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    Lemongrass Chicken Thighs

    Seasoned with some of the defining flavors of Vietnamese cuisine—heady, citrusy, lemongrass, tons of fresh ginger, and fish sauce—these succulent chicken thighs are a true treat.

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    lemongrass chicken thighs with scallion oil and Asian bbq sauce on a plate with a serving spoon

    A Fragrant, Easy Weeknight Treat: Lemongrass Chicken Thighs

    These juicy chicken thighs aren’t overly fussy, but without a doubt this is a chicken dinner that’s elegant enough to call company-ready. Our lemongrass chicken recipe is a little different from others—rather than a marinade, we’ve opted to coat the chicken thighs in a lemongrass-ginger paste. This ensures that all of the key flavors—garlic, ginger, lemongrass and a bit of honey—thoroughly cover each piece of chicken, but saves you the prep-ahead time that a marinade would demand, meaning that this lemongrass chicken recipe comes together quickly! Start to finish, the whole thing takes less than 30 minutes.

    lemongrass chicken ingredients garlic, ginger, soy sauce, fish sauce, green onions, brown sugar
    Ginger, garlic clove, Lemongrass, honey, vegetable oil, kosher salt
    green onions, Ginger, minced, Garlic, soy sauce, rice vinegar, fish sauce, vegetable oil in a small bowl
    green onions, Ginger, minced, Garlic, soy sauce, rice vinegar, fish sauce, vegetable oil mixed together in a small bowl

    Lemongrass Chicken: All About The Sauces

    Yep, that’s sauces, plural! In addition to the lemongrass paste that coats the chicken thighs before cooking, we serve this generously seasoned chicken dinner with not one, but two sauces drizzled over the top. Before you worry that making a paste AND two sauces is kind of a lot of work for a weeknight dinner, let us assure you that there’s a trick at play here—the trick is that the lemongrass paste, the brown sugar-sriracha sauce and the scallion oil all utilize a lot of overlapping ingredients. To make both the scallion oil and the sriracha-brown sugar sauce, here’s what you’ll need:

    • Brown sugar
    • Tamari, or soy sauce
    • Rice vinegar
    • Sriracha
    • Sesame oil
    • Ginger
    • Garlic
    • Scallions
    • Fish sauce
    • Vegetable oil
    chicken thighs in a mixing bowl with a lemongrass marinade
    brown sugar Asian bbq sauce with Sriracha, garlic, ginger and soy sauce
    brown sugar Asian bbq sauce with Sriracha, garlic, ginger and soy sauce mixed together in a sauce pan
    cooked lemongrass chicken in a pan

    How To Make Lemongrass Chicken Thighs

    All you’ll need to make this delicious lemongrass chicken recipe is about 30 minutes, and a few basic kitchen tools. It’s really as easy as:

    1. Make lemongrass paste.
    2. Coat the chicken thighs with that paste.
    3. Fry the chicken thighs! Do it in two batches, so that the pan stays nice and hot, and so that the thighs aren’t crowded in the pan—they’ll cook more evenly if you don’t crowd the pan.
    4. While the chicken cooks, you’ll have about 15 minutes of down time per batch of thighs. That’s perfect for mixing up the two delicious sauces that will dress the finished thighs. In one bowl, whisk together the scallion oil and set it aside. Next, make the sriracha-brown sugar sauce on the stove top.
    5. Put it all together! Top the cooked thighs with the two sauces and dig in!
    lemongrass chicken thighs with scallion oil and a sriracha-brown sugar sauce on a plate
    lemongrass chicken thighs with scallion oil and a sriracha-brown sugar sauce on a plate with a spoon

    What To Serve With Lemongrass Chicken

    Lemongrass chicken thighs are so deeply flavorful, they don’t need much help—simple sides are the way to go! We love to serve lemongrass chicken with:

    Tools You’ll Need:

    lemongrass chicken thighs with scallion oil and a sriracha-brown sugar sauce on a plate with a spoon


    Chicken For One Or Chicken For A Crowd?

    Whether you’re making this recipe just for yourself, and planning to enjoy the best ever leftovers for a few days, or frying these thighs up for a crowd, we’d love to hear how you liked the chicken! Share a photo and tag us on Instagram using @themodernproper and #themodernproper so that we can see your stuff! Happy eating!

