Thai Coconut Milk Grilled Chicken

Election week. I will not write about politics — this is a food blog, a life blog, a kitchen-table blog — but I will say that I stood in line for forty minutes with Miya in the carrier and voted and then came home and made miso soup because miso soup is the only thing I know how to do when the world feels uncertain. Miso soup and yoga and holding my daughter and calling Fumiko and hearing her voice, steady as a metronome, saying, "Eat. Sleep. Cook. The rest will be what it will be." Fumiko has survived internment, racism, widowhood, and eighty-eight years of being Japanese in America. She knows something about weathering uncertainty that the rest of us are only beginning to learn.

I made Fumiko's ginger pork this week — shogayaki — thin slices of pork marinated in soy sauce, mirin, and freshly grated ginger, then pan-fried until caramelized and served over rice with shredded cabbage. It is fast, it is satisfying, it is the kind of meal that takes twenty minutes and makes you feel like you have accomplished something, which I needed this week because I have not felt like I have accomplished anything in seven days except keeping a baby alive and keeping myself from reading the news for more than thirty minutes at a time.

Brian and I agreed, without discussing it, not to talk about politics at home. This is either healthy or avoidant. It is probably both. We watched a movie on Friday night after Miya went to bed — an old comedy, something light — and we laughed at the same parts and for two hours we were just two people on a couch, which is the simplest and most necessary version of marriage.

Miya said "mama" this week. Or she said "mamamama," which Brian insists is babbling and I insist is intentional speech. We are having the same argument we had about the first smile — gas versus meaning — and I am winning this one on volume and repetition, the way Barbara wins arguments, which is to say by simply continuing to state my position until the opposition surrenders. She said mama. She was looking at me. She meant it. Case closed.

I wrote a blog post about ginger pork and comfort and the meals we make when we need to feel capable. It was quiet and short and did not mention anything outside the kitchen, and sometimes the most political thing you can write is a recipe for dinner and the insistence that ordinary life continues, that the stove still works, that the ginger is still sharp, that the rice is still warm.

Shogayaki is Fumiko’s recipe, and I will always make it when I need to feel capable — but this Thai coconut milk grilled chicken has become its neighbor in my rotation, another marinade-forward dish that asks almost nothing of you except the willingness to plan thirty minutes ahead. The coconut milk softens the chicken the way mirin softens pork: gently, without apology. It’s the kind of recipe that doesn’t demand your full attention, which is exactly what I needed the week I couldn’t give my full attention to anything. You can make this when you’re tired, when you’re worried, when you’re just trying to get dinner on the table before the baby wakes up — and it will still come out right.

Prep Time: 15 min (plus 1 hr marinating) | Cook Time: 25 min | Total Time: 40 min active | Servings: 4

Ingredients

2 lbs bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs (or drumsticks)
1 can (13.5 oz) full-fat coconut milk
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, finely grated
2 stalks lemongrass, tender inner stalks only, finely minced
2 tablespoons fish sauce
1 tablespoon brown sugar
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice (about 1 lime)
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, roughly chopped, for serving
Lime wedges, for serving

Instructions

Make the marinade. In a large bowl or zip-top bag, whisk together the coconut milk, garlic, ginger, lemongrass, fish sauce, brown sugar, lime juice, turmeric, and red pepper flakes until the sugar dissolves.
Marinate the chicken. Add the chicken pieces to the marinade, turning to coat thoroughly. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, or overnight for best results. Remove from the refrigerator 20 minutes before grilling.
Preheat the grill. Heat a gas or charcoal grill to medium-high (about 400°F). Lightly oil the grates. If using a grill pan indoors, heat over medium-high until very hot.
Grill the chicken. Remove chicken from the marinade, letting excess drip off. Grill skin-side down for 8–10 minutes, until the skin is deeply golden and releases easily from the grates. Flip and cook another 12–15 minutes, until an instant-read thermometer inserted near the bone reads 165°F.
Rest and serve. Transfer to a cutting board and rest for 5 minutes. Arrange on a platter, scatter with fresh cilantro, and serve with lime wedges and steamed jasmine rice.

Nutrition (per serving)

Thai Coconut Milk Grilled Chicken — A Marinade for Uncertain Weeks