Chicken larb

Before you start

• soak the sticky rice at least 4 hours ahead, and overnight is better
• a steamer basket, or a colander over a pan

Ingredients

Serves 2 · dimmer marks are storecupboard

• 350gchicken mince
• 90gsticky rice — and a spoonful of it kept back raw, for the toasted powder
• 3shallots
• 3spring onions
• 1 large handfulmint
• 1 handfulcoriander
• 1lemongrass
• 2 tbspfish sauce
• 2limes
• 1 tspchilli flakes
• 1 handfullettuce leaves

Method

7 steps

1. soak · 4 hours walk away

   Sticky rice under plenty of cold water. Four hours is the minimum and it will not steam properly on less.

2. grill · 7m

   The reserved spoonful of raw rice toasted in a dry pan, shaken constantly, until it is the colour of weak tea, then cooled and ground to a coarse sand in a mortar. This is what gives larb its texture, and there is no substitute for it.

3. steam · 25m walk away

   Soaked rice drained and steamed over boiling water in a lined basket until it is translucent and chewy all the way through.

4. simmer · 9m

   Mince into a hot dry pan with three or four tablespoons of water, broken up hard with a spoon from the first moment, and cooked until there is no pink anywhere in it and the water has gone. No oil goes in at any point.

5. chop · 8m

   Shallots sliced paper thin, spring onions cut fine, lemongrass shaved from the tender base only, herbs torn.

6. fold · 4m

   Fish sauce, lime and chilli flakes stirred into the warm mince, then the rice powder, then the herbs last. Taste it: sour first, then salty, then hot.

7. finish · 2m

   Onto a plate with the lettuce and the sticky rice alongside, both of which are cutlery here rather than side dishes.