Vietnamese chicken curry or ca ri ga is a delicious & homely dish, my version comes loaded with vegetables & a comforting coconut milk sauce.
It’s flavour profile is bold, it has a nice medium-high spice level and shows that Indian ain’t the only game in town when it comes to curry.
Ca Ri Ga Curry
I think that it is pretty fair to say that I have a bit of a thing for curry!
This Vietnamese chicken curry, or Ci Ra Ga joins curries from as far west as Jamaica (Curry Goat) and as far East as Japan (Katsu Curry), as far north as Glasgow (Chicken Tikka Masala) and as far south as Indonesia (Beef Rendang).
Like my Indian aloo gosht or Thai prawn massaman curry, this wee Vietnamese number contains potatoes cooked in the sauce.
This provides both a heartiness to the dish but also a bit of body to the sauce.
Also, potatoes and curry flavours are awesome, I don’t care whether it is an authentic aloo gobi or the chips and curry sauce I grew up with.
Unusually this dish also contains carrot, which adds a wonderful sweetness earthiness to the dish.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the type of potatoes matter?
Yes and no… You can throw any kind of potato at this and it will work but the results will be different.
I use a medium to floury potato personally as the starch helps thicken the sauce a little.
But you can use new or salad potatoes when they are in season. They bring a completely different texture to the dish that is just as good.
You can even mix it up with sweet potatoes without changing the timing. This adds a bit more earthy sweetness to this Vietnamese chicken curry.
Why do you use bone in skin on chicken?
This recipe is all about getting flavour into that sauce and bones and skin really do help that
This does mean that the skin of the chicken is not the “crispy” skin that we often prize in Western cooking, but I kinda like it.
If you really want crispy skin you can flash it under the grill or broiler for a few minutes before serving. I have done this before with my chicken adobo with coconut milk recipe and it works well.
Why don’t you use fresh lemongrass?
I use lemongrass paste out of convenience. Fresh lemongrass is difficult to find here and when I do find it, it is often of poor quality.
Feel free to use fresh if you can get the good stuff. Here it is used to flavour the broth so bash it with the side of a knife to bruise it and throw it in whole. Just remove and discard it before serving.
Serving Suggestions
“Traditionally” Vietnamese chicken curry is served with a side of crusty French baguette.
Yes, you read that right, there is a quite a French influence in some Vietnamese food and I guess this is part of that.
Personally, I consider it a one-dish dinner that does not need a side.
You could add rice, which is something that I do with massaman curry recipes which are similar to this.
Or you could increase the amount of vegetables if you wanted to scale up. Green beans are a particularly good addition to this recipe.
Equipment Used
I only name-check brands of equipment if I think that they make a material difference to a recipe. But if you have any questions feel free to ask them in the comments section below the recipe.
- Stovetop.
- Wok.
- Kitchen knife.
- Chopping board.
- Fine mesh sieve.
- Stirring and serving spoons.
- Weighing scales and or measuring jug, cups and spoons.
Vietnamese Chicken Curry Recipe
This Vietnamese chicken curry also goes by the name ca ri ga, it features bone in chicken thighs, potatoes, carrots and a broth-based curry sauce that is enriched with coconut milk.
Ingredients
- 2 Chicken Thighs (Bone-in Skin-on)
- 1 Tbsp Cooking Oil
- 250g (1⅔ Cup) Onions
- 1 Tsp Shrimp Paste
- 2 Garlic Cloves
- 30g (Thumb sized piece) Ginger
- 1 Litre Chicken Stock
- 2 Thai Green Chilli Peppers
- ½ Tsp Ground Coriander
- ½ Tsp Ground Turmeric
- ½ Tsp Chilli Powder
- ½ Tsp Black Pepper
- 2 Tsp Lemongrass Paste
- 6 Curry Leaves
- 2 Bay Leaves
- 150g (~1⅓ Cup) Carrot
- 200g (~1⅓ Cup) Potato
- 100g (~⅔ Cup) Green Beans
- 165ml (⅔ Cup) Coconut Milk
- 1 Tsp Light Brown Sugar
Instructions
- Heat a wok over a medium heat and when warm add the oil.
- Season the chicken thighs then place them into the wok and cook until golden all over.
- Whilst the chicken is browning, peel and slice the onion into 2-3mm (⅛") thick half-moon shapes.
- Remove the chicken and set aside, add the onion to the wok and cook over a medium heat until it is a deep golden colour, around 25 minutes, stirring every 4-5 minutes.
- Mince the garlic and ginger.
- Slice the chilli peppers in half lengthways.
- When the onions are caramelised pour in the chicken stock, then add in the garlic, ginger, and shrimp paste, then stir well to combine.
- Add in the coriander, turmeric, chilli powder, black pepper, curry leaves, bay leaves and chilli pepper and again stir to combine.
- Cook over a medium heat until reduced by half, this should take about 30-40 minutes.
- Peel and cut the carrots into 25mm or 1" rounds.
- Cut the potato into a 25mm or 1" dice.
- Once the stock has reduced pass it through a fine-mesh sieve squeezing out as much goodness as possible.
- Discard all of the solids and return to liquid to the wok.
- Add the brown sugar and coconut milk and bring to a simmer.
- Add the chicken thighs, potato and carrot and cook for 25 minutes.
- Throw the green beans in for the last 3-4 minutes.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
2Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 926Total Fat: 49gSaturated Fat: 23gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 24gCholesterol: 188mgSodium: 1284mgCarbohydrates: 75gFiber: 9gSugar: 24gProtein: 53g
Calorific details are provided by a third-party application and are to be used as indicative figures only.