine-mesh strainer set over another large (8-quart) pot. (Alternatively, use a spider skimmer to remove bones and skin from pot.) Discard bones. At this time, the stock can be refrigerated for up to 4 days or frozen for up to 2 months before preparing the soup.

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**For the Soup: **In a wok or large skillet, heat 1/4 cup reserved chicken fat over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add the annatto seeds or powder. Mix well until the oil is bright red-orange, 30 to 60 seconds. If using seeds, remove seeds with a slotted spoon and dispose of them. Add garlic, onions, 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, and black pepper, and cook, stirring frequently, until browned, about 5 minutes.

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Add carrots and 2 tablespoons fish sauce. Cook until carrots are tender-crisp, stirring frequently, 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in reserved shredded chicken to combine. Transfer mixture to a bowl and set aside.

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In an 8-quart stockpot, bring the prepared chicken stock to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium, and add shiitake and wood ear mushrooms, celery, and Napa cabbage. Simmer, partially covered, until vegetables are tender and cabbage is opaque, 10 to 15 minutes.

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Lower heat to low and add enoki mushrooms and the sautéed chicken and carrot mixture, and heat until warmed through. Add remaining 6 tablespoons fish sauce and salt incrementally to your desired salty/umami level.

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For the Noodles: Fill alarge saucepot, halfway with water and bring to a boil. Add noodles and boil until translucent, 3 to 4 minutes. Strain and run noodles under cold water to shock and stop cooking. Set aside.

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**For the Quail Eggs (optional): Prepare an ice bath. **Using now-empty saucepot, fill halfway with water, add vinegar, and bring to a boil. Once boiling, gently lower in eggs and gently simmer for 3 minutes for soft set, 5 minutes for medium, or 7 minutes for hard-boiled.

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Using a spider skimmer or slotted spoon, transfer eggs to prepared ice bath. Let cool, then peel. Set aside. 1.

**For the Soup Assembly: **Portion noodles into bowls. Spoon a hearty ladle of soup with chicken and veggies into each bowl.

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Garnish with fried garlic, if using, scallions, and eggs, if using.

Serious Eats / Lorena Masso

Special Equipment

Large skillet, large (8-quart) stockpot or Dutch oven, spider skimmer, strainer, large saucepot

Notes

Save your vegetable peels and trimmings—carrot ends, celery tops, cabbage scraps, mushroom stems, and scallion roots—for flavoring the broth.

While quail eggs are traditional for this soup, you can substitute them with soft, medium, or hard-cooked chicken eggs if you prefer.

Make-Ahead and Storage

The stock can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 4 days or frozen for up to 2 months.

You can cook the chicken, quail eggs, and other toppings ahead of time and refrigerate them in separate containers for up to 4 days.

Leftover soup can be refrigerated for up to 4 days in an airtight container.

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
3351	Calories
198g	Fat
27g	Carbs
347g	Protein

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Nutrition Facts Servings: 4 to 6 Amount per serving Calories 3351 % Daily Value* 198g 254% Saturated Fat 56g 279% 1673mg 558% 3292mg 143% 27g 10% Dietary Fiber 7g 26% Total Sugars 6g 347g Vitamin C 13mg 67% Calcium 321mg 25% Iron 26mg 145% Potassium 3571mg 76% *The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.

(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)