Pan-Seared Vietnamese Chicken (Ga Ro Ti)

[Pictures to Come]

My aunt's favorite dish to make was always Ga Ro Ti. It was not a dish that my mom made on a regular basis, so I always look forward to going to my aunt house. I never got around to asking her for her recipe, but I remember watching her make it as a kid. I tried a few different combination and settle on the one posted below as my basic chicken dish.

This dish is one of those dishes where you eat once a week because it is simple to prepare the night before. This basic dish is one of my favorite dish to make when I have extra chicken thigh. I usually marinate the chicken the night before or a few days before. I recommend using Chicken thighs with the bone in for this dish versus boneless because the crispy skin is the extra treat. Even if you don't eat the skin, the extra layer helps your dish from becoming too dry and insulates the flavors.

My husband and I usually eat this dish with a simple salad made of tomatoes, purple onion with some lemon juice and olive oil. Traditionally, this dish is eaten with rice as well as the tomatoes and onion salad.

Ingredients

• 1.5-2 lbs chicken (roughly 5 thighs)
• 4 cloves of garlic
• 1 tsp ginger
• 1 Tbs fish sauce (nuoc mam)
• 1 Tbs soy sauce
• 2 1/2 Tbs honey
• 1/4 tsp black pepper

Directions

1. In a small bowl, mix the ingredients for the marinade. Crush the garlic and ginger in a mortar. Add fish sauce, soy sauce, honey, and black pepper.
2. Wash and dry the chicken thighs. Place in a bowl and add the marinate on top. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
3. In a skillet, add enough oil to lightly cover the pan. Pre-heat the pan to medium heat. Add the marinated chicken thighs. I usually cook 2-3 at a time to prevent overcrowding of the pan and also to have more control over the temperature. Flip over and cook other side. This dish requires that you pan cook the meat longer since it is on lower heat. Turn the chicken over every 3 minutes to cook evenly. When the chicken is no longer pink, turn up the heat to medium-high and sear at the end to get a more crisp skin.
4. Remove from heat and serve.