    Related Recipes

    Lemongrass Chicken Thighs

    Originally published: September 2, 2020

    • Serves: 6
    • Prep Time:  15 min
    • Cook Time:  30 min
    • Calories: 389
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    Ingredients

    • 3 lbs boneless, skinless, chicken thighs
    • 2 tbsp Ginger, roughly chopped
    • 6-8 garlic cloves, peeled
    • 1 (5-inch) piece Lemongrass
    • 2 tbsp honey
    • 1/4 cup neutral oil, like vegetable oil
    • 1 tbsp kosher salt

    Sriracha-Brown Sugar Sauce

    • 1/4 cup brown sugar, packed
    • 1/4 cup tamari, or soy sauce
    • 2 tbsp rice vinegar
    • 1 tsp Sriracha
    • 1/2 tsp sesame oil
    • 1 tsp Ginger, minced
    • 1 tbsp Garlic, minced

    Scallion Oil

    • 1 bunch scallions, chopped
    • 2 tsp Ginger, minced
    • 2 tsp Garlic, minced
    • 1 tbsp tamari or soy sauce
    • 1 tbsp rice vinegar
    • 1 tbsp fish sauce
    • 2 tbsp neutral oil, like vegetable oil

    Method

    1. In a small food processor, blend all the ingredients for the lemongrass paste: 2 tablespoons Ginger, roughly chopped
      6-8 garlic cloves, lemongrass, honey, 2 tablespoons vegetable oil and 1 tablespoon kosher salt.
    2. In a large bowl toss the chicken thighs with the lemongrass paste until they’re well-coated.
    3. Heat the remaining oil in a large skillet set on medium heat. Cook the chicken in two batches so as not to overcrowd the pan. Place half the chicken thighs in the hot skillet and leave undisturbed for five minutes. Then, flip the chicken pieces and cook until the chicken is cooked through, about eight more minutes. Repeat with remaining chicken thighs. Check for doneness with an instant read thermometer, they are ready when the internet temperature reaches 165°F.
    4. While the chicken is cooking, combine all of the ingredients for the sriracha-brown sugar sauce in a sauce pan set over medium heat. Bring to a simmer, and cook until the sauce thickens slightly—about ten minutes—then remove it from the heat. The sauce will continue to thicken as it cools.
    5. In a small bowl, whisk together all of the ingredients for the scallion oil.
    6. Serve the chicken drizzled with sriracha-brown sugar sauce and scallion oil.

    Nutrition Info

    • Per Serving
    • Amount
    • Calories389
    • Protein40 g
    • Carbohydrates20 g
    • Total Fat22 g
    • Dietary Fiber1 g
    • Cholesterol0 mg
    • sodium857 mg
    • Total Sugars17 g

    Lemongrass Chicken Thighs

    Questions & Reviews

    Join the discussion below.

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    • Alice Sharp

      Can I make the siriacha sauce and scallion oil ahead of time to save me time?

      Sure!

    • sharon

      I'm planning to use bone-in thighs. Other than additional time, any other things I should keep in mind?

      That should be it. Hope you enjoy!

    • Faythe A Flynn

      I'm going to make this over the weekend, I don't have a stalk of lemongrass its already crushed per say so how much of that lemongrass should I use?

      If it is already minced, probably about a 1/2 tablespoon. If you are using a paste probably just 1 teaspoon. Hope you enjoy!

    • Kathryn White

      These sound delicious! Could you bake these instead of pan frying?

      Sure! Try 425°F oven for 20 minutes until the internal temperature reaches 165°F.

    • Kim Vanderzee

      This was super yummy! Bright, fresh flavors. I actually skipped the scallion oil and made a slaw on the side and it was perfect.

      Thanks Kim, so glad you love it!

    • Janel Kumari Sharma

      This is really good, but the salt measurement in the lemongrass paste seems to be way too high. I would cut it down by half, and I have a very salty palate... Otherwise a super good recipe.

      Thank you Janel! We are glad you enjoyed it sorry to hear it was too salty for you. Looks like you already know how to remedy it for your preference by cutting the amount of salt if you decide to make it in the future.

    • Heather

      Will do again.
      Prep was a little long but well worth it.

      Thanks Heather, so happy you loved it!

    • Hannah R

      So delicious! My boyfriend and I loved this chicken. I followed the recipe except, I used bone in skin on chicken thighs and baked them in the oven with the lemongrass paste. Loved the sauces! Next time I’ll skip the kosher salt because the soy sauce is quite salty but not too bad. This one is a keeper!!

      Thanks Hannah, so happy you both loved it!

    • amy schrob

      Wow! I've never cooked with lemon grass before. This was ridiculously flavorful! A great introduction for me into that saucy yumminess. Thank you.

      That is so great to hear Amy! Happy you loved it!