• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to footer navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

RecipeTin Eats

Fast Prep, Big Flavours

Small book

My cookbook "Dinner" now available!

  • My RecipeTin
  • My cookbook!
  • Recipes
  • Recipes By Category
    • Cookbook recipes
    • Iconic + cult classics
    • Mains
      • Chicken
        • Chicken mince
      • Beef Recipes
        • Ground Beef (Mince)
      • Pork
      • Lamb
      • Turkey
      • Shrimp / Prawns
      • Salmon
      • Fish
      • Salad Meals
    • Quick and Easy
    • Soups
    • One Pot
    • Stews
    • Slow Cooker
    • Sides
      • All
      • Salads & veg
      • Show Off Salads
      • Rice (all)
      • Fried rice recipes
      • Rice (plain)
      • Potato
    • Pasta
      • All
      • Pasta bakes
      • Pasta salads
    • Sweet
      • Cakes
      • Cheesecakes
      • Cupcakes & Muffins
      • Cookies
      • Puddings & Cosy Desserts
      • Bite Size
      • Pies
      • Slices & Bars
      • Frosting & Icing
      • Ice cream
    • Cuisine
      • Asian
        • All
        • Stir fries
        • Noodles
        • Soups
        • Chinese
        • Japanese
        • Korean
        • Thai
        • Vietnamese
      • French
      • Greek
      • Indian
      • Italian
      • Mediterranean
      • Mexican
      • Middle Eastern
      • South American
    • Dietary
      • Gluten Free
      • Low Calorie
      • Vegetarian
    • Other Categories
      • BBQ
      • Breakfast
      • Burgers
      • Cocktails
      • Easter
      • Party Foods
      • Rice Recipes
      • Roasts
      • Sandwiches & Sliders
  • Collections
  • About
    • Me
    • RecipeTin Meals
    • Free Recipe Books
    • Contact
    • Nitty Gritty
      • Policy: Use of Recipes & Images
      • Privacy & Disclosure
Home Asian Recipes

Southern Thai Tumeric Chicken (Grilled or Baked)

By:Nagi
Published:5 Nov '15Updated:23 Mar '23
158 Comments
Recipe v

This Thai chicken is spectacular and possibly one of the easiest real South East Asian marinades. Hailing from the south of Thailand, it’s ridiculously simple, made with garlic, fish sauce, oyster sauce, cilantro/coriander, turmeric powder and brown sugar. That’s it.

Southern Thai Tumeric Chicken - An authentic recipe from Thailand, the marinade is simple and you probably have all the ingredients on hand!

There are two very popular types of Thai chicken. One is Gai Yang which I shared previously which has lemongrass in the marinade so it has an earthy lemon flavour that is so distinctly South East Asian. And this Southern Thai  Chicken which is quite different because it has turmeric in it, and no lemongrass.

Thai Grilled Chicken_Gai Yang
Gai Yang (Thai Lemongrass chicken) is the other popular grilled chicken in Thailand.

Lemongrass is a distinctly South East Asian herb which I absolutely love but does not make my standard weekly shop. Whereas this one is made with ingredients that I always have. Aside from cilantro/coriander, everything else is pantry staples. And because I cook so much Asian and Mexican food, coriander always makes it into my weekly basket.

I first tried this Southern Thai chicken at a night market in Bangkok. At the time, I didn’t even know what it was (my Thai is not that great….ie virtually non existent), I just knew it was a finger-licking’ lip smackin’ moment of bliss. I’m lucky I was with friends who were very patient as I became annoyingly persistent, trying to hunt it down again as we continued our exploration of Bangkok.

I never found it again in Bangkok. I was even making jokes about how there was a chicken conspiracy, depriving me of my fix that I needed. I Googled it when I got home, and I still couldn’t figure out what it was (and more importantly, where I could get more). Bearing in mind I knew nothing about what it was except it was a very tasty grilled chicken! I didn’t actually pick there was tumeric in it which would have made my search more successful.

And then, quite by chance, I stumbled across this Tumeric Chicken recipe on a site called Real Thai Recipes. As soon as I read it and saw the photo, my face broke out into a wide grin because I knew straight away that it was what I had. And the reason I never found it again in Bangkok is because it’s not common there, it’s a style of chicken from Southern Thailand.

It all made sense! There’s WASN’T a Thai Chicken conspiracy! No wonder I couldn’t find them on every street corner in Bangkok!

Southern Thai Tumeric Chicken - An authentic recipe from Thailand, the marinade is simple and you probably have all the ingredients on hand!

