Recipe: Caramelized fish sauce chicken wings | Canh ga nuoc mam

Two big celebrations going down this week! First, it was Tet, or Vietnamese New Year, then this Sunday, it’s the Super Bowl in Houston! Even though the Houston Texans got eliminated during play-offs, I’m looking forward to the game since it’ll be in my hometown of Houston, which means lots of celeb sightings and exciting events going on around town.Today, I’m sharing with you a great Super Bowl recipe, except it’s with a fresh, umami twist. Chicken wings have long been a football game favorite, but instead of serving up the same ol’ boring buffalo style wings, try making my Vietnamese-inspired caramelized fish sauce wings. These wings are incredibly flavorful and interesting, just like this Sunday’s game will be. I served these wings as part of the menu for my first pop-up in Houston, the recipe can be found in my cookbook, and the hubs (who is often a harsher critic than Gordon Ramsay himself) believes they’re better than the wings from Pok Pok in Brooklyn.These wings aren’t hard to make, but they take a little bit of prep time, since you have to marinate, and then make the sauce and fry. But the ingredients are all inexpensive, and the execution itself is simple and straightforward. It’s the kind of robust recipe to feed a crowd—you just gotta plan a little ahead of time. I promise, your guests’s palate will be doing the touchdown dance after tasting these wings.

Recipe: Caramelized Fish Sauce Chicken Wings

Notes: So packed with flavor, you won't need a dipping sauce.

Ingredients

1. 1 c fish sauce
2. 1/2 c granulated sugar
3. 5 cloves garlic, finely chopped
4. 1/2 lime, zested
5. 3 lbs chicken wings
6. 1 c cornstarch
7. oil for frying

Sauce:

8. 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
9. 1/2 c packed brown sugar
10. 3 tbsp ketchup
11. 2 tbsp fish sauce
12. 1/2 lime, zested
13. 3 red chile peppers or more to taste, seeded if desired & finely chopped
14. 4 tbsp finely chopped cilantro
15. 2 tbsp finely chopped mint

Instructions

1. Marinate chicken: In a large bowl, stir together fish sauce, sugar, garlic, and lime zest; toss with chicken to coat. Cover and chill for at least 3h, flipping once halfway through.
2. Par-fry wings: In a heavy-bottomed pot, heat oil to 350°F. Remove chicken from marinade, coat with cornstarch, and fry for 4m. Drain on wire racks over paper bags.
3. Make sauce: In a medium saucepan over medium-low heat, combine garlic, brown sugar, ketchup, fish sauce, lime zest, and chile peppers. Heat until thickened, approx 8 to 10m. Remove from heat and stir in cilantro and mint.
4. Refry wings: re-heat oil to 350°F. Fry wings for 4m more. Drain on wire racks over paper bags.
5. Toss with sauce to coat before serving.

Active time: 45m
Total time: 3h 50m
Yields: 6 servings