Vietnamese Noodles with Lemongrass Chicken (Bun Ga Nuong) is one of my signature dishes! Vermicelli noodles topped with fresh vegetables and herbs, an incredible lemongrass marinated chicken and drizzled with Nuoc Cham, the chilli garlic sauce that’s served with everything in Vietnam!
Easy enough for midweek meals, and a sensational CHEAP meal idea for large groups! Either cook the chicken in large batches on the BBQ, or even bake them, and put out all the toppings in bowls for people to help themselves!
Vietnamese Noodles with Lemongrass Chicken
This is a recipe that has many fond memories associated with it because it’s one of my signature recipes that I make as a meal for large groups. Other than how delicious it is (and the Vietnamese lemongrass marinade really is exceptional!), here’s why it’s one of my all time favourite recipes:
it’s cheap and simple to make
can be fully prepared ahead (including the noodles and chopping the vegetables)
it’s gluten free (cater for dietary requirements)
healthy
versatile – use the same marinade for tofu, prawns/shrimp, fish, other meats
easy to serve a crowd – chicken can be cooked in large batches on the BBQ, or even baked
no assembly – lay all the components out on the table for people to help themselves
Camping, on boats, weekends away, hen’s night – these Vietnamese Noodles with Lemongrass Chicken has made an appearance at many events!
Vietnamese Lemongrass Chicken
The entire Vietnamese noodle bowl as a whole is so delicious, but I have to say that the Lemongrass Chicken is the stand out. The marinade is fantastic. The earthy lemony flavour from the lemongrass combined with the garlic and complex savoury flavours from the fish sauce and soy sauce makes a killer flavour that will have your neighbours popping their heads over the fence if you cook this on the outdoor grill!
What goes in Lemongrass Chicken
Here’s what goes in the Lemongrass Chicken.
Fresh lemongrass is best here, but if you can’t find it, then lemongrass paste works very well too.
I know some people aren’t a fan of fish sauce which is quite pungent smelling in raw form! But it’s really the “secret ingredient” here, it’s got far more complex flavours than soy sauce and adds incredible depth of flavour in the chicken. And don’t worry, it doesn’t taste fishy once cooked!
This Vietnamese lemongrass marinade is truly incredible. Everybody raves about it!
Substitute for fish sauce?
If you’re allergic to fish sauce, or really can’t get your hands on it (but please try!!), then substitute the fish sauce with more soy sauce but be aware that your marinade will lack the complexity of flavour in real Vietnamese Lemongrass marinades.
Toppings and sauce
And here are the toppings for this Vietnamese Noodles bowl. Lots of fresh vegetables and herbs, and Nuoc Cham, the Vietnamese chilli garlic sauce that makes an appearance alongside everything in Vietnam (I exaggerate not!!).
Nuoc Cham is made with fish sauce, rice vinegar, sugar, garlic, chilli, sugar and lime juice. It’s got a wonderful balance of sweet/savoury and tang, and basically makes everything taste better – whether you drizzle or dunk things in it!
Feel free to switch up the fresh vegetables! Try snow peas, cabbage, capsicum/bell peppers and other crunchy fresh greens!
How to make it
The making part is very straight forward. You’ll see me cook the chicken on a grill in the video – Lemongrass Chicken is traditionally cooked over charcoal in Vietnam – but you can of course cook it on the stove or even in the oven or under the broiler!
This Vietnamese dish is healthy eating without compromise!
To me, these Vietnamese Noodles with Lemongrass Chicken is the epitome of healthy eating without compromise. Low in fat, lots of fresh salads brought to life with bright zingy flavours. The Nuoc Cham sauce has so much flavour, you can scoff down loads of the salad and go light on the chicken and noodles if you’re really wanting to cut down on the calories.
