One of delicious Vietnamese Chicken Recipes in rainy day is Caramel Ginger Chicken (Ga Kho Gung). If you are like me, you have probably been seduced by popular Vietnamese foods, such as Pho and Banh Mi. The flavors, delicate in the case of the traditional noodle soup (Pho) and robust in the instance of the roasted or grilled pork sandwich (Banh Mi), are always pleasing but rather elusive. We learned that Vietnamese food is carefully balanced using five elements: salty (water), spicy (metal), bitter (fire), sour (wood), and sweet (Earth). Each element, in turn, corresponds to one of the body’s organs.
This dish, with its rich caramel and ginger sauce, epitomizes the principles of Vietnamese Chicken Recipes for cooking. A simple caramel sauce (don’t be nervous – it’s just melted and cooked sugar) blends with pungent fish sauce to produce a sticky, sweet and salty coating for the chicken. As soon as you taste it, you will wonder why the only thing you topped with caramel sauce in the past was ice cream.
Ingredients
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup water
3 tbsp canola oil
1/2 medium onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup fresh ginger, peeled, and cut into matchsticks
2 garlic cloves, sliced
3 lb. bone-in, skinless chicken thighs, fat trimmed, generously seasoned with kosher salt
2 tbsp plus 1 tsp fish sauce
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1/2 tsp dried red chili flakes
3 green onions, thinly sliced.
Process
Step 1: Heat a large straight-sided skillet over medium heat and add sugar. Cook until the sugar starts to melt and turn brown, about 5 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook, swirling the pan frequently, until the caramel is bubbling and turns reddish brown, 4 to 5 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and, very carefully, pour in water. Please be sure to turn your face aside while you do this so you do not get splattered. If the caramel hardens, set the pan over medium-high heat. Stir until the caramel dissolves, then pour it into a heatproof measuring cup or bowl.
Step 2: With hot water (so the leftover caramel bits do not seize up on the bottom of the pan), clean and dry the pan. Place the skillet over medium-high heat and heat canola oil in the skillet. Add onion and ginger. Cook for 1 minute. Add sliced garlic and cook for an additional minute. With a slotted spoon, remove the onion, ginger, and garlic from the oil and reserve in a bowl. Many Vietnamese Chicken recipes usually require a short time to make this process.
Step 3: To the skillet, add chicken thighs. Cook until the chicken no longer looks raw on the outside, about 2 minutes per side. Yes, the pan will be crowded! Add the reserved caramel sauce, fish sauce, 1/4 teaspoon salt, black pepper, and chili flakes. Mix to coat the chicken. Reduce the heat to medium and cook (the mixture will be simmering briskly) until the chicken is cooked through, turning the chicken every 2 to 3 minutes, about 20 minutes. Stir in the reserved onions, ginger, and garlic and cook for 2 to 3 additional minutes.
Step 4: Transfer the chicken and cooked aromatics (ginger, etc) to a serving platter. Thinly slice spring onions and use to garnish the chicken.
To sum up, this dish is one of best Vietnamese Chicken recipes in rainy days. With a hot bowl rice and soup, you can feel comfortable and feel warmer inside by ginger. It also help you to prevent many sick when the weather changes. Good luck to you!
This seems like a watered down version of real "caramel chicken" that I've had at homes of Vietnamese friends. They always put the fish sauce right into the melted sugar and that is the sauce! I'll have to try it this way and see how it is before I
Kay Lady 2015-06-19 14:29:24
This seems like a watered down version of real "caramel chicken" that I've had at homes of Vietnamese friends. They always put the fish sauce right into the melted sugar and that is the sauce! I'll have to try it this way and see how it is before I