An icon of Vietnamese cuisine, this broth‑fragrant chicken rice served with pickled vegetables strikes a perfect balance between richness and freshness.
Turmeric rice still steaming, its grains glossed with chicken fat. Slices of chicken crowned with a tuft of rau răm. A bright, garlicky fish sauce; chiles and lime to lift the rosy pickled shallots. Here’s how to spot and make the lesser‑known Cơm Gà Phú Yên.
What is Cơm gà Phú Yên?
“Cơm” means “rice”; “gà” means “chicken”; “Phú Yên” is the name of the coastal Vietnamese province in the south‑central region closely associated with this golden style, scented with clear broth. In its typical form, Cơm Gà Phú Yên layers poached free‑range chicken (gà ta) over long‑grain rice, fragrant and pilaf‑cooked in chicken fat and hot broth, tinted with turmeric.
The plate is finished with the peppery note of rau răm, sweet‑tart pickled shallots (hành tím muối chua ngọt), and a balanced nước chấm: fish sauce with garlic, chiles, and lime—bright rather than heavy.
Don’t confuse it with cơm gà xối mỡ (crispy fried chicken) or with the tomato‑red fried rice from other regions: here, tradition means a clear broth and gentle poaching. Some vendors deepen the rice’s hue with extra turmeric, but the Phú Yên style relies on turmeric and broth; avoid artificial coloring.
The origins of Cơm gà Phú Yên
Sources are few and mostly anecdotal: some mention a nourishing dish for workdays—one pot able to feed many, with thrift and warmth. Chinese techniques (including Hainanese) influenced chicken‑rice preparations in central Vietnam; in Phú Yên, cooks adapted these ideas: lean gà ta, grains tinged with turmeric and sautéed in chicken fat until pearly, and a punchy fish sauce served at the table, until the whole became undeniably local.
See also this cost breakdown of living in Da Nang, central Vietnam
Over the decades, the dish moved from weekday bowl to wedding buffet, becoming a provincial calling card and a synonym for hospitality. Its palette evokes Phú Yên’s poetic nickname: “the land of yellow flowers and green grass”—sunny rice, fresh herbs, and a clear, fragrant broth, delicately lifted with ginger and shallot.
Use aromatic long‑grain rice, ideally gạo Tám thơm (or similar Vietnamese aromatic varieties): it drinks up the broth without collapsing, stays fluffy, and keeps a tender chew (dẻo) so the grains remain distinct.
Key ingredients for Cơm gà Phú Yên
- Free‑range chicken (gà ta): lean meat with a mild flavor and pleasant bite, naturally yellowed skin (yellow‑skinned chickens are easy to find in our supermarkets); yields a clear, tasty poaching broth.
- Turmeric (powdered or fresh): the benchmark for color and a warm, earthy aroma, with no artificial coloring.
- Fried garlic and shallots: sautéed in chicken fat to perfume and gloss the raw rice as you coat the grains, pilaf‑style.
- Ginger and shallot, or lemongrass, in the broth: clarify the aroma and lift the broth without clouding it.
- Chicken fat (or neutral oil): essential for sheen, fragrance, and a non‑sticky rice texture.
- Fish sauce, sugar, lime, fresh chiles: the salty‑sweet‑tart‑spicy backbone of the nước chấm.
- Rau răm; cilantro or scallions optional.
- Cucumber (tomato or lettuce optional): crisp freshness to balance the rich rice and tender meat.
- Pickled shallots: sweet‑tart crunch; a typical accompaniment in Phú Yên.
- Optional: makrut lime leaves for a citrus note in the broth; a pinch of MSG for roundness, as some locals do.
A few tips to make it “like in Vietnam”
The chicken is handled gently. After rubbing the chicken with salt and ginger, poach it at a bare simmer with ginger and, optionally, a shallot or a bruised stalk of lemongrass, until just cooked through (time varies by weight).
Check doneness by piercing the thigh: the juices should run clear; plan generally 20 to 30 minutes of poaching depending on the chicken’s size. A brief dunk in cold water (1 to 2 minutes) is often used to firm the skin.
Prepare the rice like a pilaf. Rinsed grains can soak briefly, then be rubbed with turmeric and salt. In a little chicken fat, sauté the garlic (and often chopped shallot), then stir the raw rice until it smells fragrant and turns opaque, without ever browning. Hot chicken broth does the rest: add enough so it stands 1 to 1.5 cm (“about a fingertip”) above the grains.
Let it steam, then rest, so the rice comes out airy, separate, and subtly rich—its gold from turmeric and its flavor from broth, not water alone.
