150gchicken meat - ground or finely chopped (like a tartare)
1clove garlic - minced
1tbspfish sauce - can be substituted by soy sauce
2-3green onions - chopped
1stalklemongrass - only the white part - finely chopped
½purple onion - thin slices
1tbspcilantro - stalks and leaves - chopped
1tbspsaw coriender - chopped
1tbspbasil - preference to Thai basil
½cupmint leaves - chopped
1tbspginger - grated
1tbspfresh red chilli - chopped
1tbsplemon juice
1tspred chilli flakes
1tbspglutinous rice / sticky rice - see details and substitutes in tips session (below)
1tbspoil
2cupsbean sprouts - optional
salt
Instructions
Roasted and ground glutinous rice (Khao kua) preparation
Heat a skillet over medium heat, add the sticky rice grains in the pan. Note: no oil is required.
Toast the rice until it turns into golden brown. (Note: stir the rice in the pan all the time to avoid burning it).
With the help of a mortar and pestle (or a food processor), mash the rice into powder.
Reserve.
Note: You can make a larger amount and store it in a pot for future preparations. It can be used as a thickener for soups and curries, it also goes very well with sour fruits.
Bean sprouts preparation
Put water to boil in a saucepan.
When boil, add the bean sprout and cook it for 1 min.
Remove, drain and set aside.
Laab Gai preparation
Medium heat a wok. When it gets warm, drizzle the oil and saute the grounded chicken along with garlic, salt and a little bit of the fish sauce.
When cooked, transfer it to a bowl.
In the bowl, combine the sautéed chicken with all the other ingredients in the respective order. First the dry ingredients: roasted rice powder, herbs, lemon grass, purple onion, ginger, chilli, and bean sprout.
Then, add the rest of the fish sauce and finally the lemon juice.
Mix well and serve it on a plate with green leaves.
Notes
This dish has two secrets – the first one is to finely cut everything, from chicken meat to herbs.
The second secret is the roasted rice powder (Khao Kua), it brings texture and a nutty and complex aroma to the salad.
You can find glutinous rice/sticky rice in Asian food stores.
If not, you can substitute for another type of rice rich in starch, such as arborio (risotto rice) or bomba (paella rice). In the last case, you can replace it by nut or almond, following the same preparation steps: toast and grind.
Other versions: Laab Moo is made with pork. The vegetarian version that is made with mushrooms (Laab Hed) is also delicious.