INGREDIENTS

1½ lb boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1 1/2” cubes

2 tablespoons fish sauce

3 tablespoons palm sugar, finely chopped, or granulated sugar

½ cup coconut water, or unsalted chicken stock

½ tablespoon rice vinegar

2 tablespoons neutral oil

4 cloves garlic, chopped

½ cup julienned shallots, about 1 large head

1 ½ tablespoons finely julienned ginger

½ teaspoon ground black pepper

Thai chilies, chopped, to taste (optional)

1 green onion or 4 sprigs cilantro, chopped

Jasmine rice and a side of veggies, for serving

INSTRUCTIONS

Prepare the Chicken:

Mix chicken with 1 tablespoon fish sauce and let it sit while you prepare the other ingredients.

To make the fish sauce caramel: 

In a small pot, add the palm sugar and let it melt over medium heat, making sure to stir often. Allow it to caramelize until the sugar is a very dark brown, almost black. Once it's very dark brown, remove from heat and deglaze with the coconut water - it will sizzle aggressively. 

Put the pot back on the heat and keep it cooking for another minute until the sugar is all dissolved (a couple of undissolved bits stuck to the pot is okay). Turn off the heat and add the remaining 1 tablespoon of fish sauce and vinegar, set aside.

Cooking the Aromatics:

In a wok, on medium high heat, add the oil and sauté the ginger, shallots, garlic and black pepper until the shallots are translucent, about 3 minutes. Set aside. 

Cooking the Chicken:

Add the chicken, and spread it out in one layer. Let the chicken cook without moving it until some browning has developed. Next, add the caramel sauce and stir to mix. Simmer gently, uncovered, for about 15 minutes, stirring every few minutes. The chicken should be fork tender, and the sauce thickened to a nice consistency.

Once done, taste the sauce . It should be sweet and salty. If it feels too strong, add a small splash of water or coconut water to thin it out. If it tastes too weak, let it cook for a few minutes longer to reduce the sauce.

To finish, stir in chopped chilies if desired, then plate and top with green onions and/or cilantro. Serve with rice and a side of veggies.

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Visit this recipe on Hot Thai Chicken.