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Half chicken
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1 jasmine rice sachet
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1 fish sauce sachet
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1 rice wine vinegar sachet
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1 turmeric sachet
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1 capsicum
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1 cucumber
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1 lemongrass stalk
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1 long red chilli
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1 shallot
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2 garlic cloves
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1 coriander bunch
Pantry staples: Cooking oil, sugar, pepper
Allergens: Fish, garlic, onion
Specialised equipment: Char grill plate or BBQ, blender (optional)
Chef's note: This dish is found all over Northern Thailand where it is often served with sticky rice, sweet chilli sauce and cucumber relish. In Thai it is called Gai Yang.
Method:
1. Prepare the ingredients
Preheat barbecue or char grill plate over medium heat. Wash the vegetables. Cut the cucumber, shallot and capsicum into small dice. Finely chop the chilli. Finely chop the coriander roots and stems. Roughly chop the coriander leaves. Crush, grate or finely chop the garlic. Finely chop the white part of the lemongrass.
2. Marinate the chicken
Blend or mix the coriander roots and stems, half of the garlic, most of the fish sauce, lemongrass, turmeric, a pinch of pepper, 1 teaspoon of sugar, a generous splash of oil and chilli to taste. Rub the marinade all over the chicken.
3. Cook the chicken
Place the chicken onto the preheated barbecue or char grill plate. Cook for 15 minutes each side or until cooked through. Brush with the marinade while cooking. Cover the chicken with a heatproof bowl or saucepan if it needs more time to cook. Alternatively, cook the chicken in an oven preheated to 200C for 35 minutes.
4. Cut the chicken
You can check that the chicken is cooked by piercing the thickest part with a skewer and the juices run clear. Rest the chicken for 5 minutes then cut into pieces.
5. Cook the rice
Meanwhile, place the rice in a bowl and wash with cold water 3 times. Bring a saucepan of water to the boil. Put the washed rice in the boiling water. Boil for 8 minutes or until cooked through. Stir halfway through to stop the rice from sticking. When cooked strain through a sieve.
6. Make the sweet chilli sauce
Place the rice wine vinegar, remaining fish sauce, 2 tablespoons of water and 1/4 cup of sugar in a saucepan. Bring to the boil. Add the remaining chilli. Simmer for 5 minutes or until slightly thickened. Stir through a little chopped coriander leaves and the remaining garlic.
7. Make the cucumber salad
Combine the cucumber, capsicum and shallot with a spoon of the sweet chilli sauce. Season to taste.
8. To serve
Serve the chicken with the rice, cucumber salad, remaining coriander leaves and remaining sweet chilli sauce.