Coconut Milk Braised Chicken (Whole Bird with Lemongrass)
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
My coconut milk braised chicken features a whole bird, gently cooked until the meat pulls apart with a fork, then it’s finished with a lemongrass, ginger, and lime sauce made right in the pot. I spread the lemongrass paste under the skin before searing, so the breast is seasoned all the way through instead of leaving the sauce to do all the work.
My recipe is a whole chicken braised in flavored coconut milk until the meat becomes so tender it pulls off the bone. I season the braising liquid with curry paste, lemongrass, ginger, and lime sauce, which flavors the chicken as it cooks. What started as my Thai take on Jamie Oliver’s chicken in milk is still one of my favorite ways to cook a whole bird.
The trick is where the flavor goes. I spread a paste of lemongrass, ginger, and coconut oil under the skin, right on the breast meat, so the leanest part of the chicken gets seasoned directly. In recipe testing, I learned this is what keeps the breast from tasting like plain poached chicken. Just make sure not to get any of the paste on the chicken skin, or it will burn.
I keep the braising liquid simple: lime, garlic, cilantro stems, and a spoonful of green curry paste cooked into a can of coconut milk. After the chicken comes out, I reduce it down to a silky sauce that tastes great spooned over my favorite coconut rice.
What braising does to a whole chicken
Braising cooks meat slowly in a covered pot with a small amount of liquid. On a whole chicken, the legs and thighs are full of connective tissue, and that gentle, moist heat melts it down until the meat pulls off the bone. The breast is the part that can dry out, which is why the lemongrass paste goes under the skin and the bird sits breast side up, above the coconut milk. The sear at the start gives the chicken its color, and the coconut milk does double duty: it braises the chicken, then reduces into the sauce.
What to serve with coconut milk braised chicken
I love to serve this chicken over something that catches the sauce. Coconut rice is my favorite here, but plain basmati or jasmine rice works just as well. For a vegetable, roasted broccoli is what I make most often, because the crispy edges hold onto the sauce. If you want something fresh next to all that richness, a crunchy cabbage slaw with lime is a good contrast.
Coconut Milk Braised Chicken (Whole Bird with Lemongrass)
Ingredients
- 4 lb whole chicken
- 4 tablespoons melted coconut oil (divided)
- 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon ginger paste (divided – see notes)
- 1 tablespoon lemongrass paste
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- Zest and juice of 1 lime
- 4 cloves garlic (minced)
- 1 tablespoon Thai green curry paste
- 10 stems cilantro (leaves and stems separated)
- 14 ounce can coconut milk (about 2 cups)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. In a small bowl, mix 2 tablespoons of the melted coconut oil with 1 teaspoon of the ginger paste, the lemongrass paste, and salt. In another small bowl, mix the remaining tablespoon of ginger paste with the lime zest and juice, garlic, green curry paste, and the cilantro stems.1 tablespoon lemongrass paste, 1 teaspoon fine sea salt, Zest and juice of 1 lime, 4 cloves garlic, 1 tablespoon Thai green curry paste, 10 stems cilantro, 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon ginger paste
- If there is a string tying your chicken, remove it. Dry the chicken with paper towels. Carefully seperate the skin from the chicken breast, trying not to tear the skin. Using a spoon, spread the mixture with the lemongrass under the chicken skin. If any gets on the chicken skin, remove it with paper towels or it will burn.4 lb whole chicken
- Heat one tablespoon of oil in a large pot or braiser. Place the chicken in the pan, bottom side down, and sear it on all sides until it is nicely browned. Use tongs to turn the chicken, inserting one tong end into the chicken and gripping the outside with the other end. When browned, remove the chicken from the pan and pour out the oil. (See notes)
- Add the remaining tablespoon of oil to the pot, then add the green curry paste mixture. Cook for 1 minute, then pour in the coconut milk. Place the chicken in the pot, breast side up, cover, and bake for 2 hours, until the breast meat reaches 165 degrees Fahrenheit.14 ounce can coconut milk
- Remove the chicken from the pot and let it rest for 10 minutes before carving. Bring the liquid in the pot to a simmer over medium-high heat and reduce it to 1 cup.
- Serve the chicken with the reduced sauce on the side, topped with cilantro.
Notes
Nutrition
We have thoroughly tested this recipe for accuracy. However, individual results may vary. See our full recipe disclosure here.
Has this recipe been amended for use in a clay pot (Romrtopf)
We haven’t tried it in a clay pot. 🙂
Breast side Up? Picture looks breast side Down
Yep, breast side up!
