Supatra's Thai Chicken with Lemon Grass

Lemon grass is often used in big pieces for flavoring dishes, but for this recipe it's heavily bruised so it can be eaten with the chicken. Both the lemon grass and garlic become darkly carmelized and richly flavored during cooking.

Chicken Lemon Grass ingredients:
2 stalks fresh lemon grass
1 lb. chicken thighs, boneless and skinless is preferred; wash thoroughly and cut thighs in half)
3 cloves garlic (minced)
1/4 teaspoon freshly-ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground Thai chili (prik haeng)
2 tablespoons palm sugar
1 teaspoon sea salt
2 tablespoons fish sauce (nam pla)
4 tablespoons peanut oil

1. Cut off the woody tops and bottoms of the lemon grass. Remove the outer 2-3 layers of the stalk and cut the tender middle section into 1 inch lengths. Bruise the lemon grass by hitting it with the back of a Chinese cleaver or pound it in a mortar and pestle.
2. Combine bruised lemon grass, chicken thighs, garlic, black pepper, ground Thai chili, palm sugar, salt, and fish sauce in a bowl. Mix thoroughly and refrigerate for 1-2 hours.
3. Heat a wok over medium-high heat and add the peanut oil, swirling to coat the entire surface. Heat the oil for 1 minute and add the marinated chicken mixture. Stir-fry for 15 minutes (the chicken and sauce will thicken and become caramelized). Remove from heat and serve with cold cucumber slices, lettuce, and jasmine rice or sticky rice.
Yield: 4 servings

Recipe used with the kind permission of Supatra Johnson author of, Crying Tiger: Thai Recipes from the Heart now on sale for $14.95.

Recipe copyright 2004. All Rights Reserved.

Supatara is a St. Paul, MN restauranteer, Thai cooking instructor and cookbook author. See Supatra's website for more Thai recipes and information.

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