Thai Chicken Larb Salad
A bright, herb-forward Thai chicken larb made with ground chicken, fresh lime juice, fish sauce, toasted rice powder, and plenty of mint, Thai basil, and cilantro. Served chilled in crisp lettuce cups, it’s savory, tangy, and full of classic Thai flavor.
Servings: 4 Servings
Ingredients
For the Rice Powder:
- ⅓ cup long grain white rice such as Jasmine
For the Sauce:
- ⅔ cup fresh lime juice
- ⅓ cup fish sauce
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
- 2 tablespoons sweet hoisin sauce
- 1 tablespoon chili garlic sauce
For the Chicken Mix:
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 2 shallots thinly sliced
- 1 Thai red chili thinly sliced (or serrano chili)
- 1½ teaspoons lemongrass paste
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 1½ pounds ground chicken
- 1 (8 ounce) can water chestnuts drained and chopped
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 cup green scallions sliced
- ½ cup fresh mint chopped
- 1 cup fresh Thai basil chopped
- ½ cup fresh cilantro chopped
To Serve the Salad
- 1 to 2 heads baby Gem lettuce
Instructions
For the Rice Powder:
- Set a small skillet over medium-high heat and when it is hot add the uncooked rice. Cook, stirring frequently until the rice becomes toasted. Remove from the heat, set aside to cool.
- Place the cool rice into a spice mill, coffee grinder, or blender and process to a powder. Reserve.
For the Sauce:
- Combine the lime juice, fish sauce, toasted sesame oil, hoisin sauce, and chili garlic sauce in a small dish. Set aside and reserve.
For the Chicken:
- In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat and add the shallots, sliced chili, and lemongrass. Sauté until the shallots are softened, about 1-2 minutes, add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds until fragrant.
- Stir in the ground chicken and sauté for 2 minutes until cooked through, stirring frequently to break up the chicken.
- Add half of the reserved sauce and the rice powder. Stir to combine then remove from the heat and let cool.
- Gently mix in the chopped chestnuts, salt, pepper, scallions, mint, Thai basil, and cilantro.
To Serve
- Spoon the chicken larb over a bed of torn Little Gem lettuce in individual bowls. Garnish with fresh mint and Thai basil leaves, and serve with vinaigrette on the side.
Notes
Lemongrass paste: Typically found in the produce section near the fresh herbs.
Serving temperature: This dish is best served cold in crisp lettuce cups. Serving it hot will wilt the lettuce.
How to serve: Thai chicken larb can be enjoyed as a salad, an appetizer in lettuce cups, or as a meal with jasmine rice and sliced vegetables.
Fish sauce: A key flavor component that makes a noticeable difference in the final taste.
Hoisin substitute: Thai sweet hoisin sauce can be replaced with honey or sugar if needed.
Lettuce choice: Use soft, crisp leaves that are easy to fill and wrap. Butter lettuce (Boston or Bibb) and Little Gem lettuce both work well.
Nutrition
Serving: 1 serving | Calories: 731kcal | Carbohydrates: 30g | Protein: 66g | Fat: 41g | Saturated Fat: 10g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 26g | Cholesterol: 268mg | Sodium: 3270mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 8g
