Stir-Fry
Jade Chicken Spring Rolls with Lemongrass,Scallions, Ginger and Coconut
- Makes 7-8 spring rolls
Author Notes
The chicken is cooked with a piquant aromatic lemongrass paste and coconut milk, which makes for a very moist filling, complemented by the freshness of the slivered scallion greens and the sweet crunch of the coconut and taro.There's so much flavor, you won't even be thinking about a dipping sauce! —LeBec Fin
What You'll Need
Ingredients
- Lemongrass Scallion Paste 3/4 cup*
-
Puree lemongrass through salt:
-
1 large stalk
lemongrass, edible part, sliced thinly
-
1 piece Fresh Ginger 2x1" piece, peeled and minced
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3
Garlic Cloves, peeled and chopped
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3
scallions or shallots, sliced thin
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1 teaspoon
dried Red Chili flakes(no seeds)or 1 seeded dry red chile, chopped
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3
medium Jalapeno Peppers, seeded chopped
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3
Cilantro Stems(leaves and stems), 8“long, washed, dried and chopped
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½ -1
tablespoons kosher Salt
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1/8
cup Canola Oil
- Spring Roll Filling Preparation and Assembly
-
1/2 cup
sweetened coconut, carefully dry pan-roasted to medium brown
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2-3
scallion green tops, sliced lengthwise into quarters, 4" long
-
1-2 tablespoons
canola oil
-
7 ounces
chicken breast, boneless, skinless, roughly chopped
-
1/4 cup
Lemongrass scallion paste from above
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1/8 cup
thick coconut milk (Chaukoh is excellent - see photo)
-
1 tablespoon
bacon or duck fat
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7 ounces
optional- purple taro, peeled and cut into 1/16" x 3" long julienne
-
2-3 tablespoons
water
-
4
scallion tops, green stems halved and cut into 6" lengths, steamed a few minutes til limp
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7-8
spring roll wrappers, 8" square
-
canola oil for deep frying
Directions
- In hot canola oil, stir fry chicken one minute, add lemongrass paste and continue stirring a few minutes just until firm. Transfer to bowl, add coconut milk and stir well. Cool and pulse briefly 2-3 times in processor. You do not want a pureed paste. You want pieces a little bigger than ground chicken. Place in bowl on counter, next to the bowls of coconut and sliced scallion tops.
- Optional taro- Wipe out pan, heat fat til hot, add taro and stir fry a minute, add water and top with lid, turning down heat, til taro is tender, about 4 minutes. Transfer to bowl and place next to bowl of coconut.
- Just before assembly, combine coconut with chicken (so coconut stays crunchy.) Keeping package of spring roll wrappers covered with a damp towel,separately lay out two spring rolls like diamonds, on the counter. Form 1 ounce of chicken mixture into a 4" long cigar shape and place horizontally, just south of the middle of the diamond.Place a scallion slice on either long side of the chicken. Place the optional taro on top of the chicken.
- Fold up the botton point and tuck it tightly over and under the chicken. Fold in the left and right points and continue rolling the diamond til you have a tight roll. Set aside under a well dampened cloth.
- In canola oil, deep fry the rolls at 375 degrees F until light brown. Do not crowd the pan. Drain on doubled paper towels over newspaper. For special presentation, tie a steamed scallion piece into a double knot around the middle of each roll before serving.
- Note: I designed these so that the filling flavor is robust enough to not need a dipping sauce.
- Note: I keep wrapped lemongrass, ginger root and jalapenos in the freezer. Surprisingly, they last forever without losing their potency.
- Note: Purple taro, found in Asian and SouthEast Asian stores (and often Latin) tastes like a sweet nutty potato. I like the flavor and texture the taro julienne adds to these rolls, but it is optional. Though completely different, you could instead add chopped roasted cashews to the filling.
- *Note: This paste freezes very well. Because of the oil, it freezes soft and a small amount can be removed frozen as needed. Thus, it makes for a handy instant poultry or meat marinade and coating for roasting or grilling.
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My eating passions are Japanese, Indian, Mexican; with Italian and French following close behind. Turkish/Arabic/Mediterranean cuisines are my latest culinary fascination. My desert island ABCs are actually 4 Cs: citrus, cumin, cilantro, cardamom, and GARLIC! I am so excited by the level of sophistication that I see on Food52 and hope to contribute recipes that will inspire you like yours do me. I would like to ask a favor of all who do try a recipe of mine > Would you plse review it and tell me truthfully how it worked for you and/or how you think it would be better? I know many times we feel that we don't want to hurt someone's feelings, but. i really do want your honest feedback because it can only help me improve the recipe.Thanks so much.
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