Vietnamese Lemongrass Chicken with Vermicelli Noodle Salad
- Prep Time: 20 mins
- Cook Time: 30 mins
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: Serves 4
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Grill
- Cuisine: Vietnamese
A healthy and delicious Vietnamese Lemongrass Chicken with Vermicelli Noodle Salad (Bun Ga Nuong), full of fresh and bold flavours. The chicken is marinated in a classic Vietnamese marinade and served grilled over a bed of vermicelli noodles, salad, fresh herbs and a traditional Vietnamese dipping sauce (nuoc cham).
Ingredients
For the Lemongrass Chicken
- 4 small chicken breast fillets, or 2 large chicken breast fillets sliced in half to produce 4 thin fillets
- 2–3 lemongrass stalks, white parts only finely sliced
- 3 garlic cloves
- 3 red chillies
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 teaspoons sesame oil
- 2 tablespoons fish sauce
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 1 teaspoon sea salt flakes
For the Vietnamese Dipping Sauce
- 2 tablespoons caster sugar (superfine sugar)
- juice of 1 lemon
- 2 tablespoons fish sauce
- 4–6 tablespoons water
- 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
- 1 red chilli, finely chopped
To Assemble
- 300 g vermicelli rice noodles, cooked according to packet instructions
- baby lettuce leaves
- cucumber, sliced into thin batons
- carrots, finely shredded
- coriander (cilantro), finely chopped
- mint, finely chopped
- perilla leaves
Instructions
For the Lemongrass Chicken
- Place the chicken into a large zip-lock freezer bag.
- Place all of the ingredients for the marinade into a food processor and whizz until everything is finely chopped and blended.
- Pour the marinade into the freezer bag and make sure all of the chicken is well-coated in the marinade.
- Leave the chicken to marinate in the fridge for at least 3 hours, or preferably overnight.
- Take the chicken out of the fridge about 30 minutes before cooking so it can come to room temperature.
- Heat a large cast-iron grill pan, non-stick pan, or even a barbecue, to medium-high heat.
- Cook the chicken in batches until they are golden and caramelised on the outside.
- Remove the chicken to a board, and use a sharp knife to cut into thick slices.
To make the Vietnamese Dipping Sauce
- Place the sugar into a medium-sized bowl and dissolve it in the lemon juice.
- Add the fish sauce and water, and stir.
- Add the garlic and chillies, and leave the dipping sauce to settle for about 5-10 minutes.
- Taste for seasoning. You might need to add more lemon juice or sugar, depending on how big or small your lemon is.
To assemble
- Place some salad leaves at the bottom of a large bowl (such as a large soup bowl or pasta bowl).
- Top with a good handful of vermicelli noodles.
- Add the cucumbers and carrots (or other vegetables of your choice), as well as the herbs.
- Place the sliced chicken on top, and dress with a good 1-2 tablespoons of the Vietnamese Dipping Sauce before serving.
Kitchen Notes
WHICH TYPE OF NOODLES TO USE
Make sure the noodles you are using are vermicelli rice noodles (which are white) and NOT bean thread noodles (which are clear). Vermicelli rice noodles come in various thickness (like spaghetti), and I like to use medium thick noodles for this dish.
MAKE IT WITH BEEF
You can use beef in place of the chicken in this recipe. I recommend using rump steak or a similar good-quality cut (I like entrecôte).
MAKE IT WITH SHRIMPS (PRAWNS)
Grilled shrimps (prawns) are also delicious with this vermicelli noodle salad. You could use either peeled or unpeeled shrimps, but I would brush them with some oil and season lightly with salt and pepper before grilling.
MAKE IT VEGETARIAN
Simply replace the chicken with thickly sliced firm tofu. Lightly brush the tofu with oil before grilling. You could also use pre-marinated firm tofu in this recipe.
COOKING FOR CHILDREN
When I am cooking for children, I omit the chillies from the marinade and the dipping sauce. You can serve chopped chillies, or even Pickled Chillies, on the side for those who like their food spicy. However, lately, I have started to add a bit of spice to the childrens’ food so that they can slowly get used to the taste. For the marinade above, I sometimes add half or 1 small Thai red chilli, and my children have not yet made any complaints …
FREEZER TIPS
Once you have mixed the chicken with the marinade in the freezer bag, you can freeze the chicken to use at a later time. Simply defrost the chicken in the fridge overnight. For this reason, it’s worth doubling the recipe and freezing one batch for future use.
CONVERSIONS
To convert from cups to grams, and vice-versa, please see this handy Conversion Chart for Basic Ingredients.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 4
- Calories: 581
- Sugar: 15g
- Sodium: 1896.8mg
- Fat: 19g
- Carbohydrates: 80.3g
- Fiber: 3.3g
- Protein: 23g
- Cholesterol: 51.7mg
View the recipe online: https://eatlittlebird.com/vietnamese-lemongrass-chicken-noodle-bowl/
