Lemongrass Chili Chicken

Inspired by Madame Vo - New York, NY

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I enjoyed making the shaking beef so much last week that I decided to give Madame Vo’s ga xao sa ot (lemongrass chili chicken) a go and was not disappointed. I love blending flavors and what’s so great about this dish is how well everything goes together. I love both fish sauce and lemongrass and can’t believe I haven’t done this before.

This recipe is inspired by the gà xào sả ớt served at Madame Vo’s in New York City. I was lucky enough to stumble upon Madame Vo’s a few years ago before it exploded into the hot spot it is today. They don’t just serve some of the best Vietnamese food in the city, the serve some of the best food period in the city.

INGREDIENTS

LEMONGRASS CHILI CHICKEN:

  • 1 lb chicken thighs

  • ¼ cup fish sauce

  • 1 TBS sugar

  • 1 TBS cornstarch

  • 1 lemongrass stalk, minced (1 ½ TBS)

  • 2 TBS canola oil

  • 5 garlic cloves, minced

  • 1 TBS sambal oelek

  • 1 shallot, thinly sliced

  • 1 cup coconut water

  • 1 hot pepper, sliced (for topping)

  • Red onion, thinly sliced (for topping)

  • Cilantro, roughly chopped (for topping)

  • Lime wedges (for serving)

  • Rice (for serving)

GO FOR IT

LEMONGRASS CHILI CHICKEN:

  1. Cut chicken into bite sized cubes

  2. In a bowl, whisk together fish sauce, sugar, half the cornstarch, and half the lemongrass

  3. Marinate chicken cubes in bowl for at least 1 hour

  4. Heat oil on a wok or large skillet on medium heat

  5. Add in shallots, garlic, sambal oelek, and remaining lemongrass, then stir until lightly brown and fragrant (2 to 3 minutes)

  6. Turn heat to high, then push ingredients aside to make room for chicken (add 1 TBS of oil if pan has dried)

  7. Brown chicken, searing on all sides as best you can until browned (3 to 4 minutes)

  8. Mix everything together, then add coconut water and remaining cornstarch

  9. Bring to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes or until sauce has reduced and thickened

  10. Transfer to bowls with rice, then top with hot pepper, red onion, cilantro, and lime wedges

NOTES:

The majority of recipes I did research with call for using a finely diced hot red pepper instead of sambal oelek but I couldn’t find any hot red peppers at my stores. The sambal adds some extra depth to the dish so I didn’t mind. However, you’re supposed to also add a chopped red pepper on top at the end. With the lack of red pepper, I sliced up a jalapeño and used that. It all turned out fine but I just wanted to give you some context if you want to make this a bit more traditional.