Gỏi gà
A Vietnamese salad in which herbs are a vegetable, not a seasoning — they go into the bowl by the handful, not the spoonful. Two things decide the texture: the cabbage is salted and squeezed so it stays crunchy instead of watering down the plate, and the chicken is torn by hand along the grain, because ragged edges catch dressing in a way neat knife-cut slices never do.
Your own work in that: 10 min.
- Chicken 30 min
- Cabbage 20 min
- Dressing 5 min
- Assembly 10 min
Step by step
0 / 7 donePoach the breast and cool it in the liquid
Cover the breast with water with the ginger, spring onion and salt, bring to a boil and cook 12 minutes on the lowest heat, then take off the heat and leave it in the liquid for 15 minutes to cool a little (about 30 minutes in all). The thickest part must not be pink. Cooling in the poaching liquid keeps the breast from drying out.
Ingredients: 600 g chicken breast · 20 g ginger · 2 pcs spring onions · 1 tsp salt
Salt the cabbage and squeeze it
Shred the cabbage as finely as your knife allows, salt it and leave 20 minutes, then squeeze it dry with your hands. The salt draws out water, so the cabbage stays crunchy once dressed instead of diluting the dressing on the plate.
Ingredients: 400 g white cabbage · 1 pcs carrot · ½ pcs red onion · 1 bunch mint · 1 bunch coriander · 1 tsp salt
Squeezed cabbage — the dressing stays concentrated.Tear the chicken by hand
Tear the cooled breast by hand, along the grain, into strips. Ragged edges catch dressing far better than smooth knife-cut slices — which is why the meat in this salad is never cut.
Ingredients: 600 g chicken breast · 20 g ginger · 2 pcs spring onions · 1 tsp salt
Along the grain, by hand — ragged edges catch the dressing.Mix the nước chấm
Dissolve the sugar in the warm water, then add the fish sauce, lime juice, garlic and chopped chilli. Taste it: it should be salty, sour and sweet at once, with none dominating. Dissolve the sugar first — it dissolves reluctantly in fish sauce and lime juice alone.
Ingredients: 3 tbsp fish sauce · 2 pcs limes · 2 tbsp sugar · 2 cloves garlic · 1 pcs chilli · 3 tbsp water
Three flavours in balance — taste before using.Dress the vegetables first
Toss the squeezed cabbage, carrot and onion with two-thirds of the dressing and leave 5 minutes. The vegetables absorb it and soften slightly — meat and herbs join later so they do not wilt.
Ingredients: 400 g white cabbage · 1 pcs carrot · ½ pcs red onion · 1 bunch mint · 1 bunch coriander · 1 tsp salt
Add the chicken and herbs by the handful
Fold in the chicken and whole handfuls of mint and coriander — leaves whole, not chopped. In Vietnamese cooking herbs are a salad ingredient, not a garnish; chopped, they quickly darken and lose their aroma.
Ingredients: 400 g white cabbage · 1 pcs carrot · ½ pcs red onion · 1 bunch mint · 1 bunch coriander · 1 tsp salt
Scatter peanuts and serve at once
Scatter over the crushed peanuts and fried shallots and drizzle with the remaining dressing. Serve immediately — the salad is crunchy for the first fifteen minutes, after which salt and acid soften the vegetables for good.
Ingredients: 60 g peanuts · 3 tbsp fried shallots
Before you start
Vietnamese herbs
Beyond mint and coriander, rau răm (Vietnamese coriander) and perilla are used. If your Asian grocer has them, add them — rau răm has a peppery, citrusy flavour that is very characteristic of this salad.
Chicken from the stockpot
In Vietnam it is often made with chicken poached for stock, and it is excellent that way. If you are making stock, set the breast meat aside — it will be ideal, and you keep the broth for something else.
Make extra dressing
Nước chấm keeps a week in the fridge and goes with everything: spring rolls, rice noodles, grilled meat. Make a double batch straight away; just remember that the garlic and chilli mellow with time.
