Ga xao dam gung sa: chicken with lemongrass and macerated ginger
Author: 
Recipe type: Main
Cuisine: Vietnamese
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 3-4
 
A childhood favourite. 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
  1. Mix the ginger and the vinegar. Set aside.
  2. 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.
  3. Mix the cornstarch, sugar, water and remaining fish sauce, and set aside.
  4. Chop the garlic, and slice the onion into wedges.
  5. 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).
  6. 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.
Recipe by Aliette de Bodard at https://www.aliettedebodard.com/recipes/ga-xao-dam-gung-sa-chicken-lemongrass-macerated-ginger/