Chicken Larb Recipe

Our healthy chicken larb recipe requires nothing more than a few simple ingredients and 15 minutes to make.

If you don’t know what it is, here are some facts about today’s dish.

What Is Larb?

Larb, also known as laab, is a national dish of Laos. It’s a type of meat salad often served with sticky rice and crunchy vegetables.

The dish contains minced meat — usually chicken, pork, beef, or fish, mixed with fresh mint and toasted ground glutinous rice. Larb is generally seasoned with fish sauce, lime juice, fermented fish paste, and red pepper flakes.

Although the dish originated in Laos, it’s also widely popular in Thailand and internationally.

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Is This Chicken Larb Healthy?

Yes, our chicken larb recipe is healthy. Here is why:

• Lean chicken meat: As mentioned, larb can also be made with beef, pork, or fish, but we’re using boneless, skinless chicken breast. It’s much lower in fat and calories compared to ground beef and pork, yet contains more protein.
• Low in fat: Since we’re using skinless chicken, the main sources of fat in this recipe are only canola oil and roasted peanuts. But don’t worry, both of them provide you with only 2 grams of saturated fat per serving.
• Monitoring the sodium content: Our recipe contains both salt and fish sauce to ensure the dish is well-seasoned. But don’t worry, it’s less than 600 mg of sodium per serving, which means it’s still within your recommended limit.

Want to know about your daily recommended intake of sodium and more? Check out our healthy eating guidelines.

Ingredients You'll Need

Here are the main ingredients to our chicken larb recipe:

• Meat: We’re using ground boneless, skinless chicken breast for this recipe but there are a few other options for you to pick. We’ll get to that in a minute.
• Aromatics and seasonings: We’re sautéing the chicken with red onions and minced garlic. After that, we season it with lime juice, sugar, black pepper, salt, fish sauce, chili powder, and sriracha.
• Vegetables: Larb goes well with crunchy vegetables so we’re serving our chicken larb with cucumber and iceberg lettuce. You can also use carrots or cabbage as well.
• Rice: Traditionally, larb is served with glutinous rice but for today’s recipe, we’re going for medium-grain white rice.

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Can You Substitute the Meat in This Recipe?

Yes, you can.

Larb can be made with other types of protein such as ground beef, pork, duck, or fish.

If you’re using ground meat, we suggest using one with a high percentage of lean meat (80% or higher). This helps reduce your fat intake as much as possible.

As for fish, freshwater catfish or tilapia are traditionally used. That being said, saltwater fish such as cod or haddock work just as well.

If you’re vegan, you can be creative and reinvent this recipe using mushroom, corn, and/or tofu. If you do try it, please let us know in the comment section below.

How to Store and Reheat the Leftover

Leftover chicken larb should be kept in an airtight container in the refrigerator where it’ll last up to 7 days. Be sure to keep the chicken and other fresh vegetables such as cucumber and iceberg lettuce in separate containers.

Larb will also last for up to a month in the freezer. You can store it in either a freezer-safe container or a Ziploc bag.

Transfer the chicken to a microwavable container and reheat it for 2 minutes. If your chicken larb is frozen, you should let it thaw or defrost it in the microwave before reheating.

Side Dishes

We’re serving our chicken larb with a side of Thai mango salad.

On one hand, the chicken is flavorful and savory. On the other hand, the salad is spicy, sweet, and sour.

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Eaten together, they create a balance of all the flavors in one single bite. Try for yourself and you’ll see that these two Thai-inspired dishes pair so well you’ll think they were made for each other.

Meals You Can Hold With One Hand

With so many flavors and textures to offer, tacos are our ultimate favorite to make for our family gatherings. These ground chicken tacos are loaded with crunchy lettuce, tender ground chicken, juicy tomatoes, onions, spices, and herbs—transforming the simple into the incredible.

To offer more on your taco Tuesday, have these BBQ chicken tacos made as well. Inside each crispy shell sit a colorful mix of crisp veg on top of smoky, spicy chicken shreds. We keep everything moist and rich with the white sauce we whip up from scratch, which involves just pantry-staples.

Chicken Larb Recipe

5 from 1 vote

Our healthy chicken larb recipe takes only 5 minutes to prepare and 10 to cook. Your dinner will be ready in a blink of an eye.

- by Tuyet Pham, Luna Regina, 2021-12-27

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• cook TIME 10 mins
• prep TIME 5 mins
• total TIME 15 mins

• COURSE Main Course
• CUISINE Thai
• SERVINGS
  4

  servings
• CALORIES 498 kcal

INGREDIENTS

1x2x3x

• 15 oz skinless boneless chicken breast (ground)
• 4 oz cucumber (sliced)
• 4 oz iceberg lettuce (separated)
• 2 oz red onions (finely diced)
• 2 oz peanuts (roasted)
• 2 tbsp canola oil
• 2 tbsp lemon grass (minced)
• 2 tbsp garlic (minced)
• 1 tbsp lime juice
• 1 tbsp ginger (minced)
• 1/2 tbsp Thai fish sauce
• 2 tsp cornstarch
• 3 tbsp water
• 2 tsp brown sugar
• 1 tsp red bird’s eye chilli
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 3 cups cooked medium-grain rice
• 0.25 oz mint leaves (chopped)
• 0.25 oz coriander (chopped)
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp unsalted chili powder
• 1 tsp sriracha

INSTRUCTIONS

Image instructions

1

Sauté the aromatics: In a cast iron over medium heat, add the 2 tbsp canola oil, 2 tbsp garlic, 1 tbsp ginger, and 2 tbsp lemongrass. Stir constantly for 30 seconds or until fragrant. Add the 2 oz red onions and stir for another minute.

2

Cook the chicken: Add 15 oz chicken to the same skillet and cook for 5 minutes. Break any big chunks into smaller pieces and stir occasionally while you cook.

3

Season the chicken: Add 2 tsp cornstarch, 1 tbsp lime juice, 3 tbsp water, 2 tsp sugar, 1/2 tsp pepper, 1/2 tsp salt, 1/2 tbsp fish sauce, 1/2 tsp chili powder, and 1 tsp sriracha. Cook and stir for an additional 3 minutes.

4

Add the herbs: Add the 0.25 oz mint leaves and 0.25 oz coriander. Stir for 30 seconds and turn off the heat.

5

Garnish and serve: Sprinkle with the 2 oz roasted peanuts and 1 tsp bird’s eye chili. Lay 4 oz iceberg lettuce in a large serving platter and scoop the chicken larb on top of the lettuce. Serve with warm, 3 cups cooked rice and 4 oz cucumber.

NUTRITION

Nutrition Facts

Chicken Larb Recipe

Amount Per Serving (1 serving)

Calories 498Calories from Fat 153

% Daily Value*

Fat 17g

26%

Saturated Fat 2g

13%

Polyunsaturated Fat 5g

Monounsaturated Fat 8g

Cholesterol 78mg

26%

Sodium 554mg

24%

Potassium 678mg

19%

Carbohydrate 52g

17%

Fiber 3g

13%

Sugar 4g

4%

Protein 32g

64%

Vitamin A 415IU

8%

Vitamin C 8mg

10%

Calcium 56mg

6%

Iron 4mg

22%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

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