Lemongrass and Habanero Honey Chicken Larb
Serves 4 as a light meal, or makes a very good starter for a table that likes to share
Larb is one of those dishes that rewards a bit of forethought and very little else. Everything gets sliced, picked, and lined up before the wok even goes on, and once it does, the whole thing comes together in minutes. The habanero honey brings a slow, building heat that plays beautifully against the sour lime and the cool crunch of butter lettuce, so do not be shy with it.
For the larb
100g jasmine rice, uncooked
2 tbsp vegetable oil
3 shallots, thinly sliced
500g chicken mince
½ tsp sugar, plus more to taste
2 tbsp fish sauce
2 tbsp habanero honey
1 stalk lemongrass, bruised and thinly sliced
juice of 2 limes
1 to 2 birdseye chillies, thinly sliced
2 spring onions, thinly sliced, white and green kept separate
½ bunch coriander, washed and picked (reserve the other half for garnish)
½ bunch mint, washed and picked (reserve the other half for garnish)
salt
To serve
butter lettuce leaves, washed, dried, and separated into cups
extra lime wedges
extra chilli, sliced
Extra coriander/mint
Method
Before anything goes near the heat, get everything cut, sliced, and sitting ready in its own little pile. Have the lettuce cups washed, dried, and arranged on the table too, along with the extra lime wedges and chilli. Larb moves fast once it starts, and there is no pausing to slice a shallot halfway through.
Toast the rice in a dry wok or pan over low heat, stirring more or less constantly, until the grains turn a deep gold and smell distinctly nutty, about 10 minutes. Tip into a mortar and pestle or spice grinder and grind to a coarse powder. Set aside.
Wipe out the wok and set it over high heat. Add the oil, then fry half the shallots until crisp and deeply golden. Lift them out with a slotted spoon, leaving the oil behind, and set on paper towel.
Return the wok to high heat until it is properly smoking. Add the chicken mince and stir-fry, breaking it up as you go, until it is browned and starting to catch and crisp in places, not just cooked through. Stir in the sugar, habanero honey, fish sauce, salt, the white spring onion, and the lime juice.
Stir-fry for another minute, then add the toasted rice powder, chillies, the raw shallots, green spring onion, coriander, and mint. Toss through for one more minute, just enough to wilt the herbs slightly, then taste. You are after a proper balance of sweet, salty, sour, and spicy, so adjust with more salt, chilli, sugar, fish sauce, or lime juice until it sings.
Serve straight from the wok into lettuce cups, scattered with the crispy shallots and the reserved herbs.