Chicken Mami Soup

I have been making this Chicken Mami Soup since I was still living in the Philippines. Weekends are usually the best time for it because the chicken gets the full 40 minutes it needs to simmer. The broth itself is simple. Chicken, onion, and a chicken cube are enough when you give them time to cook together.

The toasted garlic is just as important in our house. My family likes a lot of it on top, so I fry a whole head while the chicken is cooking. Take your time with it. Once the garlic turns golden, strain it right away. It will continue cooking in the hot oil, so do not wait for it to turn dark before taking it out. I keep the oil too. If I do not have time for the long simmer, I make my quicker chicken mami instead.

The broth takes most of the time. The fresh noodles need only 1 minute in boiling water before they go into the bowls with Napa cabbage, carrot, and boiled egg. Pour the broth in while it is still very hot. You want the cabbage to soften a little, but the carrot should still have some bite. Then comes the green onion and plenty of toasted garlic.

What is Chicken Mami Soup?

Chicken mami is the kind of noodle soup you will find in a mamihan in the Philippines. A bowl usually comes with fresh noodles, sliced meat, vegetables, egg, and a hot clear broth. My version uses chicken, Napa cabbage, carrot, boiled egg, green onion, and a generous amount of toasted garlic.

Beef mami is another common version, but it is not just this same recipe with beef swapped in. For this chicken mami, the chicken goes straight into the pot with onion and a chicken cube and simmers for 40 minutes. No sauteing at the start, no celery, no thyme, and no bay leaf. I save those for my American chicken noodle soup.

Why This Chicken Mami Soup Recipe Works

• Give the bone-in chicken enough time. Forty minutes does more than cook the breast. The bone stays in the pot the whole time and adds flavor to the broth while the meat cooks.
• Do not hold back on the toasted garlic. A whole head sounds like a lot until you divide it between the bowls. This is not a garnish I add just for looks. You should taste it with the broth and noodles.
• Taste before adding salt. The chicken cube has already been seasoning the broth for 40 minutes. Add the salt and black pepper only after the broth reaches the bowl, and only if it needs them.

Chicken Mami Soup Ingredients

• Bone-in chicken breast – Keep the bone attached. It gives the broth more flavor during the long simmer, and the breast is easy to slice once it has cooled.
• Chicken bouillon – One bouillon is enough for the 2 quarts of water in this recipe.
• Fresh noodles – Look for the fresh yellow noodles kept in the refrigerated section of a Filipino or Asian grocery. These cook very quickly. One minute is enough.
• Napa cabbage – Chop it and put it straight into the bowl. The hot broth will soften it.
• Carrot – Cut this into thin julienne strips. Do not make the pieces too thick because they are not being boiled in the broth.
• Eggs – Boil and peel these ahead of time. Slice them when you are ready to assemble the bowls.
• Green onion – Use both the white and green parts.
• Onion – Cut it into wedges and let it simmer with the chicken from the beginning.
• Garlic – Use the whole head. All of it goes into the toasted garlic, not into the broth.
• Cooking oil – Use enough to fry the crushed garlic gently. A neutral cooking oil works well.

1. Put the chicken breast, onion, and 2 quarts of water in a cooking pot. Let it boil.
2. Add the chicken bouillon. Lower the heat and cook the chicken for 40 minutes.

1. Combine the crushed garlic and cooking oil in a small pan while the chicken is cooking.
2. Cook over low heat while stirring until the garlic turns golden brown.
3. Strain the garlic through a kitchen sieve and set it aside.
4. Save the garlic oil for later use.

1. Boil 1 quart of water in a separate pot.
2. Add the fresh noodles and cook for 1 minute. Drain them.
3. Divide the noodles between the serving bowls.
4. Add the Napa cabbage, carrot, and boiled eggs to each bowl.

1. Remove the chicken from the pot and let it cool for a few minutes. Separate the meat from the bone.
2. Slice the chicken into serving pieces and arrange them in each bowl.
3. Pour in the hot broth. Season with salt and ground black pepper as needed.
4. Top with the chopped green onions and toasted garlic. Serve warm. Share and enjoy!

What to Serve with Chicken Mami Soup

• Siopao Asado – Steamed buns filled with pork in a sweet and savory asado sauce. These are sold alongside mami at the same noodle houses.
• Pork Siomai – Steamed dumplings of ground pork and shrimp.
• Lumpiang Shanghai – Fried pork spring rolls.
• Beef Pares – Braised beef brisket with garlic fried rice. Pares and mami come off the same noodle house menu.
• Patis and calamansi – Set them out in small saucers so everyone can season their own bowl.

Storage

• Refrigerator: Keep the broth, chicken, noodles and toppings separate. Refrigerate the broth and chicken for 3 to 4 days. Cook fresh noodles when you are ready to serve, because they soften after sitting in broth.
• Freezer: Freeze the broth and chicken for up to 3 months. Leave out the noodles, boiled eggs, cabbage and carrot, since their texture is much better fresh.
• Reheating: Bring the broth to a simmer on the stove and warm the sliced chicken in it before assembling the bowls.

More Filipino Noodle Soup Recipes

• Tinola Chicken Mami – Fresh noodles in a ginger broth, with green papaya strips and malunggay leaves.
• Chicken Sotanghon Soup – Sotanghon noodles in a stock colored with annatto and finished with roasted garlic.
• Batchoy – The La Paz bowl, with fresh miki, pork, liver and crushed chicharon over a broth seasoned with shrimp paste.
• Chicken and Miswa Soup – Fine miswa noodles with shredded chicken, sauteed onion and garlic, and annatto for color.
• Filipino Chicken Noodle Soup – Bone-in thighs simmered with chicken liver and bacon, with round miki added near the end.
• Creamy Chicken Sopas – Elbow macaroni in a broth with evaporated milk, hotdogs and cabbage.

• Fresh noodles – Dried egg noodles are the closest match. Cook them for the time on the package rather than the single minute that fresh noodles take.
• Bone-in chicken breast – Thighs and drumsticks work and make a richer broth. Keep them bone-in and keep the 40 minutes.
• Knorr Chicken Cube – Use 4 cups chicken broth and 4 cups water instead of 2 quarts water, then leave out the chicken cube.
• Napa cabbage – Green cabbage or pechay both work. Shred the green cabbage thinner, since it is the firmer of the two.
• Toasted garlic – Store-bought fried garlic works when you want to skip frying it yourself, but you will not get the garlic oil.

Chicken mami is best right after the bowl is put together. The noodles should still have some bite, the cabbage should be just softened, and the toasted garlic should still be crisp when you get some on your spoon. That is why I wait until everyone is ready before I start putting the bowls together.