You see this on a lot of Thai menus, as with every other dish served in Asian restaurants the recipe differs from house to house so there’s no set way of doing this. I’ve been cooking it as a starter or snack for a while now but eventually figured that if you add noodles to the mix it makes a great meal in a bowl. In fact, for that extra-authentic Pot Noodle experience distill the soup into a plastic pint glass and add an extra 100g of salt.
This is easy to make, Lime Leaves and Lemongrass can a bit of a drag to source but are essential to the taste. The odd time you can find Lemongrass with the pre-packed fresh herbs in the supermarket. If you’re in Cork, Mr. Bells in English Market or any place they supply like the Superfruit shop in Douglas (Tesco) Shopping Center will carry fresh Lemongrass and either dried or fresh Lime Leaves. Lots of supermarkets will also do Lemongrass paste or preserved in a jar.
Ingredients (for 2):
2 chicken breasts
1 litre chicken stock
4 Spring Onions, sliced.
1 Clove of Garlic, crushed or grated.
1 or 2 lime leaves.
1 Stick of Lemongrass, thinly sliced.
1 Red Chili, sliced into thin rounds. If you grate or finely chop the chili it overpowers everything else.
1 Tsp Fish Sauce
1 Tsp Sugar
Juice 1 lime
Handful chopped coriander
Optional: 1/2 portion of dried noodles.
Method:
Bring stock to the boil in a pot, add the chicken breasts and simmer for 10mins until cooked. Remove, allow to cool slightly and and shred. Add spring onions, garlic, lemongrass, chili and lime leaves to the stock and simmer for 10mins. Add fish sauce, sugar and return the chicken, cook slowly for three or four minutes. Stir in lime juice and seasoning to taste. Optional: Add the noodles and simmer for three or four minutes, I like to crush the up before adding them as it makes it a bit easier to eat. Purely personal. Add a handful of coriander and serve.
Comments are closed.