Grilled chicken pieces on a pink plate with two chilli dipping sauces, green papaya salad with peanuts, and sticky rice in a basket — Photo: Takeaway · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Thai · Lunch · Dinner

Gai Yang (Thai-Lao Grilled Chicken)

Name: Gai Yang (Thai-Lao Grilled Chicken)
Prep time: 55 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 75 min
Cuisine: Thai
Ingredients: 8 thighs (about 800 g) boneless skinless chicken thighs; 6 cloves garlic; 1 small handful, chopped cilantro stems and roots; 1 stalk lemongrass; 1 tsp ground white pepper; 1 tbsp fish sauce (for marinade); 1 tbsp palm sugar or brown sugar (for marinade); 1 tsp vegetable oil; 1 tbsp uncooked glutinous (sticky) rice; 2 tsp fish sauce (for dipping sauce); 3 tbsp (about 2 limes) lime juice; 1 tsp dried chilli flakes; 1 small shallot; 1/4 cup chopped cilantro leaves; 1 tsp palm sugar or brown sugar (for dipping sauce); 2 tbsp water; 1 large cucumber

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By BerryFit Kitchen · Nutrition checked with USDA data · Updated Oct 11, 2026 · How we make recipes

Juicy chicken thighs marinated in garlic, cilantro root, lemongrass and white pepper, then grilled until smoky and caramelised. It comes with a tangy, chilli-flecked jaew dipping sauce and cool cucumber.

Prep: 55 min
Cook: 20 min
Total: 75 min
Serves: 4

Medium
Dairy Free
High protein
Low Carb

16%

Per serving317kcal16% of a 2,000 kcal day

41gProtein

15gCarbs

10gFat

1gFiber

Calories come from: Carbs 20% · Fat 28% · Protein 52%

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Ingredients

For 4 servings

8 thighs (about 800 g)boneless skinless chicken thighs
6 cloves18 ggarlic
1 small handful, chopped15 gcilantro stems and roots
1 stalk20 glemongrass
1 tspground white pepper
1 tbsp18 gfish sauce (for marinade)
1 tbsp12 gpalm sugar or brown sugar (for marinade)
1 tsp5 gvegetable oil
1 tbsp12 guncooked glutinous (sticky) rice
2 tsp12 gfish sauce (for dipping sauce)
3 tbsp (about 2 limes)45 glime juice
1 tspdried chilli flakes
1 small30 gshallot
1/4 cup chopped8 gcilantro leaves
1 tsppalm sugar or brown sugar (for dipping sauce)
2 tbsp30 gwater
1 large300 gcucumber

Steps

1
Trim the tough outer layer from the lemongrass and finely chop the tender lower part.
2
Pound or blend the garlic, cilantro stems and roots, lemongrass and white pepper into a coarse paste.
3
Stir the 1 tbsp fish sauce, the 1 tbsp sugar and the oil into the paste.
4
Trim visible fat from the chicken thighs and coat them well in the marinade.
5
Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes, or up to overnight.
6
Meanwhile, toast the glutinous rice in a dry pan over medium heat for about 5 minutes, stirring, until deep golden.
7
Let the toasted rice cool, then grind it to a coarse powder.
8
Thinly slice the shallot.
9
Mix the 2 tsp fish sauce, the lime juice, chilli flakes, the 1 tsp sugar and the water until the sugar dissolves.
10
Stir the shallot, cilantro leaves and toasted rice powder into the sauce to make the jaew.
11
Heat a grill or grill pan to medium-high.
12
Grill the chicken for 6–8 minutes per side, turning once, until charred in spots and cooked through to 74 °C / 165 °F inside.
13
Rest the chicken for 5 minutes, then slice it.
14
Cut the cucumber into thick slices.
15
Serve the chicken with the cucumber and the jaew for dipping.

Swaps, storage and make-ahead

Swaps

Use bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs for a more traditional gai yang, adding a few minutes to the grilling time, or grill a spatchcocked whole chicken over medium heat for considerably longer, turning often; either way, cook until it reaches 74 °C / 165 °F in the thickest part.
Swap the palm sugar for the same amount of light brown sugar or honey if palm sugar is hard to find.
For a gluten-free meal, choose a fish sauce labelled gluten-free for both the marinade and the jaew, since every other ingredient is naturally gluten-free.
If you can't find cilantro roots, use extra cilantro stems plus a little grated lime zest in the marinade.

Storage

Refrigerate leftover chicken in a covered container within 2 hours and eat within 3 to 4 days, reheating until steaming hot; it can also be frozen for up to 2 to 3 months. Keep the jaew in a sealed jar in the fridge for 2 to 3 days, but slice the cucumber fresh as it goes soggy once cut.

Make ahead

Marinate the chicken in the fridge up to overnight, and toast and grind the rice powder a few days ahead, storing it airtight at room temperature. Mix the jaew liquid ahead, but stir in the shallot, cilantro and rice powder just before serving.

Nutrition values are for the recipe as written.

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Allergens and nutrition

Contains: Fish

Check the labels of packaged ingredients for allergens and suitability for your diet.

Full nutrition

	Per serving (333 g)	Per 100 g
Calories	317 kcal	95 kcal
Protein	41.3 g	12.4 g
Carbohydrates	15.3 g	4.6 g
of which sugars	6.3 g	1.9 g
Fiber	1.3 g	0.4 g
Fat	9.7 g	2.9 g
of which saturated	2.4 g	0.7 g
Sodium	787 mg	236 mg

Nutrition is calculated from USDA FoodData Central data and may differ from what you cook.