Vietnamese Fish Sauce Wings

-


Having a friend from Portland (which, as far as I can tell, automatically means a Portland cheerleader) means being exposed to that which is lacking in DC. When I asked my friend her stance on wings (which, to my mind, means unadorned fried chicken wings in hot sauce), she replied with, "Well, I love Ike's wings from Portland ..."

It didn't take long to find a recipe for Ike's wings, and I have to admit that they sounded immediately intriguing. Living in the DC Metro Area has given me ample access to Korean and Vietnamese cuisine (do not get me started on my Pho addicition), and in general I would say that almost everything is made better by fish sauce. Unfortunately, it took me a long trek to Whole Foods to find some fish sauce, as the Soviet Safeway did not carry any of it, nor sesame seeds (though they carry ample amounts of oyster sauce ... wtf SS?). But minus an extra 15 minute walk and shop, this recipe was perfect for a weekday meal to try to impress a Portlander.




I am adding to the recipe, a suggestion from my Portland friend - a finish with just a bit of lime juice would really have made this taste authentically Ike's. Still, and this coming from someone who would universally argue that there should be no breading on wings, these suckers were tasty! A bit sour, a bit sweet in a sticky sauce, and crispy even the next day!

Note that the recipe calls for a minimum of 3 hours for marinating the wings. I opted for marinating overnight, and also made my sides the night before to give the flavors ample time to marry. For sides, I served a cold spinach in toasted sesame seeds and a red pepper flakes and rice wine pickled cucumber salad. Happy to provide the recipes to anyone interested, but they fell into the "generic Asian sides" category - delicious, but nothing special.





This post again reiterates the need for a deep fryer in every household!

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 cup fish sauce
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 4 garlic cloves; 2 crushed, 2 minced
  • 3 pounds chicken wings, split at the joints (or just buy the "drumettes")
  • vegetable oil
  • 1 cup cornstarch
  • 1 Tbs chopped cilantro
  • 1 Tbs chopped mint
  • juice of half a lime



To Prepare:
  1. In a large measuring cup, mix together the fish sauce, sugar, and crushed garlic.
  2. Rinse and pat dry the wings with paper towels. Add the wings to a large bowl, and then pour the mixed sauce over the top.

  3. Cover the wings and refrigerate for at least 3 hours. I kept mine marinating overnight.
  4. The next evening, when you are ready to cook, heat two Tbs of vegetable oil in a small skillet. Add the remaining garlic, and cook until crispy and brown. Remove to drain on paper towels.

  5. Set your deep fryer to 350, or add approximately 2 inches of oil to the bottom of a cast iron pot and bring to 350 degrees.
  6. Remove the wings from the marinade, patting dry with paper towels.
  7. Pour the cornstarch into a large, shallow bowl. Add the wings and turn to coat.

  8. Place half the wings in the oil, cooking until golden brown, approximately 10 minutes at 350 degrees. Once finished, drain on paper towels. Repeat for the second batch.
  9. While the wings are cooking in batches: In the saucepan you used earlier for the garlic, simmer the marinade for 5-10 minutes. You are looking for a very syrupy consistency - use the back of a spoon to check for the viscosity of the sauce.
  10. Place the wings on a platter or shallow bowl. Pour the sauce over the wings. Top the wings with the fried garlic, mint, cilantro, and lime juice.



Bon appetit!



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Homemade Pizza with a Spicy Pepperoni Sauce

-
Image
The keys to a good pizza, in my humble opinion, all rely on minimization. A good crust, light on the sauce (but let's intensify that sauce, shall we?), easy on the toppings, washed down with a nice IPA. There are few things better in life than good pizza and a beer. And believe me when I tell you, a little bit of this pepperoni sauce goes a very long way. Resist the urge to drown your pizza in it, or to bathe in it yourself. Like all good things, it should be enjoyed with restraint and moderation. HAHAHA. Psyche! You're going to want a straw for that junk! Baking and food blogging are new to me. When you start a new hobby, there are so many things you can do to make huge improvements on the front end. In the early stages, changes and purchases are improvements of miles; later in the game, major changes and purchases are improvements of inches. In terms of moving ahead miles with this new blog project, I have recently acquired: a light source and reflector (expect impr
Read more

Argentine-style Pork Chop with Chimichurri

-
Image
Time to shake off the dust and get things going again here, folks! So here's a recipe I concocted that's perfect for summer grilling and meat-loving. Things of note before we get into it: as my friend Cookie put it, "Argentine-style pork chop is called steak." Yes yes, I know, Cookie, I know. Thing is, I recently partook of the annual Pig Share with some friends and, with a freezer burtsing at the seams with pork products, right now I'm playing a little month-long game called "but can you put pork in it?" Spoiler: the answer is always yes. So fine, "Argentine-style" and "pork chop" may not fit with tradition. But you know what? Who cares? This pork chop tastes gooooood. After looking at a bunch of Argentinian steak marinade recipes and sauces, I mapped out this little ditty on my own. First off - citrus. I went with orange over the sour of lemor or the tart of lime, because I figured the sweetness would intensify when ca
Read more

Andouille and Sweet Potato Hash

-
Image
The first time I ever had hash, I was in high school. I'd spent the night at my friend Rob Dentry's house, and in the morning his father made us corned beef hash. We smothered it in hot sauce, and I ate until my stomach hurt. It was one of the most delicious things I'd ever had, and I think some part of me wondered why, in a childhood where I grew up eating scrapple and Taylor Pork Roll and S.O.S. (chipped beef gravy), my family had deprived me of this delicious, salty, starchy vehicle for Crystal Hot Sauce. To be fair, everything can be turned into a viable vehicle for Crystal Hot Sauce. At any rate, years later, after the baptism of my godson, the lot of us went out to breakfast. This is where I first experienced corned beef hash in a non-cat food state. Giant chunks of tender but crisped corned beef (rustic), with a perfectly poached egg on top. This was the elevation of something I never knew could be elevated. It was only in the last year that I first came up
Read more