So I’m saving you the Googling and endless hunts through the night markets in the back streets of Bangkok. Here is a ripper of a chicken recipe which is a Southern Thai Chicken that you can grill/BBQ or bake. I really think you will enjoy it. It’s quite sweet, but there are savoury layers from the other ingredients. It’s one of those recipes that tastes like it has way more ingredients in it – my speciality! – Nagi x


Serve these on the side!

  • Steamed Jasmine rice, Thai Fried Rice, Pineapple Fried Rice or Coconut Rice

  • Crunchy Asian Slaw on the side – great all rounder Asian salad that goes with all Asian foods

  • Asian Sesame Dressing for any fresh salad or steamed vegetables

  • Asian Mushroom Ramen Noodles – another great all rounder!

Southern Thai Tumeric Chicken - An authentic recipe from Thailand, the marinade is simple and you probably have all the ingredients on hand!

Hungry for more? Subscribe to my newsletter and follow along on Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram for all of the latest updates.

Southern Thai Tumeric Chicken - An authentic recipe from Thailand, the flavour of this is absolutely incredible, sweet with complexity and depth. But just a handful of pantry ingredients!

Southern Thai Chicken (Grilled or Baked)

Author: Nagi | RecipeTin Eats
Prep: 10 mins
Cook: 40 mins
Total: 50 mins
BBQ/Grilling, Dinner
Thai
4.98 from 38 votes
Servings5
Tap or hover to scale
Print
  • 357
This is an authentic recipe from the South of Thailand and is the one of two very popular types of Thai chicken. Typically made with a butterflied chicken, I’ve used the marinade for thigh cutlets instead. You can make this with any cut of chicken, and it can be cooked in the oven, stove or BBQ. The flavour is sweet with complexity owing to the simple but clever marinade – the tumeric powder really “makes” this dish!

Ingredients

  • 5 chicken thigh cutlets , skin on and bone in (around 2.5lb / 1.2kg) (Note 1)

Marinade

  • 4 garlic cloves , crushed
  • 2 1/2 tbsp fish sauce
  • 2 1/2 tbsp oyster sauce
  • 1 tsp white pepper , ground
  • 3 tbsp finely minced coriander/cilantro roots (well cleaned) OR stems (if roots on your bunch are not long enough)
  • 1 tbsp ground turmeric
  • ¼ cup brown sugar (or finely grated palm sugar)

Instructions

  • Combine Marinade ingredients in a bowl.
  • Add chicken and coat thoroughly in Marinade. Marinade for at least 3 hours, preferably overnight. (Note 2)
  • Preheat oven to 180C/350F. If you remember, take chicken out of the fridge and bring to room temperature.
  • (Optional) Line a tray with baking paper/parchment paper (to save cleaning up), then place chicken on the baking tray, skin side up. Scrape all Marinade out of bowl and dab onto chicken.
  • Bake for 35 to 45 minutes until deep golden brown and chicken is cooked through. If it is too brown before cooked, cover loosely with foil and return to the oven.
  • Allow to rest for 3 minutes before serving with rice and fresh slices of cucumber.
  • Stove: To cook on the stove, heat a skillet over medium heat. Place skin side down and cover with a lid. Cook for 5 minutes or until the skin is dark golden. Then turn and cover with a lid again, Cook for 8 to 10 minutes until cooked through. Rest for 3 minutes before serving.

Recipe Notes:

1. You can make this recipe with any cut of chicken, though I would suggest adding 1 tbsp of oil into the Marinade if using breast because the chicken fat in other chicken cuts is what creates the beautiful caramelisation you see in the photos.
2. If you are using small boneless, skinless chicken thighs or tenderloins, you can probably get away with 1 hour of marinating time because the glaze flavour is strong enough to compensate even if it’s not infused all the way into the chicken flesh.
3. This recipe can be cooked on the BBQ, stove or baked. To cook on the stove or BBQ, cook it on medium because the sugar in this marinade burns quickly. Here are some cook time guidelines for other cuts / cooking methods:
– Drumsticks: Bake for 40 minutes
– Skinless boneless thighs: Bake for 20 – 25 minutes, or stove/BBQ for 5 minutes each side on medium.
– Breast: Bake for 25 minutes, or stove/BBQ for around 6 minutes on each side on medium.
4. Slightly adapted from this Tumeric Chicken recipe from Real Thai Recipes.
5. Nutrition per serving assuming 5 servings. This does not take into account the fat that is rendered out of the thigh cutlets when cooking.
Southern Thai Tumeric Grilled Chicken Nutrition 

Nutrition Information:

Serving: 260gCalories: 490cal (25%)
Did you make this recipe?I love hearing how you went with my recipes! Tag me on Instagram at @recipe_tin.

