Sunday recipe: Cambodian chicken salad
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Cambodian chicken salad by Ethan Lim of Hermosa. Photo: Monica Eng/Axios
Hermosa chef Ethan Lim has been busy this summer.
- The celebrated Cambodian American chef launched an à la carte menu option and earned a spot on Chicago Magazine's 50 Best Restaurants.
Driving the news: He joined us at The Hideout to demonstrate a perfect hot weather salad.
What they're saying: "Summer is all about flavor punches," Lim tells us. "This salad is a variation on my Cambodian fried chicken sandwich in a bowl."
The ingredients list features lots of fresh aromatics and herbs — including lemongrass, galangal, makrut lime leaves, fresh turmeric and Thai basil — that you can find at Asian grocery stores, especially Tai Nam, Park to Shop on Broadway and Viet Hoa in Uptown.
- You can also make it with more readily available herbs, but it won't be quite the same.
Cambodian Marinated Chicken Thighs
1 pound chicken thighs
6 peeled garlic cloves
4 stalks of lemongrass
1 piece of turmeric
2 pieces of galangal
4 makrut lime leaves
4 tablespoons fish sauce
4 tablespoons soy sauce
- Remove root end, leafy top, and outer 2 layers of lemongrass and thinly slice. Peel turmeric and galangal. Coarsely chop lime leaves. Add the ingredients to a food processor, and puree into a very fine paste with a couple tablespoons of water.
- Add fish sauce and soy sauce. Marinate thighs for at least 4 hours in the refrigerator, preferably overnight.
- Grill for 7-8 minutes per side, or until cooked through.
For the salad dressing:
5 limes: 3 for juice and 2 for garnish
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon fish sauce
Salad:
½ cup Thai basil
½ cup cilantro
½ cup green onions
2 diced Persian cucumbers
10 sliced radishes
½ cup chopped roasted peanuts
1 tablespoon fried garlic
Optional additions include fresh chopped dill, culantro/recao, mint, chopped Thai chilies and grilled vegetables like asparagus, sweet peppers or summer squash.