Mẹ đảm mách công thức làm khô gà lá chanh thành công ngay lần đầu

Hoai Thuong, from Hanoi, uses Da Lat lime leaves instead of homegrown lime leaves to avoid bitterness, making her dried chicken more flavorful.

With less than a month until the 2026 Lunar New Year, many housewives have begun busily compiling lists and preparing traditional spring dishes.

Besides the traditional feast, dried foods like dried beef, squid, pork, or chicken are increasingly popular because they are easy to make, convenient to store, and suitable for entertaining guests or enjoying during the holidays. Among them, dried chicken with lime leaves is receiving much attention because of its easy-to-eat flavor, and it can be easily made at home for later use or as a New Year's gift.

Pham Thi Hoai Thuong, from Quang Tri, is passionate about cooking and food, saying that almost every year she tries to make a dried food dish to enjoy and give to relatives and friends. After numerous trials, the 35-year-old office worker, currently living in Hanoi, revealed her recipe for making dried chicken, saying it's "so simple that anyone can succeed on their first try, and even start a business with it."

Hoai Thuong enjoys cooking and prepares several traditional dishes for Tet (Lunar New Year). Photo: Provided by the author

Ingredients needed (for 1 kg of fresh meat):

- 1 kg of commercially raised chicken breast

- Sugar: 150 grams

- Seasoning powder: 30 grams

- Fish sauce: 30 grams

- Shredded lemongrass: 50 grams

- Red chili peppers: 3

- Chili peppers: 3

- Shallots/onions: 100 grams

- Korean chili powder: 1/2 teaspoon

- Kaffir lime leaves: 10 grams (preferably Da Lat kaffir lime leaves, as locally grown kaffir lime leaves may be bitter)

Wash the chicken breast thoroughly with vinegar and salt to remove the fishy smell, then drain. Boil the chicken with a little lemongrass and ginger, let it cool, then pound it with a mortar and pestle and tear it into bite-sized pieces.

Wash and drain all ingredients, then chop them finely. Put all ingredients into a blender and blend until smooth to create the sauce mixture. If making a large batch, reserve some lime leaves and chili peppers to dry separately.

Marinate the ground ingredients with the chicken overnight or for 2-3 hours to allow the flavors to infuse. Note that the chicken should be refrigerated during marination.

After marinating, stir-fry the mixture in a pan until the sauce dries out.

Dry the chicken for 30 minutes at 100 degrees Celsius, repeating 2-3 times in an oven or air fryer. Adjust the temperature to avoid over-drying the chicken. If making a large batch, dry the lime leaves and chili peppers separately before mixing them into the finished product.

The dried chicken will have a yellowish color, a fragrant aroma of lemongrass and lime leaves, and will be dry but not crispy. The flavor is sweet and savory with a mild spiciness. It can be packaged as a gift or stored in an airtight container.