Larb Gai Recipe
Minced chicken cooked with red onion, scallion, cilantro, roasted ground rice and exotic Thai spicy lime dressing sauce in traditional Thai style
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Ingredients
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Larb Gai (Minced Chicken Salad)
Method
Larb Gai (Minced Chicken Salad)
Prepare aromatics and herbs
Peel and thinly slice shallot into very thin half-moons. Trim and thinly slice the green parts of scallions. Roughly chop cilantro leaves and tender stems. Strip mint leaves from stems and coarsely chop. Finely chop bird's eye chiles; if you prefer less heat, remove seeds.
Make roasted rice powder (if not using pre-made)
Heat a dry skillet over medium heat. Add 1/3 cup uncooked sticky (glutinous) rice or jasmine rice and toast, stirring constantly, until grains are golden brown and aromatic, about 6–8 minutes. Transfer to a mortar & pestle or spice grinder and pulse to a coarse powder. You want a nutty, slightly gritty texture. Cool briefly.
Cook the chicken
Heat 1 tsp neutral oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the ground chicken and break up with a spatula. Cook, stirring and breaking into small pieces, until just cooked through and losing most of its moisture, about 6–8 minutes. Do not overbrown; you want small crumbly pieces rather than large meatballs. Season with 1/4 tsp kosher salt and 1/8 tsp black pepper while cooking.
Combine dressing
While the chicken is still hot in the pan, transfer the skillet off the heat (to prevent cooking the herbs). In a small bowl combine 3 tbsp fresh lime juice, 2 tbsp fish sauce, 1/2 tbsp light soy sauce (optional), and 1 tsp palm sugar. Stir until the sugar dissolves. Taste and adjust: it should be a balance of sour, salty, and slightly sweet.
Finish larb
Pour the dressing evenly over the hot cooked chicken and immediately stir to combine so the flavors penetrate the meat. Add 3 tbsp roasted rice powder, the chopped shallot (about 1 cup), sliced scallions (1 cup), chopped cilantro (1 cup), chopped mint (1/2 cup), and the finely chopped chiles. Toss thoroughly until evenly mixed. Taste and adjust seasoning — add a little more fish sauce for salt, lime juice for brightness, or roasted rice powder for texture. If too hot, add more herbs to mellow the heat.
Rest briefly and serve
Let the larb sit 5 minutes so the flavors meld and the roasted rice integrates. Transfer to a serving bowl and garnish with extra cilantro or mint if desired. Serve with butter lettuce or cabbage leaves and cucumber slices for wrapping. Larb is best eaten at warm room temperature.