Monday night was spent indoors as the snow fell over the Northern Virginia area. Once again for dinner we looked to a recipe sent to me from Toan Thai which featured another from Helen’s Kitchen – Vietnamese Ginger Chicken. This was an easy dish to make that was full of authentic Vietnamese flavors and really delicious! Enjoy…
Making the Vietnamese Ginger Chicken
I purchased whole Chicken Thighs and legs for this recipe. The tricky part was chopping them up in to the smaller pieces. I have yet to purchase a meat cleaver but after cooking this recipe last night that is the next purchase on my list! Thankfully I used an older Chef’s Knife to chop the chicken in to large pieces. I got the hang of it eventually but unlike me the Chef’s Knife did not make it through the experience.
In addition to chopping the chicken, I sliced the piece of ginger in to very thin strips. I combined the chopped chicken and sliced ginger with the minced garlic, chopped shallot, salt, sugar, chicken stock, fish sauce, and ground pepper to marinate for 30 minutes.
Now it was time to cook the chicken! I took a large pan then added the Canola oil, sugar, turned the gas knob to medium heat, and waited for the sugar to caramelize.
Once the sugar started to brown and get sticky it was time to add the chicken pieces. Once they were in the pan I mixed them with the caramelized sugar quickly and thoroughly so the sugar did not burn or turn to candied pieces. I stirred the chicken frequently until the meat got that nice sear and was no longer pink.
After 10 minutes or so I added the liquid. I used 2/3 Coconut Water and 1/3 Chicken Stock for this recipe.
From there I brought the liquid to a boil and then lowered the heat to medium.
I let the chicken cook for 30 minutes in the uncovered pan until the liquid reduced. Once the chicken was covered in that sticky sweet sauce it was time to serve!
In closing this was a very simple recipe to make and in return it was a very satisfying meal packed with authentic flavors! I like the fact that Toan is living vicariously through my cooking and continues to challenge my culinary skills, adding new techniques along the way!
Vietnamese Ginger Chicken
Ingredients
- 2 Lbs Whole Chicken Thigh and Leg chopped
- 2 " piece ginger sliced thin
- 1 tbsp minced garlic
- 1 tbsp minced shallot
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 tsp chicken stock
- 3 tbsp fish sauce
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 1 cup Coconut water
- 1/2 cup Chicken Stock
Instructions
- Chop the chicken thigh and leg in large pieces
- Slice ginger in to thin strips
- Marinate the chicken with minced garlic, shallot, salt, sugar, chicken stock, fish sauce, ground pepper, and ginger strips
- Mix together in a bowl and let sit 30 minutes
- Add the vegetable oil and sugar to a large pan or wok over medium heat and wait for sugar to caramelize
- Add in chicken and mix well until covered with caramelized sugar
- Stir 10 minutes until no longer pink and nicely seared
- Add the Coconut Water and Stock, bring to a boil then lower heat to medium
- Cook for 30 minutes uncovered until the liquid reduces