Thai Lemongrass Chicken Recipe

This aromatic Thai Lemongrass Chicken Recipe is a weeknight Asian chicken stir fry dish that is flavored with edamame and cashews. Ready in 30 minutes and perfect for everyone in the family.

Course Dinner

Cuisine Asian

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 15

Total Time 30

Servings

Calories 1006kcal

Author Aysegul Sanford

Ingredients

2 lbs. chicken thigh meat cut into 1 1/2 inch pieces

For the Lemongrass Chicken Marinade/paste:

2 stalks of lemongrass chopped (inner white parts only) or 1 1/2 tablespoon Gourmet Garden Lemongrass
3 cloves of garlic minced
2- inch ginger peeled and cut into small pieces (1 tablespoon grated ginger)
1 serrano chile seeded and minced (optional) - more as garnish
2 tablespoons of honey
3 tablespoons sesame oil divided
2 tablespoons fish sauce
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1/2 cup chicken stock only used if necessary, for more info please read the notes
1/2 cup cashews
1 cup edamame shelled

Toppings:

2 stalks of scallions green and white parts chopped
1/4 cup cilantro roughly chopped
1 tablespoon black sesame seeds optional

To Serve With:

4 cups cooked white brown rice, or rice noodles

Instructions

Using paper towels, pat-dry the chicken thigh pieces. Place in a medium bowl.
Process lemongrass, garlic, ginger, chili, honey, 1 tablespoon sesame oil, fish sauce, and rice vinegar in a food processor until they are well blended and paste-like.
Toss the chicken with the lemongrass paste. Cover it with stretch film and place it in the fridge. Let it marinade for 15 minutes.
Heat 2 tablespoons of sesame oil in a wok or large pan (you can also use a 10-inch cast iron skillet) over medium heat.
Stir in the soy sauce into the chicken mixture and give it a stir.
Cook the chicken thigh pieces for 4-5 minutes on each side or until browned. (see note)
If it dries and starts sticking to the bottom of the pan, add in some chicken stock. Simmer for a few minutes. Cook, stirring frequently until the chicken stock is reduced.
Add in the cashews and mix until they are coated with the sauce. It will start getting caramelized.
Stir in edamame at the last minute. Cook until warm, 3-4 minutes.
Serve with rice and garnish it with chopped serrano chili (if using), scallions, cilantro, and sesame seeds.

Video

Notes

When cooking the chicken, make sure that each piece have enough room to brown. If your pan is small, I'd recommend to cook the chicken into batches. You want to make sure that your chicken is throughly cooked before adding in the edamame and cashews.
In terms of chicken meat, I used thighs as I find them to be more flavorful but if breasts are all you have, feel free to use breast meat instead.
If you want to switch things up, you can swap edamame and cashews with snow peas and peanuts.
You can make the chicken stir fry marinade a day (or two) ahead and keep it in a jar in the fridge.

Nutrition