Ga xao dam gung sa: chicken with lemongrass and macerated ginger
Tags: blog, cooking experiments, asia, chicken, ginger, lemongrass, main course, vietnam, vinegar January 5th, 2012(aka gà xào dầm gừng sả, lit. fried chicken with pickled ginger and lemongrass)
Yes, it looks gooey (that would be the cornstarch plus a liberal appliance of high heat), but it’s so very yummy. The flavours of the lemongrass, ginger and vinegar all combine for an explosion of taste right where it matters. My sis’s favourite dish when she was younger. Not my favourite dish (I tend more towards the shrimp and crab end of the spectrum), but it’s still such good comfort food.
Ga xao dam gung sa (chicken with lemongrass and macerated ginger)
Recipe type: Main
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 4
A wonderful mix, tart and spicy and redolent with the smell of lemongrass (recipe from Bach Ngo’s Classic Cuisine of Vietnam).
Ingredients
- 300g chicken
- 1 stalk lemongrass
- 2 tablespoons fish sauce
- 2 tablespoons ginger, pounded with mortar and pestle
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 6 tablespoons water
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
- ½ teaspoon sugar
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1 large onion
- Sprinkling of black pepper
Instructions
- Mix the ginger and the vinegar. Set aside.
- Prepare the lemongrass stalk: discard any dried outer leaves, discard the upper two-thirds of the stalk, and slice the remainder paper-thin. Slice the chicken into bite-sized pieces. Put the chicken in a bowl along with 1 tablespoon of the fish sauce, and sprinkle black pepper. Add the lemongrass. Mix, and set aside.
- Mix the cornstarch, sugar, water and remaining fish sauce, and set aside.
- Chop the garlic, and slice the onion into wedges.
- In a large-bottom casserole dish on medium fire, put in oil, and fry the garlic for ~30s, until fragrant. Add the onion, and cook until soft. Add the chicken, and fry for 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Cover, and cook for an additional 5 minutes. Then stir in the ginger-vinegar mixture and the cornstarch-fish sauce-sugar one. Mix well. Cover again, and cook for 5 minutes. Then uncover, set heat until the sauce boils, and finish off by congealing the sauce (basically, make the cornstarch boil and thicken).
- Serve with rice.
Notes
The lemongrass stalk can be replaced with 1 tablespoon dried lemongrass, but it will need to be soaked in warm water for 2 hours and chopped very fine.
Similar Posts:
- Ga kho gung: braised chicken with ginger
- Ga xao sa ot: grilled chicken with chillies and lemongrass
- Lemongrass pan-fried chicken
January 23rd, 2012 at 10:02 pm
Finally tried making this yesterday, with a couple of changes. We used Japanese pickled ginger (the pink things that come with sushi) and chicken drumsticks, since they were lying around and needed to be used. We also tossed in some veggies for healthiness and doubled the sauce. The kids tore through it and said it was the best thing ever, which is a bit of a surprise. I’ll guess we’ll be making it again soon!
January 23rd, 2012 at 10:53 pm
Oooh, nice to hear that it turned out well! (more beta-testers
). I tend to cook my veggies on the side, rather than throw them in the main dish (easier on my small frying pans…)
January 24th, 2012 at 6:01 am
You software engineers! Just as long as I don’t have to file a big report for your recipe….
I prefer to toss the veggies in, because a one-pot meal somehow seems easier. Not sure if that’s true or not. I’m going to try again later with the regulation materials, but was directed to use the pickled ginger before it goes bad.
May 6th, 2012 at 10:50 pm
We had this for dinner tonight and it was delicious! A big hit.
Here’s my beta-tester notes:
* Thank you for the detailed instructions for working with fresh lemongrass. It was my first time using fresh and I wouldn’t have known to trim it so aggressively.
* It’s now crystal clear when to add it.
* I wasn’t sure what you meant by shredded ginger. I grated the ginger because I’m lazy but in retrospect, I think it might have been nicer julienned.
I also made a quick stir-fry with broccoli, green onion and red chiles on the side (with salt, sugar, soy sauce and water) which made a nice counterbalance to the ginger/lemongrass.
My boyfriend said it was delicious. His asked about dark meat rather than breast so I’ll probably try it that way next time and see, although it might be a bit strong-flavoured for this recipe.
So thank you! Definitely a success.
May 6th, 2012 at 11:03 pm
Aw, thank you for the notes!
Hum, not sure what I meant by shredded either. I generally mash mine in a mortar and pestle. Will amend.
The version of this I ate in Vietnam actually uses thighs and drumsticks, so I suspect it will be even better with something other than breast
May 24th, 2012 at 12:56 am
I think I followed the directions to the letter, and it was delicious!
May 24th, 2012 at 3:26 pm
Awesome–thank you so much for the feedback!