SaveSave

SaveSave

SaveSave

Previous Post
Nando’s Peri Peri Chicken Burger
Next Post
Creamy Sun Dried Tomato Pasta

Hi, I'm Nagi!

I believe you can make great food with everyday ingredients even if you’re short on time and cost conscious. You just need to cook clever and get creative!

Read More

Free Recipe eBooks

Join my free email list to receive THREE free cookbooks!

Related Posts

Close up of Xinjiang Cumin Lamb Stir Fry

Xinjiang Cumin Lamb Stir Fry

Bowl of Spicy Korean noodle soup

15 minute Spicy Korean Noodle Soup

Close up of Vegetarian lettuce wraps - san choy bow

AWESOME vegetarian lettuce wraps

More Asian Recipes

Reader Interactions

Leave a Comment Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Cooked this? Rate this recipe!




158 Comments

  1. Jane Shields says

    May 23, 2023 at 4:25 pm

    5 stars
    Fabulous- family have declared a favourite!
    I cook in frypan but then change over to the baked rice (from Greek chicken & rice)
    And put all in oven
    Everyone loves the turmeric flavours in the rice

    Reply
  2. Rachael says

    October 18, 2022 at 8:18 pm

    Tried this tonight for the family and it was a big hit! So tasty and so easy. Definitely a new favourite!

    Reply
  3. Heather says

    August 8, 2022 at 6:57 pm

    5 stars
    Forgot to do the marinade until ~ 1 hour before baking it. Used squeezy tube coriander paste as we couldn’t get fresh. Delicious! First time using Squid brand fish sauce and it rocks!

    Reply
  4. Pam says

    June 30, 2022 at 7:53 pm

    Well …. What can we say? the best chicken recipe for soooo long.
    It was one of those OMG this is SOOOOO good !
    Thankyou Nagi, another firm favourite !

    Reply
    • Pam says

      July 6, 2022 at 5:48 pm

      5 stars
      Sorry…. Forgot the stars ….

      Reply
  5. Ann-Marie de Bettencor says

    January 30, 2022 at 8:00 pm

    5 stars
    Omg this is in the “sensational” section of the folder list of ‘family recipes we all eat’. The flavour is amazing and at the end I poured off the oil residue of the chicken and poured the full on taste into the rice. Wow!! Another incredible Recipe Tin recipe we all love.

    Reply
  6. Esther says

    January 29, 2022 at 11:45 am

    4 stars
    Made this last night Halved the garlic (as we are garlic phobes but appreciate the flavour !) and it was still flavoursome, So simple, and I used chicken thighs with the bone in and skin on. Served simply with rice and asian greens, So tasty!

    Reply
  7. Kathryn says

    January 2, 2022 at 9:56 pm

    5 stars
    This dish, like all your dishes I’ve cooked, was a hit with all the family. Absolutely delicious and succulent. I used bone-in thigh cutlets and baked in the oven on baking paper in a roasting pan. So easy and yet so impressive. Will be making this over and over.

    Reply
  8. elyse! says

    July 19, 2021 at 1:09 pm

    5 stars
    Nagi!! I’ve made a ton of your recipes but THIS ONE! Wow! It’s so unassuming and incredibly easy to put together – the the flavor is insanely good! Definitely adding this one to my regular rotation. Thanks so much for all of your amazing recipes!

    Reply
  9. EMMA says

    July 13, 2021 at 10:39 am

    5 stars
    Made this last week and it was absolutely delicious. I fitted an extra 5 chicken wings in with the cutlets. Made it with fried rice. It was sooooo good. My bestfriend then made it the night after but as a stir fry with chicken thighs and her family loved it too. Always a winner Nagi 🙂

    Reply
  10. Timi Jean Barletta says

    June 11, 2021 at 1:05 am

    Interested in making this recipe in a few days. Do you have to use just the stems of the cilantro or can you use the leaves as well? Thinking of making this with coconut rice and asian slaw.

    Reply
  11. Liz says

    April 23, 2021 at 5:50 am

    Hi Nagi, we can’t wait to try this! Is it possible to substitute the oyster sauce with something else?
    Many thanks!

