Thai Coconut Chicken Thighs with Cabbage

Thai Coconut Chicken Thighs with Cabbage - 

*adapted from Diana Yen's recipe in Bon Appetite, May 2021. 

Start early - chicken needs to marinate.   

Ingredients: 

Zest and juice of 1 lime 

1 inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped, plus two slices of ginger

2 garlic cloves (or 1 large), finely chopped 

1/4 C brown sugar (less than what original recipe calls for) 

3 T fish sauce (it smells gross, but it's important - this is less than original recipe calls for) 

1 13.5 oz can unsweetened coconut milk, divided 

olive oil 

2 tsp freshly ground black pepper 

2 lb skin-on, bone-in chicken thighs (4-6).  (In Japan we just use the usual flattened boneless thighs and I remove most of the skin/fat.  Two of these flattened thighs fit into our cast iron pan nicely). 

1" thick slices of cabbage  (to cover the bottom of your skillet) 

1 C jasmine or basmati rice  

cilantro leaves and lime wedges for serving. 

1.  Make marinade:  Whisk together lime zest and juice, grated ginger, garlic, sugar, fish sauce, 1/2 C coconut milk, 2 T oil, 2 tsp pepper in large bowl.  

2.  RESERVE 1/4 C marinade for later.  Place chicken in remaining marinade, cover with plastic wrap, marinade 1 to 12 hours.  (it's a great feeling to get dinner almost ready, in the morning!) 

3.  Preheat oven to 400 degrees (190 in Japan).   Season cabbage on both sides with salt and pepper.  Arrange in skillet, to completely cover the bottom of the skillet, making a platform for the chicken.   Remove chicken from marinade and arrange skin side up on top of cabbage.  Season with salt and pepper.  Roast uncovered 35 minutes.  Increase oven temperature to 450 and cook 5-7 more minutes until skin is crispy (we skip this - it's just a different kind of dish here using the kind of chicken we get). 

4.  Meanwhile, rice:  Bring the rice, remaining 1 C coconut milk, the ginger slices, 1 C water, pinch of salt, to a boil in a saucepan.  Reduce heat to barely a simmer, cover, and simmer til rice is absorbed, about 20 minutes.  Remove pan from heat.  Remove the ginger slices.  Stir/fluff rice, and keep covered til ready to serve.  

5.  Arrange chicken and cabbage on a platter, drizzle with reserved marinade and sprinkle with cilantro leaves.   Serve over coconut rice and lime wedges for squeezing over.  YUM. 

  

I am always throwing away the extra cabbage after making yakisoba and so I liked this recipe, for using the extra cabbage I always seem to have on hand here.  

Even if you don't like cabbage, just try this recipe.  It's so tasty! 

Really different, love the Thai flavors and it's so nice to have the dish practically ready to cook, early in the day.  When dinnertime rolls around, it's so easy to get going.  It's also one of the rare things I cook in the oven here and I appreciate not having to tend the stove.  

The lime and cilantro are super important.