Asian Chicken Soup with Noodles

I tried pho for the first time this summer when I was in San Diego.  It was amazing.  It made me really want to try and make my own.  I was looking through a slow cooker cookbook I borrowed from a friend (almost a year ago) and came across a recipe called "Asian Chicken Soup with Noodles." It isn't traditional pho, but it was a simple recipe that looked tasty.  I almost had a disaster on my hands a few hours into cooking, so I'm posting the recipe with the changes I will make next time.  The recipe told me to use raw chicken.  I ended up with some foamy, gunky stuff floating in the broth.  I ran everything through a strainer and got the nasty stuff out...but it was a lot of work.  I forgot that boiling raw chicken gives off that yucky stuff. A much easier way to make this is to use shredded or cubed cooked chicken. You could even cook the chicken the night before and just dump everything into the crock pot the next morning.
The recipe turned out great! My husband and I loved everything and the kids like the chicken and carrots. The recipe called for Swiss chard or spinach. I had some chard growing in the garden, so I used that.  I think bok choi would also be really good in this recipe. I added the optional chili oil to my bowl of noodle soup. I was having some sinus troubles and it really helped clear things out.  It's pretty spicy, so don't use too much.

Asian Chicken Soup with Noodles
serves 4
Adapted from Better Homes and Gardens

2 cups sliced fresh mushrooms (I used a mix of oyster, shitake, and portabella from Publix)
1 medium onion, cut into thin wedges
3 medium carrots, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 pound cooked chicken, cubed or shredded
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger (or 1/4 teaspoon dried)
4 cups chicken broth
2 tablespoons soy sauce
3 cups shredded Swiss chard or spinach leaves
8 ounces rice sticks or Chinese egg noodles.
cilantro leaves (optional)
green onions (optional)
chili oil (optional)

1) Place chicken, mushrooms, carrots, and onion in the bottom of a slow cooker.
2) Combine garlic, ginger, chicken broth, and soy sauce in a large bowl. Pour over vegetables and chicken.
3) Cover and cook on low heat for 8 hours. Stir in Swiss chard or spinach 5 minutes before serving.
4) Cook rice sticks or noodles according to package directions.
5) Divide noodles among bowls. Ladle soup over noodles. Top with optional toppings of cilantro, green onions, and chili oil. Add more soy sauce if desired.