    Reply
  12. Carol Ryan says

    April 9, 2021 at 11:03 pm

    5 stars
    Get again a winner recipie. Tastes fantastic Nagi th so much xxxc

    Reply
  13. Sarah says

    October 22, 2020 at 8:58 pm

    Made it with a whole boned chicken and then barbecued it. Only had a little fresh coriander on hand but it was fabulous! Yes, memories of southern Thailand. Thanks Nagi!

    Reply
    • Nagi says

      October 23, 2020 at 8:27 am

      Perfect Sarah!! I can just smell it cooking now, YUM! N x

      Reply
  14. Stephen says

    September 10, 2020 at 12:26 am

    5 stars
    This has been a covid lockdown special in my house. It is very easy and extremely tasty. 10/10 Well done!

    Reply
  15. Leanne says

    August 22, 2020 at 5:24 pm

    Hi Nagi, Can you tell me please if you only use the coriander stems and not the leaf as well?

    And, how long can the marinated raw meat stay in the freezer for?

    Thank you.

    Reply
    • Nagi says

      August 24, 2020 at 10:27 am

      Hi Leanne, yes just the stems here. I would keep up to 3 months in the freezer. N x

      Reply
      • Ian Taylor says

        October 2, 2020 at 7:45 pm

        If you vacuum seal the chicken it will easily keep for a year.

        Reply
  16. Grace says

    August 16, 2020 at 10:23 am

    5 stars
    This is by far the best chicken I’ve ever had. Even my 3 picky kiddos liked it so much that I cooked it 2 times in one week. This recipe is definitely in my regular weekly rotation. Thank you for another great and easy recipe xoxo!

    Reply
  17. Karen B says

    June 5, 2020 at 8:21 pm

    5 stars
    Finger licking good chicken. Literally! My elderly father was wiping up the juices off the plate. Great flavours. Served it with a vegetable stir fry. Another great recipe. Thank you.

    Reply
  18. Sarah Stoloff says

    May 3, 2020 at 8:28 am

    5 stars
    I am loving your website! I have a picky eater in the house who can’t handle fish sauce… is there a substitute? Is it okay to just leave out? I want to try this beautiful recipe but need a way around that one ingredient. Thank you!!

    Reply
    • Nagi says

      May 3, 2020 at 7:30 pm

      Hi Sarah, fish sauce is what gives this dish that authentic Thai flavour. You can substitute with soy if you absolutely must though – N x

      Reply
  19. Christine says

    April 23, 2020 at 10:04 am

    5 stars
    I read this as southern thai’d chicken- 😂 which actually sounds delicious. If you create a southern thai’d chicken, I’d make it! Love your recipes.

    Reply
    • Nagi says

      April 23, 2020 at 8:22 pm

      Love this 😂

      Reply
  20. Duan says

    April 7, 2020 at 8:34 pm

    5 stars
    Made this tonight, so yummy! Didn’t have coriander so substituted with ground coriander seeds, still delish!

    I’ve been lurking for a while and love your recipes! Everything I’ve made from you has been A+ 🙂

    Reply
    • Karen says

      November 9, 2021 at 8:48 am

      Duan,I was wondering how much ground coriander did you use in place of the coriander stems?

      Reply
    • Nagi says

      April 8, 2020 at 3:04 pm

      That’s terrific to hear Duan, thanks so much for letting me know! N x

      Reply
Older Comments

Primary Sidebar

Hi, I'm Nagi!

I believe you can make great food with everyday ingredients even if you’re short on time and cost conscious. You just need to cook clever and get creative! Read More

Free Recipe eBooks

Join my free email list to receive THREE free cookbooks!

Meet Dozer

Official taste tester of RecipeTin Eats! Meet Dozer
As Featured On

What's for Dinner?

Close up of beef enchiladas in a baking dish, fresh out of the oven

Beef Enchiladas

Butter Chicken served over basmati rice in a bowl, ready to be served

Butter Chicken

Overhead photo of 2 black bowls with Chinese Chicken Salad with Asian Dressing, ready to be eaten

Chinese Chicken Salad

Salisbury Steak recipe in skillet.

Salisbury Steak with Mushroom Gravy

Vietnamese Coconut Caramel Chicken - 7 ingredient magic. The coconut fragrance is heavenly! recipetineats.com

Vietnamese Coconut Caramel Chicken

Fast prep. Big flavours!

Never miss a recipe

Back to Top
  • Related
  • RecipeTin Japan
  • Food Bloggers Center
  • Help
  • Contact Us
  • Image Use
  • Privacy Policy & Terms
Site Credits Maintained by Zao Designed by Melissa Rose Design Developed by Once Coupled © RecipeTin Eats 2023 · All Rights Reserved Back to Top