Lemongrass Chicken in Instant Pot

Ingredients

• 1 thick stalk fresh lemongrass, papery outer skins and rough bottom removed, trimmed to the bottom 5 inches
• 4 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
• 1 thumb-size piece of ginger, peeled and roughly chopped
• 2 tablespoons Red Boat fish sauce
• 3 tablespoons coconut aminos
• 1 teaspoon five spice powder
• 1 cup full-fat coconut milk (+¼ cup optional)
• 10 drumsticks, skin removed
• 1 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt
• ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon ghee or coconut oil
• 1 large onion, peeled and thinly sliced
• ¼ cup fresh cilantro, chopped
• Juice from 1 lime (optional)

Instructions

1. Peel, trim, and smash the piece of lemongrass. (If you need to read up on cooking with lemongrass, check out this tutorial.)
2. Combine the lemongrass, garlic, ginger, fish sauce, coconut aminos, and five-spice powder into a blender or food processor. Pour in the coconut milk and blitz until a smooth sauce forms.
3. If you haven’t ripped off the skin from the drumsticks, grab a paper towel and go to town. (You can leave the skin on if you’re feeling particularly lazy, but it’ll get kinda rubbery in the stew.)
4. Put the chicken drumsticks into a large bowl and season with salt and pepper. Toss the chicken parts with the salt and pepper.
5. Plug in your Instant Pot and press the “Saute” button to heat up the insert. (If you’re using a stovetop pressure cooker, crank your burner to medium.)
6. Drop in a teaspoon of ghee or coconut oil. When it melts, add the sliced onions. Stir-fry the onions until they’re translucent (3-5 minutes).
7. Add the drumsticks to the pot and pour the marinade on top. Press the “Cancel/Warm” button on the Instant Pot and lock the lid with the top dial pointed towards the sealed position.
8. Press the “Manual” or "Pressure Cook" button and set it to cook for 15 minutes under high pressure. (If you’re using a stovetop pressure cooker, lock the lid and increase the heat to high to bring the contents to high pressure. Once high pressure is reached, decrease the heat to low or enough to maintain high pressure. Set a timer for 15 minutes as your chicken cooks under high pressure.)
9. When the stew finishes cooking, turn off the pressure heater (or turn off the heat) and release the pressure valve. Once the pressure drops, unlock the lid and taste for seasoning.
10. If needed, add a few splashes of fish sauce, a dash of salt, or a grind or two of black pepper. Plate and serve!