Minced chicken meets fiery Thai flavours in this classic larb gai chicken salad. Fresh lime juice and fish sauce deliver sharp tang while handfuls of mint, coriander and Thai basil bring cool herbal notes. Toasted rice powder adds subtle crunch. Bird’s eye chillies bring serious heat. Perfect light dinner wrapped in lettuce cups.
By Tom Parker Bowles
From Saturday Kitchen Recipes
Larb gai chicken salad scores B. Lean minced chicken with fresh herbs keeps calories reasonable.
Per serving: 320 kcal, 8g fat (2g saturated), 22g carbs (4g sugars), 4g fibre, 38g protein, 2.1g salt.
Ingredients
For the roast chilli powder
- 6 dried long Thai red chillies
For the roast fine rice powder
- 50g/1¾oz Thai sticky rice
For the larb gai chicken salad
- 150ml/5fl oz chicken stock
- large pinch palm sugar (or caster sugar)
- 350g/12oz chicken breast, minced by hand or shop-bought chicken mince
- 5 tbsp lime juice
- 2 tbsp fish sauce
- 4–5 bird’s-eye chillies, chopped
- 2 large pinches roast chilli powder (from above)
- 5 Thai shallots, peeled and thinly sliced
- handful fresh mint, coarsely chopped
- handful fresh coriander, finely chopped
- handful Thai basil, roughly chopped
- 2 large pinches roast fine rice powder (from above)
To serve (optional)
- freshly steamed Thai sticky rice
- 1 Little Gem lettuce, leaves separated
Customise
- Swap chicken mince for turkey mince in larb gai chicken salad.
- Regular shallots work when Thai shallots aren’t available.
- Lemon juice substitutes for lime juice if needed.
Method
Make roast chilli powder first (5 mins – stores 3 months)
- Dry-fry the chillies in smoking hot frying pan for 1-2 minutes. Open windows for the fumes. Let cool completely.
- Grind to powder using pestle and mortar or spice grinder. Store in sealed jar out of sunlight.
Make roast rice powder (10 mins – stores 3 months)
- Toast the rice in frying pan over medium-low heat 5-10 minutes until it smells nutty and biscuity.
- Crush to fine powder with pestle and mortar. Store in sealed jar out of sunlight.
Cook the larb gai chicken salad (15 mins)
- Simmer stock in saucepan with pinch palm sugar until dissolved.
- Add minced chicken and simmer gently 5-10 minutes until cooked through. Stir occasionally.
- Remove from heat and stir in lime juice, fish sauce, chopped bird’s eye chillies, roast chilli powder, sliced Thai shallots, mint, coriander and Thai basil.
- Sprinkle rice powder on top – use 2 large pinches. Serve immediately with sticky rice or lettuce cups.
Suggested Wine Pairing
These wines under £12.50 from UK supermarkets pair brilliantly with larb gai chicken salad. The spicy chicken salad needs crisp acidity to cut through fish sauce and balance chilli heat in larb gai.
- M&S Collection New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc (£11) – Gooseberry acidity slices through fish sauce in larb gai chicken salad. Matches lime and herb freshness.
- Tesco Finest Chilean Sauvignon Blanc (£9.25) – Passionfruit and lime echo the dressing in spicy chicken salad. Cleanses chilli heat perfectly.
- Aldi Lot Reserve New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc (£10.49) – Grapefruit cuts rich chicken flavours. Herbaceous notes complement Thai basil and mint.
The Nutri-Score has been automatically calculated from the ingredients in this larb gai chicken salad recipe and is only a guide.
Hand-mince chicken breasts for better larb gai texture. Partially freeze first, then chop with cleaver.