Thai Grilled Chicken is one of my favorite chicken dishes. It’s savory and umami-filled from the combination of aromatics, herbs, and Asian seasonings!
This recipe is inspired by one of my favorite chicken dishes that I order from Thai restaurants. Thai Grilled Chicken or Gai Yang is a popular street food traditionally made by pounding together peppercorns, coriander seeds, garlic, and lemongrass in a mortar and pestle to really extract the flavors.
The pounded mixture is fresh and herby, then seasonings are added to create a really savory and umami-filled sauce for the chicken.
The recipe I’m going to share, however, is super easy and copies the authentic flavors of Thai Chicken, but with home cook-friendly ingredients and methods. This is one of those dishes you can quickly chop up for your family on a busy weeknight!
Ingredients for Gai Yang
Boneless Chicken Thighs
Traditionally, they use whole butterflied chicken to make the Gai Yang, but I love using boneless chicken thighs in any chicken recipe because they are easy to cook and they remain juicy.
You can use chicken breast but do note that it can easily dry out so watch out for what when you cook. You can also use chopped chicken and skewered on a stick to turn it into a BBQ!
Thai Grilled Chicken Sauce
Disclaimer: I get a small commission at no additional cost to you when you make a qualified purchase under the affiliate links.
For this recipe, I made it super easy by using 2 tablespoons of all the seasonings, 1 tablespoons of all the aromatics, and 1/3 cup (or as much as you like) of cilantro. Easy to remember right?
- Soy Sauce – One of the bases of the sauce that will provide a lowkey umami flavor. Use regular soy sauce.
- Fish Sauce – Another base of the sauce that will provide a strong savory and salty flavor. This is a must-have in the sauce!
- Oyster Sauce – Optional, but adds umami to the marinade.
- Sugar – This will balance out the combination of the two seasonings and make the sauce sooo tasty!
- Olive Oil – For additional moisture when pan-searing the chicken.
- Sesame Oil – For nuttiness and earthiness.
- Garlic and Ginger – For aroma and fresh flavor.
- Jalapeño – For the spicy kick, this is optional.
- Cilantro Leaves – This is what’s going to set it apart from other chicken marinades. The flavor of cilantro is going to add that zing that makes it Thai grilled chicken!
- Black Pepper – For spice and contrast to all the saltiness
This recipe is good for 2-3lbs of boneless chicken thighs so simply multiply if you’re making more.
How to Make Thai Grilled Chicken
To begin, prepare the aromatics and herbs by chopping finely the garlic, ginger, jalapeño peppers, and cilantro.
In a bowl, combine soy sauce, fish sauce, oyster sauce, sugar, olive oil, sesame oil, aromatics and herbs, and some freshly ground black pepper. Mix it thoroughly until the sugar is dissolved and the rest of the ingredients are well combined.
Add the thawed chicken to the bowl and massage the sauce into its every crease. Use your hand so it’s thorough! It should smell really good at this point!
Cover the chicken and let it marinate for a minimum of 30 minutes or more. The longer it marinates, the tastier it is! While marinating, cook some rice because that’s the best pair for this! Oooh!
To cook, there are several ways you can do it: Pan-seared, grilled, oven-baked, or air fried.
For this recipe, I prefer to pan searing it on a skillet or nonstick pan so it’s quick. To ensure perfectly cooked chicken thighs:
- In medium-high heat and about 2-3 tablespoons of oil, heat up the pan.
- Once the pan is heated well, place the chicken, and do not touch it! During the searing, the sugar caramelizes, the sauce is reduced, and all the flavor is concentrated on the chicken. Just like a perfectly cooked steak, the crust created is going to be a flavor bomb!
- Sear the chicken for 5-7 minutes. When the chicken is not sticking to the pan anymore and is beautifully golden, flip, and sear the other side for another 5-7 minutes until golden brown.
- Check for doneness by sticking an internal thermometer in the thickest part of the chicken, it should read 165F.
- Remove from the pan, plate, and enjoy!
If you prefer to bake or air fry the chicken, use the following setting:
- Oven-baked: 400F for 20 minutes
- Air fried: 400F for 15 minutes, flipping halfway through
Tips to make Thai Grilled Chicken Successfully:
- To ensure food safety, marinate the chicken while it is still thawed from the store OR thaw it completely in the fridge so it remains cold but soft enough that the marinade can penetrate.
- Keep an eye on the chicken as you cook. Since the marinade contains sugar, it can quickly caramelize and burn. Either control the heat of the pan by lowering it or flip the chicken as needed.
Sides for Thai Grilled Chicken
Usually, when I order this in Thai restaurants, it is served with green papaya salad and sticky rice. It can be dipped in sweet chili sauce, your favorite peanut sauce, or nam jim jaew or tamarind sauce.
However, you can also enjoy this as is with regular salads, Korean banchan like cucumber, radish, broccoli, beansprouts, plain rice, or even noodles. It’s a very versatile dish but a total level up from your usual chicken!
Other chicken dishes you might like:
- Easy Chicken Curry
- Ginseng Chicken Soup
- Yakitori
- Spicy Chicken Stew
- Soy Garlic Chicken Wings
- Spicy Garlic Chicken Wings
Make sure to leave a rating, a comment, or tag me on Facebook, Instagram, or Tiktok when you chop them up! Yeobosayo!
Thai Grilled Chicken (Gai Yang)
Ingredients
- 3 lbs Boneless Chicken Thighs
- 2 tbsp Soy Sauce
- 2 tbsp Fish Sauce
- 1 tbsp Oyster Sauce
- 2 tbsp Olive Oil
- 1 tbsp Sesame Oil
- 2 tbsp Sugar
- 1 tbsp Garlic Finely chopped
- 1 tbsp Ginger Finely chopped
- 1 tbsp Jalapeno Chopped
- 1/3 cup Cilantro Chopped
- Black Pepper To taste
Instructions
- Prepare the aromatics and herbs by finely chopping the garlic, ginger, cilantro, and jalapeño peppers.
- In a bowl, combine soy sauce, fish sauce, olive oil, sugar, garlic, ginger, jalapeño, cilantro, and freshly ground black pepper. Mix it thoroughly and set aside.
- Remove the fats from the thawed chicken, then add it to the marinade. Massage the marinade into every crease of the chicken.
- Cover the chicken and marinate it for a minimum of 30 minutes. The longer it marinates, the tastier it is.
- In medium-high heat and 2-3 tablespoons of oil, heat up the pan well.
- Once heated, place the chicken to sear for 5-7 minutes. Do not touch it so it creates a beautiful golden brown crust.
- Once ready to flip (freely unsticks to the pan), flip and do the same to the other side.
- Stick an internal thermometer to the thickest part of the chicken and once it reads 165F, it is done.
- Serve hot and enjoy!
Leave a Reply