Chicken Recipes, Part by Part: The Wing
Chicken. We all cook it, but sometimes rely too much on one part. Give the other bits a chance! Every day this week, we’re sharing the definitively best recipes for chicken, part by part. So far, we’ve talked about the whole bird, the breast, the thigh and the drumstick. Last, but definitely not least: the wing.
Photo credit: Wendell T. Webber
With all due respect to the breast, the thigh, and the drumstick, they do not have whole restaurant chains named after them—especially not those with 1,001 locations.
There ain’t nothin’ like a wing. That crisp skin to juicy flesh ratio is so high! It’s so satisfying to gnaw on, like a caveman or cavewoman! And it is always, always ready for some football.
We’ve had some solid hot wings and a-OK Buffalo wings—an excuse to down some blue cheese is always welcome—but the mightiest wings of all are these Vietnamese-style fish sauce wings.
This recipe hails from Saigon by way of Pok Pok founder Andy Ricker and his first employee, Vietnam-born line cook Ich Truong. Ricker sampled wings in Saigon, took a guess at what went into them, and then refined the recipe with Truong at his first outpost of Pok Pok in Portland, Oregon. These are the wings that spawned his bicoastal restaurant mini-empire, and with good reason. They are sweet and spicy, garlicky and herbaceous—they are wings nonpareil.
A good fish sauce is crucial for this marinade; we like Red Boat, and Ricker uses Phu Quoc. When fish sauce mingles with sugar and garlic and gets a bath in hot oil, something magical happens; the resulting deep-fried wing hits you with an umami boom.
Ricker has since included a longer version of this recipe in his cookbook, but we like the abridged version that’s been kicking around the Internet for a few years. It uses fewer ingredients, and is just as good. Just make about twice as much as you think you’ll need for your guests; in our experience, there are absolutely never leftovers.
Ike’s Vietnamese Fish Sauce Wings
by Andy Ricker, courtesy of Food & Wine
Serves 6
1/2 cup Asian fish sauce
1/2 cup superfine sugar
4 garlic cloves, 2 crushed and 2 minced
3 pounds chicken wings, split at the drumettes
2 tablespoons vegetable oil, plus more for frying
1 cup cornstarch
1 tablespoon chopped cilantro
1 tablespoon chopped mint
In a bowl, whisk the fish sauce, sugar and crushed garlic. Add the wings and toss to coat. Refrigerate for 3 hours, tossing the wings occasionally.
Heat the 2 tablespoons of oil in a small skillet. Add the minced garlic; cook over moderate heat until golden, 3 minutes. Drain on paper towels.
In a large pot, heat 2 inches of oil to 350°. Pat the wings dry on paper towels; reserve the marinade. Put the cornstarch in a shallow bowl, add the wings and turn to coat. Fry the wings in batches until golden and cooked through, about 10 minutes. Drain on paper towels and transfer to a bowl.
In a small saucepan, simmer the marinade over moderately high heat until syrupy, 5 minutes. Strain over the wings and toss. Top with the cilantro, mint, and fried garlic and serve.
