Grilled Thai Chicken Nuggets with Hot and Sour Dipping Sauce

I checked out a book from the library on the cuisine Southeast Asian. It has been fascinating to read about the peoples and foods of the different regions. My husband and I are hoping to take a trip to the area next year. I’m always dreaming up exotic vacations so hopefully this one pans out. In the meantime, I do what I always do…bring the food to my own kitchen. It’s kind of like traveling the world without ever leaving home. I will admit that I was kind of scared for this recipe. Look at the ingredients. That’s a lot of fish sauce! Have faith in me though, because the end result is scrumptious. Garlic galore with that beautiful Southeast Asia twist. And then the dipping sauce…oh baby. I wanted to soak my chicken in it.  It’s nice to give a twist on the standard chicken nugget. I can wow my taste buds and still give my kids something that looks familiar that they will eat. Enjoy!

Thai Chicken Nuggets

Ingredients

3 boneless skinless chicken breasts, trimmed of fat and cut into 2 inch pieces

6 large garlic cloves, peeled

1 tsp black pepper

3 tablespoons cilantro stems 

3 tablespoons fish sauce

1/4 tsp salt

Instructions

1. Place your chicken breast pieces in a medium-sized mixing bowl. Set aside.

2. Put the garlic cloves, black pepper, and cilantro stems into a food processor. Puree. Slowly add in the fish sauce until you get a nice pasty sauce. Season with salt and pour over chicken. Marinate for 1 hour.

3. Heat a grill to medium high heat. Grill your chicken for about 4 minutes per side until cooked through. Actual cooking time will depend on how thick your chicken is. 

Hot and Sour Dipping Sauce

Ingredients

1/2 cup rice vinegar

1/2 cup sugar

2 cloves garlic, crushed

1 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

pinch salt

Instructions

1. In a small saucepan, bring the rice vinegar to a boil. Stir in the sugar and simmer 5 minutes.

2. Remove from heat and whisk in the crushed garlic,  red pepper flakes, and a pinch of salt. 

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