Click here for the fried version of Thai pandan-wrapped chicken.
As far as I know, pandan chicken is a Thai dish. I have a friend who cooks this dish by deep frying each pandan wrapped chicken fillet. But me, I hate frying. 
Ingredients :
deboned meat from 8-10 chicken thighs, skins on
1 tsp. of finely minced garlic
1 tsp. of finely chopped ginger
salt (herbed, if available) and pepper
4 tbsps. of oyster sauce
1/2 c. of powdered coconut cream
12-15 pandan leaves
3-4 c. of cooking oil, if deep frying
Cooking procedure :
Cut each deboned chicken thigh into three to four pieces, depending on how large the thighs are. Two-and-a-half inch cubes would be good since the meat will shrink a lot during cooking. Place in a glass bowl and season with salt and pepper. Add the minced garlic and ginger, oyster sauce and powdered coconut cream. Mix well, cover with cling film and let sit in the fridge for at least two hours.
Note that if powdered coconut cream is not available, it might be a better idea to substitute dessicated coconut rather than canned or fresh coconut cream. Too much liquid will make the chicken meat slippery and rather difficult to wrap.
After marinating, wrap each piece of chicken in a pandan leaf, rolling the leaf around the chicken. You can secure with wooden toothpicks if you plan to deep fry your chicken pandan. Otherwise, simply lay the pandan wrapped chicken pieces on a baking tray tucking the ends of the pandan leaves underneath.
Cook the pandan wrapped chicken in a very hot pre-heated convection oven (I set it at its highest setting). Do not skip the pre-heating part. It is essential so that the pandan wrapped chicken pieces go into an already hot oven. That way, the outside of the chicken will brown fast
while the inside remains moist. With the small size of the chicken pieces, cooking will only take about eight to ten minutes.
With an ordinary oven, you’ll have to use the broil setting meaning using the top heat. Gas ovens don’t have this setting. If you can’t broil your pandan chicken, I suggest grilling them over live coals or deep frying them. If grilling, do not put the grilling rack too near the live coals. Grill the pandan chicken about 6-8 inches above the live coals, turning once halfway through the cooking. If deep frying, make sure that your cooking oil is very, very hot before adding the pandan chicken. Otherwise, they will get soggy as they cook. Whether grlling in a convection oven, broiling, grilling over live coals or deep frying, cook only until the outside is golden brown. Do not overcook so that the chicken remains moist and succulent.
That’s it, really. Within a minute from shutting the oven door, the mixed aromas of the spices, pandan leaves and coconut cream were all over the kitchen and my family knew they were about to experience something great. And they did. 
looks yummy
will try this one when I can find a pandan leaf here in finland LOL.. I will have to bring my little baby along with me in the asian shop on weekend uhuh..
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i tried this so many times and i just cooked it again now and it tastes soo gooooodddd!!!!!…..thanks connie!!!….i really love your recipes!!!!….God bless!!!… =)
i tried this for the first time today and my husband absolutely loved it! he said he felt like he was eating at a thai restaurant because the flavors are so authentically thai. =) thanks so much for sharing this recipe.
hi connie,
i was wondering where can you find pandan leaves in manila?
btw, i just love your site. i’ve learned a lot and my husband loves your recipes. thanks again.
in most supermarkets. Very cheap around P5 per bunch.
Hi where can i buy powdered coconut cream please. Dinner is never the same again after i discovered your site. You are truly God’s Blessing!
In the supermarket, Judy.
Glad you’re enjoying my blog.
looks delicious….thanks connie and God bless you
CONNIE,
CAN I USE CHICKEN WINGS INSTEAD OF THIGHS? IF YES, CAN I USE THE WHOLE WINGS (I MEAN, MINUS THE END PART OF THE WING)? THIGHS ARE EXPENSIVE HERE IN UK. WINGS ARE A LOT CHEAPER. THANKS.
If you can debone the wings, why not?
can you use desiccated coconut + coconut milk as substitute for powdered coconut cream?
If you have coconut milk, just add it to the marinade. Handling might be a bit more difficult though as the chicken will be more wet and slippery.
Hi Connie! can I marinate it overnight?
Yes, that will make the chicken even tastier.
I made this last wednesday, and my bf loved it! Kaso yung pandan hindi naglasa, kasi i bought it monday, so siguro kelangan fresh sobra yung leaves. I used chicken breasts then marinated it for 24 hours. I was also thinking kung pwede lagyan ng pandan essence kaso di ko alam ganu karami ilalagay baka masobrahan. Hehehe
Pandan has no distinct taste. It’s the aroma that you’re after. And pandan leaves are more aromatic as they dry up.
oic. may natira pa na pandan leaves so i guess ok lang ipadry yun? baka magamit ko sa susunod na lulutuin. hehe
In the fridge, pandan leaves stay good for 2 weeks.