This staple dish comes from Vietnam. Relying heavily on pungent herbs and fresh vegetables, this stir-fry incorporates fish sauce. The Vietnamese also use fish sauce as a dipping sauce for meats and as an alternative to common table salt.
Vietnamese Chicken Stir-Fry
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons sunflower oil
- 1½ pounds chicken breasts, thinly sliced
- 8 spring onions, cut diagonally into about 1-inch lengths
- 4 garlic cloves, chopped or minced
- 1 red chili, thinly sliced
- 5 tablespoons lemongrass, finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon ground cardamom
- ½ cinnamon stick
- 12 ounces green beans, cut into 1-to-2-inch pieces
- 1 carrot, cut into thin strips about about 2 inches long
- 3 tablespoons fish sauce
- 3 tablespoons ground bean sauce
- ¼ cup fresh coriander leaves, chopped
- ¼ cup roasted peanuts, chopped
Instructions
- Heat the wok to 4 or medium heat and warm two tablespoons of the oil. Add the chicken and cook for about 6-8 minutes, stirring constinually.
- Remove the chicken and place onto a plate covered with kitchen towel, to absorb any grease.
- Add the remaining oil to the pan and heat. Add the garlic, chili, lemongrass, cardamom, and cinnamon and fry until fragrant, about 3-4 minutes.
- Add the green onion and fry for another 2 minutes. Then add the beans and carrots and stir-fry for about 8 minutes. The vegetables should be cooked but still crunchy.
- Put the chicken back into the wok. Mix in the fish and bean sauces.
- Stir-fry until the chicken is warmed through, about 2-3 more minutes. Remove the cinnamon stick.
- When plated, garnish the stir-fry liberally with peanuts and coriander.
