Lemongrass chicken sticks

Serves:

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 1 stick lemongrass
• 2 cloves garlic
• 6 peppercorns
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp fish sauce
• 1 tbsp vegetable oil
• 500g chicken thigh fillets

For salad:

• 250g rice vermicelli noodles
• 1 carrot
• 1 lebanese cucumber, halved and seeds removed
• 1/2 long red chilli
• 4 shallots (scallions)
• 1/2 bunch coriander, leaves picked
• 1/4 cup peanuts, toasted

For dressing:

• 1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
• 1 tbsp sweet chilli sauce
• 2 tsp (10ml) fish sauce
• 2 tsp white sugar
• 1/2 clove garlic, crushed
• 1 lime, juiced

Method

To make Dressing:  Combine dressing ingredients in a jar and shake well.

To make Salad:  Soak noodles according to packet instructions then place in a large bowl. Cut carrot, cucumber, chilli and shallots into very thin strips and combine with noodles and coriander. Pour over dressing just before serving. Toss well. Top with peanuts.

To make Chicken Sticks:  Roughly chop lemongrass and garlic. Place in a mortar and pestle with the peppercorns and salt, and pound to form a paste. Add fish sauce and oil and stir to combine. Cut chicken into 2.5cm cubes and place in a non-metal bowl with the marinade. Coat well, cover and refrigerate for at least two hours, preferably overnight.

Thread chicken onto bamboo skewers, 3-4 pieces each stick. Heat a large frying pan over medium heat and cook skewers for 6-8 minutes, turning to brown each side.

Serve with noodle salad and extra lime.

Find more skewer recipes:

• Chicken sticks
• Beef kofta with raita
• Beef skewers with peanut sauce
• Chicken satay skewers
• Easy lamb koftas recipe
• Grilled chicken skewers with haloumi and herbs
• Honey soy chicken skewers
• Honey soy chicken skewers
• Zigzag chicken skewers

Serving Suggestions

Note

• Serve the chicken sticks as finger food at your next party.
• Another idea is to wrap chicken (minus the sticks) with the noodle salad in rice paper to make a variation on Vietnamese rolls.
• Recipe by Greer Worsley, who blogs at Typically Red.