This Thai Hen recipe is a straightforward approach to make Gai Yang at dwelling, Thailand’s well-known barbecue hen. It makes use of a aromatic Thai marinade that delivers street-stall scrumptious – with out pounding pastes, lighting coals or wrestling an entire hen! Serve with Coconut Rice and swoon.
Conventional Thai Hen
For those who’ve ever travelled by way of Thailand, you’ll know precisely what Gai Yang is and why I’m obsessive about it – smoky, savoury, fragrant Thai BBQ hen offered by road distributors who churn out good chargrilled hen all day lengthy. It’s the sort of meals that makes usually civilised people revert to full caveman mode. Oh sure, you may completely image me proper??! Fred Flinstone would approve! 😀
Historically, complete butterflied chickens are marinated in a aromatic paste made by pounding substances like lemongrass and garlic with a mortar and pestle, then grilled slowly over charcoal till bronzed and juicy.
I needed to recreate the flavour of genuine Gai Yang to make it extra home-cook pleasant. So I take advantage of boneless thighs, a stick blender for the marinade and cook dinner it on the BBQ or range. Simplifying road meals on this means can fall brief – however for Gai Yang, the marinade is so good, it really works nice!
Substances in Marinated Thai Hen – Gai Yang
My rule of thumb when cooking meals on a BBQ or range relatively than smoky charcoal is to dial up the marinade flavours to compensate for the absence of smoky flavour. That’s precisely what I’ve performed right here. 🙂
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Boneless hen thighs – Conventional Gai Yang in Thailand requires slicing up an entire hen and cooking it with the skin-on and bone-in. One of the best various reduce that’s simpler to cook dinner for juicy, flavour-packed Gai Yang is boneless hen thighs. They keep tender, take up marinade brilliantly and get these attractive caramelised edges!
Hen breast and hen tenders can be utilized too – the marinade helps retain juiciness inside. For breast, I’d both break up them in half horizontally or pound to even thickness so that they cook dinner by way of extra evenly, else the thinner finish will get overcooked. I’ve popped instructions within the recipe notes.
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Lemongrass – A signature flavour of Gai Yang that’s so distinctly South East Asian! It has an earthy lemon flavour and it’s what makes this hen particular and units it aside from simply one other soy-sauce-sugar marinade!
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Garlic – Important for constructing that traditional Thai savoury base.
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Fish sauce – Salty, savoury, and extra flavour than soy. The smelly fishy flavour is gone as soon as cooked! That is what makes it style correctly Thai.
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Gentle AND darkish soy sauce – I take advantage of soy sauce so as to add extra salt into the marinade as a result of utilizing simply fish sauce could be a bit too fishy. The darkish soy sauce provides the hen a lovely bronzed end whereas the sunshine soy sauce provides the salt with out darkening the hen an excessive amount of. Darkish soy additionally has a way more intense soy sauce flavour so you’ll want to use with restraint!
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Brown sugar – Balances the salty components and helps the hen caramelise for sticky, charry edges.
make Gai Yang – Thai Hen (grilled or range)
As talked about above, I needed to make Gai Yang extra home-kitchen pleasant, so I take advantage of a stick blender relatively than mortar and pestle for the marinade, and cook dinner it on the BBQ or range. I notably like utilizing the BBQ since you get a little bit of the street-food reminiscent smoky flavour, plus it’s simpler to cook dinner your complete batch in a single go. Nice for summer season gatherings!
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Blitz sliced lemongrass, complete garlic cloves and all the opposite marinade substances right into a jug giant sufficient to suit the pinnacle of a stick blender. Blitz till the lemongrass is pulverised into tiny bits (lemongrass is kind of robust, not nice to chunk into giant chunks).
No stick blender? No worries! Simply grate the lemongrass and garlic finely then combine it into the soy sauce and so forth by hand.
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Marinate the hen within the marinade in a single day. 24 hours is finest, to actually get the flavours all by way of the meat. Absolute naked minimal is 3 hours.
