Gà Luộc is a traditional Lunar New Year (Tết) Vietnamese dish meaning boiled (poached) chicken. Serve with fresh herbs and and nuoc cham for a fresh and healthy meal.
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What is Gà Luộc?
Gà Luộc is the Vietnamese word for boiled (poached) chicken. It's a traditional dish of a whole boiled chicken, including the head and feet. It's usually eaten during Lunar New Year (Tết) because the signature yellow colour symbolizes good fortune. This is a great keto and low-carb dish that's packed with flavour!
The way it's poached results in an almost silky texture. It's commonly dipped in a pepper-lime-fish sauce dip and eaten with noodles or rice. It's also served with the famous Viet nuoc cham - garlic chilli dipping sauce!
Of course, Viet food is always served with a pile of fresh herbs. My family wraps the chicken pieces in lettuce to dip into sauces. So fresh and delicious!
Pay the big bucks for organic chicken
For this recipe, it's VERY simple with little ingredients, so chicken quality is key since it's the star of the show. This is why you should pay extra (if you can) to buy organic whole chickens.
Organic chickens have a silkier, richer flavour that isn't found in regular grocery store chicken. This is because organic chickens feed on better quality food, resulting in a better flavour. The skin of organic chicken is also naturally yellow-ish in hue, giving Gà Luộc it's iconic yellow colour.
How to make Gà Luộc
Scrub chicken
Scrub the chicken liberally with coarse kosher salt. This step exfoliates the skin and helps later remove impurities when poaching. Rinse salt off before boiling.
Boil chicken
Gently boil the chicken for ~30-40 minutes with some ginger root and green onion. Don't cover the pot.
Ice bath
Transfer poached chicken immediately in an ice bath to stop the cooking process. The ice bath tightens the skin and locks in the juiciness of the meat.
Carve
Cut off head, neck, wings, and feet. Then, carve the rest of the meat into edible pieces. Traditionally, the entire body is cut with the bone; the meat is not removed from the bone.
Why do I need an ice bath for Gà Luộc?
Ice bath tightens the chicken skin, giving it's signature soft yet chewy texture. It also locks in the meat's juiciness and stops the chicken from overcooking in the residual heat when taken out of the hot water.
Expert Tips
- Save the poaching liquid as broth for other recipes (make Cháo Gà)
- Serve chicken with fresh lime wedges for guests
- Don't salt the water when poaching
- Ensure chicken is fully submerged
- Pick off any feathers on skin before boiling
Herbs to serve
- Cilantro
- Mint
- Thai basil
- Lettuce
- Lime wedges
Other Recipes
Gà Luộc recipe
Viet Boiled Yellow Chicken (Gà Luộc)
Ingredients
- 1 whole organic chicken
- ½ cup coarse kosher salt
- 1 raw ginger root
- 1 bunch green onion
- nuoc cham, herbs, lime wedges to serve
Instructions
- Scrub salt on chicken skin to exfoliate. Rinse salt off when done.
- Put chicken in a stock pot. Fill with water to cover chicken. Add 1 peeled ginger root cut in half and the green onion bunch. Let gently boil for ~40 minutes.
- Immediatley transfer chicken to an ice bath. When chicken is cool enough to tear into pieces, use scissors to cut off neck, head, feet, wings, and meat from the body.
- Serve with nuoc cham, lime wedges, and herbs.
One response to “Viet Boiled Yellow Chicken (Gà Luộc) - Keto, Low Carb”
Love this - make it home all the time