Stir Fried Chicken with Lemon-Lime Dressing

The crunch factor along with the flavors of the dressing make this a mouth watering appetizer. This recipe is adapted from BBC Olive magazine. Crispy noodles on top is the crowning glory and a show piece for your friends and family to talk about. Who could resist this very fresh and light dish?

Serves 4 (as a starter)
vegetable oil for frying
50g thin rice noodles
4 skinless chicken breasts
1 red onion, finely chopped
3 tablespoons ginger, grated
2 red chillies, seeded and chopped
small bunch of coriander, chopped
4 baby gem lettuce leaves, separated

Dressing
4 tablespoons lime juice
4 tablespoons lemon juice
3 tablespoons fish sauce
3 tablespoons soft brown sugar
1 garlic clove, chopped

Fill a wok or medium pan with 1/3 oil and heat. A noodle will sizzle up immediately when hot enough. Fry all the noodles in batches, scoop out with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towel. Put the chicken breasts in a food processor and pulse until minced. Discard most of the oil from the wok except for 3 tablespoons then put over medium high heat until almost smoking. Cook the chicken until browned, breaking it up thoroughly. Transfer to a bowl and add onion, ginger and chillies and toss well.

Combine the dressing ingredients in a small bowl and mix well. Toss the chicken with the dressing and sprinkle coriander over. Arrange the lettuce leaves on 4 plates. Just before serving, spoon the fried noodles and chicken salad onto each other.

The Culinary Chase’s Note: Wow! Talk about flavors bursting in your mouth! You can also use minced pork instead of chicken. If the chicken throws off too much liquid when frying, spoon it out as you want the chicken dry.