And one last tip – the marinated lemongrass chicken is perfect for popping in the freezer. So make a batch right now!! 🙂 – Nagi x
Watch how to make it
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Vietnamese Noodles with Lemongrass Chicken
Ingredients
Chicken and Marinade
- 600 – 800g / 1.2 – 1.6lb chicken thigh fillets , skinless and boneless or breast (or pork, beef or any seafood)
- 1 stalk lemongrass , white part only, bruised them sliced into pieces easy to pick out later (Note 1)
- 2 garlic cloves , finely chopped or minced
- 2 tbsp lime juice
- 2 tbsp fish sauce (Note 2)
- 1 tbsp soy sauce (all purpose or light, NOT dark soy)
- 2 tbsp brown sugar
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
Nuoc Cham (Vietnamese Sauce)
- 1/4 cup fish sauce (Note 3)
- 4 tbsp rice vinegar
- 2 tbsp white sugar
- 1/2 cup water
- 2 garlic cloves , finely chopped
- 1 red birds eye chilli , finely chopped (Note 4)
- 3 tbsp lime juice
Noodle Bowl
- 1/2 tbsp oil
- 200 g / 7 oz vermicelli noodles , dried
- 2 carrots , julienned
- 2 cucumbers , julienned (optional: remove seeds)
- 5 cups iceberg lettuce , finely sliced
- 3 cups bean sprouts
- Handful of mint leaves
- Handful of cilantro/coriander
- Sliced red chilli (for garnish – optional)
- Lime wedges (to serve – optional but recommended)
Instructions
Lemongrass Chicken
- Combine Chicken and Marinade ingredients and set aside for at least 1 hour, up to 24 hours. (Note 4)
- Heat 1/2 tbsp oil in a fry pan over medium heat (or heat the BBQ). Remove chicken from marinade, shaking off large bits of lemongrass (small bits should fall off during cooking).
- Place chicken in the pan and cook each side until dark golden brown and chicken is just cooked through – about 6 to 8 minutes in total.
- Remove from pan, shaking off any remaining bits of visible lemongrass and set aside to rest for 5 minutes. Then slice into thin pieces.
Nuoc Cham Sauce
- Combine the Nuoc Cham ingredients and mix well to dissolve the sugar. Adjust to your taste (spiciness, lime, sweetness) and set aside for at least 20 minutes.
Assemble
- Soak the vermicelli noodles in hot water for 3 minutes (or according to packet instructions), then drain and rinse under cold water to stop the noodles from sticking together.
- Individual servings: Place noodles in bowl. Top with vegetables and herbs, and sliced chicken pieces. Drizzle with a few tablespoons of Nuoc Cham Sauce (be generous, ~ 4 tbsp per serving) and serve with lime wedges.
- DIY (my preferred way): Place chicken, vegetables, herbs, noodles and sauce in separate bowls / piled on platters. Then let everyone make their own bowls!
Recipe Notes:
- Make this kid friendly by just serving the chilli on the side.
- To make it GLUTEN FREE, ensure you use GF tamari.
- Sub the vegetables with other vegetables of choice eg. capsicum/bell peppers, snow peas (finely sliced)
Nutrition Information:
Originally published January 2017, updated October 2019 with a brand new spruced up video and new photos!
Get your Vietnamese food fix!
Vietnamese Caramel Pork – another iconic Vietnamese food! Also see the Chicken version.
Vietnamese Caramelised Pork Bowls – the super quick version of the above
Browse all Vietnamese recipes
And more of my favourite Asian Chicken marinades
All these are ideal for grilling but can also be cooked on the stove
Real Teriyaki Chicken – on my mother’s Japanese recipe website, RecipeTin Japan. Crispy skin, no oil – way better than westernised versions!
Thai Grilled Chicken (Gai Yang) – marinated in a fragrant Thai marinade
Thai Coconut Chicken – added richness and flavour from a coconut marinade
Asian Chicken – marinated in a great Asian marinade that’s sweet sand savoury
Sticky Baked Chinese Chicken Wings – use this marinade on breast and thighs!
Chinese Chicken (Char Siu!) – Chinese BBQ chicken
Life of Dozer
Yes, that’s the tripod that holds my camera worth several thousand dollars…..don’t stand up Dozer!!!
Hi Nagi! For the 1 tbsp of oil that is listed as the final ingrained the marinade: does that get mixed in with the other stuff? Or should I use part of that for cooking and the other portion for the marinade? I’m multiplying this recipe by 5 and don’t want to use 5 tbsp the wrong way!
Hi Sarah, the oil listed in the marinade all goes into the marinade. The oil used for cooking is listed under the “noodle bowl” heading 🙂 N x
This was delicious! I haven’t cooked with fish sauce before so I wasn’t sure about trying it, but it tasted fantastic.
