How to Make Vietnamese Chicken Wings
For the Pickled Vegetables
Step #1: Place the carrot, radish, water, sugar, vinegar, and fish sauce in a large Tupperware or sealable glass container. Shake well, and refrigerate for 4 hours or up to 2 days. Even if you’ve never been to Pok Pok (locations in Portland, NYC, and LA), you’re about to join the rest of us who are obsessed with Ike’s Vietnamese Fish Sauce Chicken Wings. He’s known for his brilliant adaptations of traditional Northern Thai cuisine. While Pok Pok is considered a “Thai” restaurant, the most popular item on the menu is the Vietnamese fried chicken wings. In his Pok Pok Cookbook, Ricker jokes that those wings “pay the mortgage!”.
For the Wings
Step #1: Place the minced garlic and salt in a small bowl. Use a wooden spoon to mash the two together for about 15 seconds. Add the warm water and allow it to rest for 5 minutes. Reserving the water, strain the garlic from the bowl. Add the fish sauce and sugar to the garlic water and stir until the sugar has dissolved. Reserve half of the marinade, then marinate chicken pieces in the other half of the mixture (about ¼ cup). Cover and refrigerate for 4 hours or up to 1 day. Step #2: A few minutes before you are ready to fry the wings, transfer the chicken pieces to a colander in the sink and let them drain well. Step #3: In a large bowl, beat the egg and stir in the milk. In a second shallow bowl or rimmed plate, mix together the flour and a teaspoon of salt. Dip the drained chicken pieces into the egg mixture, then the flour mixture, then repeat so each piece of chicken is double coated. Place the coated chicken on a sheet pan and refrigerate for 10 minutes to dry out the coating. Step #4: Pour 3 inches of oil into a wide pot set over medium-high heat. Bring the oil to 350°F (175°C), then turn the heat down slightly to maintain a consistent temperature. Fry the chicken in batches, returning the oil to 350°F (175°C) between batches, for 5-7 minutes or until golden brown and cooked through. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate to drain. Step #5: Add ¼ cup of water to the remaining fish sauce marinade. Transfer to a large pan and bring to a boil over high heat. Cook until the mixture has reduced by half, about 30-45 seconds. Add the wings and cook, tossing the wings in the sauce every 15 seconds, until the liquid becomes sticky and caramel-colored. Serve with pickled veggies and several sprigs of cilantro. To reheat, bake them in a preheated oven at 375°F (190°C) for 10-15 minutes until heated through and crispy. Avoid microwaving as it can make the coating soggy.
