Minced Asian Chicken Parcels
This dish is the perfect amalgam of several of my favorite things: I love larb, the Thai minced chicken dish, chilled and shot through with coriander and lime juice. I love hacked chicken, the peanut‑y, sesame‑y, soy sauce‑y delightful sauce a savory delight. I love a many-vegetable stir-fry, colorful and healthy. And I love anything wrapped in lettuce leaves, or if you’re feeling indulgent, Chinese pancakes.
So imagine my delight when I came up with this fantastically light dish, the combination of so many of my beloved flavors and methods. Pack plenty of napkins, as these parcels make a glorious mess.
Minced Asian Chicken Parcels
(serves 4)
for the filling:
1 tbsp peanut oil
4 boneless chicken breast fillets, well-trimmed
2 red bell peppers, diced
8 chestnut or button mushrooms, diced
1 small head broccoli, separated into small florets
6 cloves garlic, finely chopped
a bunch spring onions/scallions, sliced, white and green parts
for the sauce:
2‑inch knob ginger, peeled
100ml/1/3 cup dark soy sauce (the dark sort really makes a difference, if you can find it, but if you can’t, regular soy sauce is fine)
100 ml/1/3 cup Japanese mirin or dry sherry
100 ml/1/3 cup clear honey
juice of 1 lime, plus zest
12 tbsps/3/4 cup creamy peanut butter
50 ml/3 tbsps sesame oil
handful cilantro/coriander leaves and stalks
for the parcels:
Chinese pancakes
Bibb/Boston/Little Gem lettuce heads, separated into leaves
chopped peanuts, pinenuts or cashews (optional)
Preparation couldn’t be simpler. Put the trimmed chicken breasts — cut into manageable chunks — through either a mincer/grinder or pulse in your food processor until the texture of minced/ground beef.
Heat the peanut oil in a frying pan and then fry together the chicken and vegetables until the chicken is just cooked through. Do not overcook. Set aside in a pretty serving bowl to cool slightly.
Place all the sauce ingredients into a small food processor or blender and blend until smooth. With nice clean hands, toss the chicken and vegetables with the sauce, in your pretty bowl.
Arrange the pancakes and lettuce leaves on several easily-reached platters. Everyone can pile the chicken mixture into these little containers and top with nuts, if using. Allow plenty of napkins per person as the parcels are messy!