No time to marinate? Slice up the hen into bite-size strips, toss within the sauce then pan fry it. You would toss in some greens and make a stir-fry. 🙂
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Cook dinner the hen in a pan or a BBQ on medium warmth for about 5 to six minutes on either side till attractive bronzed with charred edges. (I take advantage of the grill aspect of the BBQ, not flat iron, it really works higher). Due to the sugar and darkish soy within the marinade, the floor can burn in a short time so what I love to do is preheat the pan / BBQ on excessive, then I decrease the warmth to medium as soon as I put the hen on.
No oil – You shouldn’t want any oil in case your BBQ is properly greased or when you use a non-stick pan as a result of the marinade has oil in it, and we’re utilizing thighs which has some fats in it.
Burning? Flip a number of occasions relatively than simply as soon as, oh, and decrease the warmth! 🙂
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Relaxation the hen for 3 to five minutes earlier than serving. I simply pile it straight onto the serving plate and go away it. If cooking in batches, loosely tent with foil to maintain them heat and pile on prime of one another.
By no means skip resting! This step permits the juices to be re-absorbed into the meat fibres so that they don’t spill out onto the plate if you reduce into it.
What to serve with Gai Yang
Sauce – Historically, Gai Yang is served with a sauce referred to as Nam Jim Jaew which is made with fish sauce, lime juice, sugar and finely chopped garlic, chillies, eschalots and inexperienced onion. You’ll be able to dip items in or spoon it over the hen so it additionally flavours the rice.
For a faster sauce, you possibly can additionally use the Candy Chilli Sauce from the Thai Candy Chilli Beef Bowls (related flavours, no want to cut something) and even simply plonk a bottle of candy chilli sauce on the desk. 🙂
As for sides, serve with Jasmine rice, and even higher, coconut rice! (PS For those who’ve by no means been capable of make coconut rice with out it ending up a gluey mess or burning, you’ll love that recipe – my staff and I labored so onerous to crack the proper coconut rice!).
Add a aspect of freshness with some uncooked slices or chunks of cucumber and tomato, Thai-style. No dressing, simply plain. It sounds boring, however as a result of the meat is so flavourful and juicy, the freshness actually works. You’ll crave it! Else, when you’re after a salad, attempt an Asian Slaw, Vermicelli Noodle Salad (the recent mint right here actually works) or the Thai Hen Salad minus hen plus additional veg.
Fall again possibility – Asian Sesame Dressing (4 substances, pour and shake) with any leafy greens or steamed greens (lettuce, cabbage, tomato, steamed broccoli, zucchini, peas, asparagus – it really works with every part!).
Take pleasure in! – Nagi x
Watch learn how to make it
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Thai Grilled Hen (Gai Yang)
Prep: 8 minutes
Cook dinner: 12 minutes
Marinating time: 1 day
Complete: 20 minutes
Barbecue, BBQ, Hen, Grilling
Thai
Servings5
Faucet or hover to scale
Substances
Sauce choices – CHOOSE ONE
Forestall display from sleeping
Directions
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Blitz – Place Marinade substances EXCEPT oil in a jug simply giant sufficient to suit the pinnacle of a stick blender. Blitz till lemongrass and garlic is totally pureed. (No stick blender? Finely grate lemongrass and garlic, then combine)
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Marinate – Pour in a bowl. Add oil, stir. Add hen, toss to completely coat. Cowl and marinate in a single day (my naked minimal is 3 hours). No marinating time? Finely slice, toss in marinade then cook dinner like a stir-fry.
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Warmth the outside BBQ grill on excessive or a non stick pan over excessive warmth on the range.
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Cook dinner – Take away hen from the Marinade and discard the Marinade (except baking within the oven – refer Notice 3). Put hen on the BBQ or within the pan, then flip warmth down to medium (candy marinade = susceptible to burning). Cook dinner the hen till golden brown – round 5 to six minutes on either side. (If it burns, flip immediately. You’ll be able to flip repeatedly, as wanted.)
