So, I love this dish. My kids love it. My husband loves it. It tastes amazing, and it pretty versatile too. The chicken can be barbecued or baked (it smells so good, the neighbours will be jealous). It is an easy low FODMAP dish to create that has flavour and convenience you might be missing from bought marinades, if you have recently started this way of eating.

You can make it using many kinds of meat and cuts, including chicken on the bone, boneless fillets, breast or thigh, and even make chicken or lamb kebabs, chicken wings, meatballs or ‘san choy bow’ using this marinade. It also goes great on pork spare ribs!

I tend to double the batch when I am making the marinade, then freeze half to have handy for a quick dinner another time. It isn’t hard to make the marinade, but whilst you are peeling and finely grating, why not make twice as much! If you don’t have time to let the marinade soak in, that’s cool, it still tastes great.

The cooked lemongrass chicken is then fantastic used for lunches the next day, with salad, in rice paper rolls or sushi, chopped in a noodle soup, or add it to leftover cooked rice to make a quick chicken fried rice.

Lemongrass Chicken

MAKES

enough for dinner for 4 (& possibly leftovers)

INGREDIENTS

• 2 lemongrass stalks (makes about 2 tablespoons when finely grated)
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger (one small knob, piece about 2cm x 2cm)
• zest & juice from 1 lime (about 1 tbsp of each)
• 2 tablespoon macadamia oil
• 1 tsp roast onion infused oil
• 1 tsp garlic infused oil
• 1/2 tsp sesame oil
• 1 tablespoon fish sauce (SE Asian style)
• 1 teaspoon brown sugar (or maple syrup)
• 1 tsp ground coriander seed
• 1 tsp ground cumin seed
• 1 kg skin on, boneless, chicken thigh fillets (about 5 to 6 pieces)

OPTIONAL

• 1/4 teaspoon fine salt
• one turmeric root (3 x 3 cm piece, equals about 1 to 2 tbsp. once finely grated)
• one small piece galangal root (3 x 3 cm piece, equals about 1 to 2 tbsp. once finely grated)
• you could also added 1 tsp chilli paste, or fresh herbs, like 1/2 cup of chopped coriander leaves

METHOD

1. Peel ginger, and grate using a 2mm fine kitchen rasp
2. Take off hard outer leaves of lemongrass stalk, and cut off top green section (set aside to make tea with), and grate using a 2mm fine kitchen rasp
3. If using, peel and finely grate turmeric and galangal
4. Mix all ingredients (except chicken) in a large bowl to make the marinade (you could use a food processor or blender if you prefer)
5. Flatten the thicker areas of the chicken thighs with a cooking mallet
6. Coat and marinate the chicken pieces for a couple of hours (overnight in the fridge is fine) or if you don’t have time to leave them to soak, they can be cooked straight away

TO FRY OR BBQ

1. In a fry pan or on a BBQ, over medium heat, cook the chicken pieces (skin side up) for 5 to 10 minutes (you can see the chicken cooking up through the meat, as it turns from pink to more white in colour)
2. Turn chicken over, cook for further 5 to 10 minutes, until the skin becomes crispy and golden
3. Test the chicken is thoroughly cooked through. Depending on the thickness of the chicken thigh fillets, they may require longer to cook (cook with skin side up)

TO BAKE

1. Bake in a moderate oven for 20 minutes, skin down
2. Turn over, and bake for a further 10 to 20 minutes, skin side up
3. Check the chicken is cooked through (time depends on how thick the fillets were). Continue cooking until chicken is cooked through with no pinkness left

TO SERVE

Serve with salad, rice, peanut sauce, Sweet Chilli and Ginger Sauce, or Green Chilli and Lime Sauce, noodles or mash. It also goes great used in rice paper rolls, sushi, chopped in a noodle soup.