COCONUT MILK BRAISED CHICKEN
This looks delicious and I plan on making it soon.
However, why does you chicken photo show red chili peppers and slices of lemon when neither are included in your recipe ingredient list as additions?
The chili pepper doesn’t add much to the flavor, but if you like it spicy, a minced chili pepper would do the trick. The lime on the side is just for serving. Totally optional1
Sounds delicious! Can this be made in a Dutch oven?
Yes! It works great in a dutch oven!
This recipe looks delicious!
Since I am a fan of sous vide cooking with Anova precision cooker, I’d like to adapt this recipe to the sous vide method. I can use chicken parts, like thighs and drumsticks, instead of the whole chicken and distribute them between sous vide bags. The problem is that it is impractical to add the braising liquid in such quantities to the chicken parts in the bags. Instead, I think of using the mixture of all the ingredients of your recipe as a marinade for the meat. Then I would reuse the marinade as a braising liquid for veggies to accompany the chicken and finally add the chicken back into the sauce.
Will it work, in your opinion?
I love my Anova, too! But I honestly haven’t experimented with it enough to know if it will work with this recipe. The only time I tried to sous vide chicken it was a bit of a disaster and I haven’t tried since. But your idea certainly seems worth trying!
Fantastic recipe! Will definitely be making this a regular meal. I subbed fresh graded lemongrass and ginger instead of the paste.
This sounds delish….want to make it today but unfortunately only have red curry paste…would that work and allergic to cilantro…can I use parsley instead? Just discovered your site and can’t wait to try all these yummy recipes…great work!
Red will work just fine! I hope you love this recipe as much as we do!
OMG, this looks AMAZING. I found your recipe after looking for milk chicken recipes and was totally intrigued by this unique twist on the Jamie Oliver-esque recipes. I’m wondering – have you ever made this (or anything similar) with just chicken thighs (still bone-in with skin on)? Also, do you have any sense of how the recipe would be affected by using lite coconut milk? That’s all I have because the stores near me haven’t had regular/full fat coconut milk in weeks (and also, since I have asthma, I’m trying to super-limit my store trips). I may just try this anyway with what I have, but advice on any changes to cook time or other if not using the whole chicken would be awesome. Thank you again!
You could definitely adjust this recipe to make it with thighs. I would reduce the cooking time to about 40 minutes – though check them to see if they are done at that time. Light coconut milk should work, too. It may not be as creamy but worth it to avoid a trip to the store. 🙂
How is 325 a low heat in the oven? Mine only goes to 250
325 Fahrenheit, which is 162 Celcius. 🙂
This was a winner in the slow cooker – just added some extra water and let it cook all day on low. So delicious. The leftover stock would be a great asian soup base too.
So awesome to know that it can be made in a slow cooker!
Oh i love braised chicken, especially this one, a taste of thai, so love to eat this.
I’m so happy you like the recipe!!
Today is the fourth time I’ve made this recipe in the last 6 weeks and it’s so delicious! My new favourite recipe, bursting with flavour! The first time I made it on the stove and while the skin didn’t crisp up and the sauce didn’t thicken, it was the most tender chicken I’d ever had. I’ve since made it in the oven, and that’s definitely my favourite way of cooking it. Thanks for such an amazing recipe! I’m doing lots of gut healing and recipes like this are just perfect.
I’m so happy you like the recipe! Hooray!
Made this yesterday & it was so divine! Prep was pretty simple as well. Thanks for sharing!
I’m so happy to hear you like the recipe!!! 🙂
This looks so delicious! Would it be possible to brown it and then put it in the slow cooker with the rest of the ingredients? Or is there a reason not to?
Hi Sherralee,
I haven’t tried this recipe in a slow cooker yet but my hunch is that it would work great. If you make it in your slow cooker I’d love to hear how it turns out!
AMAZINGNESS!
If you make ahead, can you store the chicken and sauce together? If not, why must you separate it? Thank you!
Hi Chelsea,
That’s a really good point you bring up! I always store it separately as it works best for me with my sheet pans and my tiny fridge. But … you can definitely store them together if that works better for you.
Thank you for your reply!
OMG OMG!! I blogged Jamie’s Chicken in Milk a few weeks ago! It’s one of the best roast chickens I have ever EVER had! I adore this. I am totally going to make it on Sat night!! I have a Thai curry soup recipe I use, slight variation on what you use, I reckon it will work great!
How did I ever miss that blog post? I totally love milk chicken!
Let me know how you like the recipe. I hope you love it as much as I do!!