I have been making this recipe since I came across it in the 2004 Asia cookbook of the British travel writer and photographer Alastair Hendy. We are now blessed with many more cookbooks exploring Asian cuisine. Hendy’s book was a gateway for me though, and this recipe has remained a constant over the past two decades.
It is essentially minced meat as a base for the combined zing of lime juice, chilli, fish sauce, lemongrass and Thai basil. Like some of the best dishes, it adapts to personal taste easily. I like mine with some crunch from the toasted ground rice and fried onions. And Thai basil makes a big difference.
Drink
A crisp, dry Riesling from Clare Valley in South Australia (Tony’s home state).
Substitutions
Larb is usually made with chicken or pork but most proteins work. Meera Sodha offers a version with oyster mushrooms in her latest book Dinner.
Tip
Fresh lemongrass and lime leaves both freeze well, so buy multiples as you will want to cook this again.
Alastair Hendy’s chicken larb
To serve four
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Make the toasted rice. Take the raw rice and toast in a dry saucepan until light brown. Then grind in a mortar and pestle, or coffee/spice grinder, to a relatively fine consistency.
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Finely chop the lemongrass and lime leaves, and fry them in oil until a little frazzled or softened. Remove them and place on a plate with paper kitchen towel to drain the oil.
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Fry the garlic slices in oil, until golden, taking care not to burn or darken. Then drain on some kitchen towel.
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Fry the minced chicken until cooked through and the liquid from the meat has been reduced.
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Mix the lime juice, caster sugar, fish sauce and chillies together.
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Mix everything together in a bowl. Adapt to your taste — more chilli or more lime juice etc. Serve with rice.
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