Vietnamese Ginger Chicken (Ga Kho Gung)

When I was working the 9-to-5, I always packed a home cooked lunch. My coworkers always asked how I had the energy to cook dinner after work and pack lunch the next day.

Ingredients · Servings 5

3 lbs chicken
1 tablespoon chicken bouillon powder
2 tablespoons granulated cane sugar
3 tablespoons fish sauce
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
3-inch piece fresh ginger (peel and slice into thin strips; about 1/4 cup)
1 tablespoon minced garlic
2 tablespoons minced shallots
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 cup coconut soda (or water)
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 tablespoons thinly sliced cilantro/green onions
Red chilies (optional)

Method · 25 min

Using a sharp meat cleaver, cut the chicken into bite-sized chunks, about 1-1/2 inches in size. Marinate with bouillon powder, sugar, fish sauce and black pepper for at least 30 minutes or overnight in the fridge for better results.
In a wide skillet (at least 10 inches wide) with a lid, add oil and sugar. Shake gently to distribute the sugar evenly. Heat on medium-high until the sugar melts and caramelizes to a dark amber/brown color. The sugar is melted past the sweet caramel stage so this will not add more sweetness to the dish. Make sure you don’t burn the sugar or else it will be bitter.
When sugar is a dark brown (not black), quickly add ginger, garlic, and shallots to the skillet and pan-fry until fragrant (about 30 seconds). Add chicken and toss evenly with the caramel sauce until the chicken is tinted with a light brown color. Color will darken as it braises.
Add coconut soda. Cover the skillet with the lid and reduce the heat to a low simmer. Let it cook for 10 minutes. Toss halfway for even cooking. After 10 minutes, remove the lid and continue cooking for an additional 10 minutes. You should have some liquid to the dish. Taste and adjust the seasonings if needed. I added a tad more fish sauce and bouillon powder at the end here (about 1/2 tablespoon each).
When ready to serve, sprinkle the top with ground black pepper, green onions or cilantro, and red chilies. Serve with steamed rice and a vegetable side dish for a complete meal.

The answer was simple. It was all the same meals, cooked in bulk. Leftover dinners were packed for next day lunches.

One of the dishes that I loved to bring for lunch was Gà kho Gừng, Vietnamese braised ginger chicken. It’s one of those dishes that tastes even better the next day.

I would pack this ginger chicken in a bento with simple sautéed mustard greens (or kimchi) and a small portion of steamed white rice. Once heated in the microwave, the ginger smelled incredible. It definitely turned heads in the break room. Then again, it could have been the reheated fish sauce.

What is Gà Kho Gừng

Gà Kho Gừng is a classic Vietnamese ginger chicken. It consists of bite-sized pieces of bone-in chicken, braised and caramelized with lots of ginger in a sweet and savory fish-sauce-based sauce.

In a traditional Vietnamese home-cooked meal, Gà Kho Gừng is served alongside a light and clear soup and steamed white rice for a complete family-style meal.

Chicken

For this recipe, I recommend using a whole chicken to get the most flavor. You can save the backbone to make a delicious soup stock for another dish. The combination of bone-in chicken with both white and dark meat keeps the chicken moist and flavorful.

If using a whole chicken is too daunting, you can also use a variety of chicken cuts: thighs, legs, wings, and drumsticks.

Chicken bones can be brittle if you don’t cut them cleanly. The small pieces of bone can break apart in the pot which will be very difficult to fish out. To ensure a clean cut and avoid shards of bones in the pot, use a very sharp knife and cut the chicken when it is half-frozen.

For young children, you can opt for boneless chicken thighs.

Coconut Soda

Coconut juice is the quintessential Vietnamese braising liquid. However, in the States, many Vietnamese households opt to use canned coconut soda such as Coco Rico as coconut juice is not readily available as it is in Vietnamese. If you don’t have coconut soda, replace with the same amount of water.

However, pure coconut water and coconut juice are now appearing on shelves everywhere and they would be even better options than coconut soda, though pricier.

Ginger, Garlic & Shallots

The aromatics that make the dish smell amazing.

Fish Sauce

A staple in Vietnamese and other Southeast Asian cuisines that adds a salty, umami flavor to the dish. I’m using Viet Huong three crabs brand, my go-to fish sauce for everything Vietnamese.

Sugar

The sweetness balances out the salty fish sauce. We will also use sugar to make the caramel sauce that will be used to darken the chicken. I’m using granulated white cane sugar.

Chicken Bouillon Powder

Known as Hạt Nêm or Bột Nêm in Vietnamese, chicken or mushroom boullion powder provides another layer of umami that is often used in Vietnamese cooking. Yes, it contains a bit of MSG. If you don’t have this on hand or do not want to use it, simply omit it from the recipe below. I’m using Totole chicken flavor soup base.