This is amazing! We made it with shrimp, tofu and chicken and had left overs for a couple of days it was so fresh and healthy thanks for the recipe
Hi Nagi, any suggestions regarding preparing a vegetarian version of this recipe? I’m trying to work out if there would be a suitable vegetable that could be marinated in the lemongrass marinade and grilled. Marg
Hi Marg – firm tofu is perfect here!! Just sear until golden – it tastes fabulous! N x
Hi Nagi, love this recipe! Just wondering how long the nuoc cham will keep in the fridge for? I made it a couple of weeks ago and wondering if I can reuse the sauce (it’s looking a little cloudy at the bottom of the jar, but if I shake it it disappears). Thanks 🙂
Hi Nagi, I will use chicken mince as it’s what I have, any tips on cooking/time? Thanks so much.
Hi Lucy, this recipe won’t work with mince as you can’t really marinade it. You could however, try Vietnamese meatballs instead – https://promotown.info/bun-cha-vietnamese-meatballs/%3C/a%3E N x
Oh they look great, I’ll make those. Thank you
HI! Sooo excited to eat this delicious bowl for dinner tonight! I do have a question though. Is your recipe typically served hot or cold..
specifically the chicken and noodles or is everything served at room temp or cold? Thanks so much! I LOVE all of your recipes!!!
Hi Rebecca, its generally served at room temp – but in saying that. I just let the chicken rest then serve it over the salad slightly warm. N x
Great! Thanks so much for your reply. It was so delicious and a big hit with everyone. I made double the recipe and next time will make even more so I can freeze premarinated chicken for next time.
We loved this! The flavours all worked wonderfully together, it was satisfying without being to heavy. The lemongrass marinade was delicious (I made the marinade in the blender so lemongrass was edible) I basted the chicken with it while cooking. Will definitely make this again, thanks Nagi!
I’m so happy you enjoyed it Collette, that’s great to hear! N x
Very good! I didn’t have noodles so served with chickpea rice. Family loved it.
Sounds perfect Kathy!! N x
i served this with shirataki noodles (lowcarb option) with all cilantro, pickled veggies, cucumber and nouc cham. I also used it as meat for bahn mi and it. is. amazing! it smells so good and the chicken turned out moist and juicy.
Sounds perfect Paige! N x
Hi Nagi,
I was just wondering what you recommended for people who have soy allergy. What should I compensate in lieu of soy sauce? Also, have you tried liquid aminos and if so, does it taste similar to soy sauce as a decent substitute.
-mike
Hi Mike, I haven’t tried here sorry – I imagine coconut aminos would work but I haven’t actually tasted it in this recipe. N x
Craving Lemongrass chicken Pho so used this recipe as the chicken for your chicken pho ( made your Pho broth with a chicken carcass and wings)
OMG this was delicious and tasted just like my favourite Pho from my favorite Vietnamese restaurant
Once again Thank you so much
P.S Dozer is gorgeous
Sounds perfect Jodi! N x
I am going to make this tonight
Can you blend the marinade in a food processor before?
Thanks
Sure can Sophie! I hope you love it! N x
i made this tonight for the family. SUCH A HIT! the marinade and sauce make it, and the fresh herbs are so good. I marinated and grilled chicken thighs as well as baked tofu for the vegans. i’d never grilled tofu and it worked so well. it was requested again for tomorrow…. haha. thanks!!!
Thank you Nagi,
We loved this recipe for all the wonderful flavors and textures that are in your mouth when you eat this!
Hi Nagi, can this dish be served cold? I need to take a plate to a function and this sounds delicious.
Yes definitely! N x
Hi Nagi, can this be served cold? I need to take a plate to a function and like the sound of this.
Not a fan of fish sauce or mint, but we love spicy food so we tried this tonight and freaking loved ❤️ It! Thank you sooo much!
Wahoo, that’s great to hear Renee!! N x
I cannot thank you enough for this recipe. It’s pure happiness. I made it with pork tenderloin. My husband literally started clapping. We have fond good memories of Le Colonial in Chicago and this brought us right there. So thank you so much. Also your Butter Chicken recipe is unbelievable. We have it often. ❤️❤️❤️
Hi Nagi! I love your recipes! <3 Do you have directions (time/temp) for baking the chicken? Thank you!!