Grilled Lemongrass Chicken

Instructions

1. Before You Start…Please note that this recipe requires 1 hour of marinating time. Gather all the ingredients.
2. Remove the outer skin of lemongrass until you see the tender inner part. We only need the bottom third and slice it thinly. Mince cilantro stems.
3. Rinse and score the chicken pieces, at the thickest part, lightly with a knife.
4. Chop Thai chilies and Thai palm sugar into small pieces.
5. Make a coarse paste with the lemongrass, cilantro stems, chilies, and peppercorns using a mortar and pestle (or a mini-food processor).
6. Mix in the fish sauce and palm sugar until the sugar dissolves.
7. Coat the chicken with this spice paste. I put the spice paste and chicken in a Ziploc bag. Marinate in the fridge for at least one hour. Marinating chicken overnight always improves the flavor and tenderization.
8. Preheat the grill to medium-low heat. Slowly grill the chicken, turning often until cooked through and golden brown all over. Alternatively you can rotisserie, bake, or broil this chicken until cooked through to an internal temperature of 165ºF (75ºC). We have a gas grill, but we also like cooking on a grill over charcoal so the flavor is good.
9. Combine all the ingredients in a small saucepan and bring to a boil.
10. Boil over medium heat for 10 minutes or until the mixture has reduced to 1 cup (240 ml). It might still be runny and not syrupy, but it will thicken further as it cools. Remove from the heat and cool to room temperature before storing in the refrigerator for up to 2-3 months.
11. Serve with wedges of cucumber to snack on and a bowl of Thai Sweet Chili Sauce for dipping.
12. You can keep the leftovers in an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for up to 3 days or in the freezer for a month.