Categories: Poultry 
      Yield: 8 servings 
  
           Stephen Ceideburg 
      1    Stalk fresh lemon grass or 
      1 tb Dried 
  3 1/2 ts Curry powder 
           Fresh ground black pepper 
      1 ts Sugar 
      4 ts Salt 
      3 lb Chicken, cut up 
      7 tb Vegetable oil 
      3    Sweet potatoes or 
      3    White potatoes, peeled and 
           -cubed 
      4    Cloves garlic, chopped 
      3    Bay leaves 
      1 lg Onion, cut into wedges, 
           -separated 
      2 c  Water 
      1    Carrot, 2-inch slices 
      2 c  Coconut milk 
      1 c  Milk or water * 
  
  * If you use canned coconut milk, you must use water. 
   
  This is a real Vietnamese curry. Although adapted from the Indian, which is 
  always made with white potatoes, the Vietnamese version has the option of 
  using white or sweet potatoes, the latter being greatly favored by the 
  Vietnamese. The Indian in- fluence is greatest in the South, where curried 
  dishes are more popular than elsewhere in Vietnam. 
   
  This is usually served with noodles as a party dish. When it is part of a 
  family meal, it is eaten with rice. Bach serves this to her children for 
  breakfast, when it is served with French bread--another influence on the 
  cuisine of Vietnam. 
   
  If you are using fresh lemon grass, simply remove the outer leaves and 
  upper two-thirds of the stalks, then cut the remainder into 2-inch lengths. 
  If you are, using, it must be soaked in warm water for 2 hours, then 
  drained and chopped fine. 
   
  Combine the curry powder, black pepper, sugar, add salt and marinate the 
  chicken in the mixture for at least 1 hour. Heat the oil and fry the 
  potatoes over high heat until brown. (It is not necessary to completely 
  cook potatoes at this point, only to brown them.) When well browned, remove 
  from the pan and set aside until ready to cook the curry. Pour off most of 
  the oil from the pan, leaving 2 tablespoons for cooking the chicken. 
   
  Heat 2 tablespoons oil over a high flame. Fry the garlic for a few seconds, 
  then add the bay leaves, onion, and lemon grass; stir briefly and add the 
  marinated chicken, stirring long enough to sear the meat slightly. Add the 
  2 cups of water and carrot, then cover and bring to a boil. Turn the heat 
  down and simmer for 5 minutes; uncover and stir, then cook, covered, for 
  another 10 minutes. Remove the cover and add the prefried potatoes, the 
  coconut milk, and the milk. Cover again and simmer another 15 minutes. 
  Serve with rice, Rice Sticks, or Japanese Alimentary Paste Noodles. 
   
  From "The Classic Cuisine of Vietnam", Bach Ngo and Gloria Zimmerman, 
  Barron's, 1979.