The nước chấm (nuoc cham) is key to the dish: pound garlic and chiles with sugar, loosen with fish sauce, and brighten with fresh lime until the salty, sweet, sour, and spicy are in balance. Don’t add water; adjust lime and sugar instead until the balance is right.
Some local vendors add finely chopped boiled offal to the dipping sauce; it’s optional and varies by stall. The pickled shallots are most often briefly blanched before marinating; some recipes skip this blanching.
To serve, mound the golden rice, top with hand‑shredded chicken (xé phay) lightly mixed with rau răm and thin slices of onion (gỏi‑style if you like), sprinkle with fried shallots, and arrange cucumber slices along the edge. A bowl of clear chicken broth, dusted with pepper, is served piping hot on the side.
Ingredients
Ingredients
- 1 chicken about 1.2–1.5 kg
- 500 g white rice non-glutinous
- 2 pieces ginger fresh
- 4 shallots
- 1 head garlic
- 3 bird’s-eye chilies
- 1 carrot
- 2 cucumbers
- 100 g bean sprouts
- 1 handful rau răm or Vietnamese coriander, optional
- 1 tablespoon chicken fat
- chicken fat extra, reserved
- chicken broth from cooking the chicken
- water as needed
Seasonings
- coarse salt for rubbing the chicken
- 2.5 teaspoons salt
- 0.5 teaspoon ground turmeric
- bouillon powder to taste
- 2 tablespoons fish sauce
- 4 tablespoons lime juice from about 5 limes
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 0.5 teaspoon MSG monosodium glutamate, optional
- 3 tablespoons water
- vinegar optional
Instructions
Prepare the ingredients
- Clean the chicken thoroughly, rub the skin with coarse salt and crushed ginger, then rinse and drain.1 chicken, coarse salt, 2 pieces ginger
- Rinse the white rice until the water runs clear, then drain well.500 g white rice
- Prepare the vegetables: grate the carrot, peel and slice the cucumbers, clean the bean sprouts, and rinse the rau răm.1 carrot, 2 cucumbers, 100 g bean sprouts, 1 handful rau răm
- Thinly slice half of the shallots, crush the other half, then mince the garlic.4 shallots, 1 head garlic
Cook the chicken
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil, plunge the chicken in for 2 minutes to blanch, then rinse and drain.water
- Place the chicken in a pot of cold water with the salt, turmeric, ginger, and crushed shallots. Bring to a boil and cook for 15 minutes, then turn off the heat and let poach for 15 minutes.2.5 teaspoons salt, 0.5 teaspoon ground turmeric
- Remove the chicken from the broth, let cool, then cut or shred the meat.
Cook the rice
- Melt the chicken fat in a skillet, then sauté the minced garlic and sliced shallots until fragrant.1 tablespoon chicken fat
- Add the rice and stir-fry for 3–5 minutes; transfer to a rice cooker, cover with chicken broth, and cook until the rice is just dry.chicken broth
Nuoc mam sauce and pickled vegetables
- Pound the garlic and chilies in a mortar, then add the lime juice, fish sauce, sugar, and MSG; mix until combined.3 bird’s-eye chilies, 4 tablespoons lime juice, 2 tablespoons fish sauce, 3 tablespoons sugar, 0.5 teaspoon MSG
- In a bowl, toss the cucumbers, carrot, bean sprouts, and rau răm with the lemon juice or vinegar, water, sugar, and salt. Marinate for 15 minutes; add chili to taste, if desired.vinegar, 3 tablespoons water, 2 teaspoons sugar
To serve
- Divide the hot rice among plates, arrange the chicken and pickled vegetables around it, and serve with nuoc mam sauce.
Notes
- Ensure the chicken is fully submerged in cooking water at all times.
- Cook the rice slightly drier than usual for authentic texture.
- Add pickled shallots for extra flavor.
Nutrition
Culinary sources
• How to make Phú Yên chicken rice—tender and fragrant—plus a list of good spots – Traveloka (Vietnamese)
• Phú Yên chicken rice: how is that exquisite flavor created? – Vua Đặc Sản (Vietnamese)
• Phú Yên chicken rice – a weekend delight – Thương hiệu & Công luận (Vietnamese)
• The many styles of Vietnamese chicken rice (by Yow Hong Chieh) – Medium (English)
• Savor irresistible Vietnamese chicken‑rice specialties – Lữ Hành Việt Nam (Vietnamese)
• How to cook Phú Yên chicken rice the traditional way – VnExpress Cuisine (Vietnamese)
• How to cook authentic Phú Yên chicken rice, as good as at a restaurant – VinID (Vietnamese)