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Relaxation and serve – Relaxation for 3 minutes. Serve alongside a mound of steamy coconut rice with lime wedges, garnished with recent chilies and coriander/cilantro, and your chosen sauce.
Recipe Notes:
To make use of bone-in, skin-one items, flip often and cook dinner for longer till cooked by way of. You would additionally bake at 200C/400F (180C fan) for round 45 minutes – baste in the direction of the tip for pretty caramelisation.
2. Lemongrass is available in supermarkets in Australia today. Peel the outer inexperienced layers off to reveal the white half on the backside of the stalk (~15cm/6″). Solely use the white / pale inexperienced elements – the opposite elements are robust and “reed” like.
3. Soy sauce – You’ll be able to substitute the darkish soy sauce with extra mild soy however do NOT substitute the sunshine soy with extra darkish soy sauce (it’s far too intense and can destroy the dish!).
4. Oven – If you wish to use the oven, it’s best to broil/oven grill, on a rack, for round quarter-hour on excessive, turning as wanted. You’ll get good caramelisation with out overcooking the hen!
Common oven bake – 200C/375F (180C fan) for round 20 – 25 minutes, relying on the dimensions of your fillets although you received’t get the identical quantity of caramelisation. Flip as soon as and baste no less than as soon as (ideally twice) utilizing the remaining Marinade.
Initially revealed 2015. Up to date in 2025 with improved marinade, glowing new pictures, a recipe video and most significantly, Lifetime of Dozer part added! I up to date the marinade to cut back the variety of substances however nonetheless ship the identical high quality flavour – for instance, I eliminated honey and elevated sugar barely. I eliminated Chinese language cooking wine as a result of it’s not historically utilized in Gai Yang, and I didn’t really feel the recipe was missing once I took it out. And at last, I reverted to utilizing a stick blender which isn’t solely quicker than finely minced lemongrass and garlic, but additionally extracts extra flavour out of the lemongrass.
Lifetime of Dozer
Dozer had his Story Time Spectacular on the weekend, to have fun the launch of Row Row Row your Boat (with Monsters!)! That is the youngsters’s e book that includes Dozer which is elevating cash for One Meal, the meals aid charity that distributes our RecipeTin Meals to these in want.
There was a run sheet and schedule and scripts, we did rehearsals and all knew our roles.
Does it shock anybody that nothing went to plan?? 😂 “By no means work with youngsters or canines,” they mentioned! In the meantime, I spent 80% of the time stroking Dozer’s head attempting to maintain him calm as he barked persistently, irritated he was trapped within the row boat relatively than waddling across the stage just like the star he thinks he ought to have been.🤣
He grew to become notably bark-y when youngsters had been introduced up on stage to hitch within the interactive studying half!
And right here’s the writer, Adam Simpson. He’s really my firm lawyer – that’s the connection! Is your lawyer as enjoyable as mine?? 🤣 Adam wrote the e book and is donating all his royalties to One Meal.
Dozer and I additionally handled the youngsters to some Dozer cookies! These had been made by Claudia from Monogram Cookies. I’ve used her a couple of occasions now, it’s such a good way to do an edible thank-you reward for giant numbers and have the ability to customise it with a message, or branding and so forth. and I feel it’s superb worth for what you get. Plus she’s native to my space (Drummoyne – although companies all of Sydney), makes the entire course of seamless and is such a stunning particular person to work with. I’m going to make use of her for some Christmas cookies for gifting too!
It was an enormous day for Mr Dozer! He’s spent the final couple of days slothing – and he deserves it. He’s an previous creaky boy now (virtually 14!) and technically in retirement, however was comfortable to come back out of retirement for this good trigger!
PS In case you didn’t decide it, the car under is a row boat! Dozer was tucked in with Madeline, the daughter of the writer Adam.
Love you Dozer! Sharing these experiences with you is so particular, particularly in your golden years. You make every part extra enjoyable! – N x
