Michele Lee Bernstein's Vietnamese Chicken
About the Recipe
Warning: the flavors of this sweet and savory chicken are addictive and your family will be requesting it often! Which is OK because it's easy to make and you probably have most of the ingredients on hand. It's perfect for summer barbequing. The key ingredients (beyond the chicken) are the fish sauce and the fresh cilantro.
Vietnamese Chicken Wings or Drums courtesy of PDXKnitterati
Ingredients
Marinade
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup nuoc mam (Vietnamese fish sauce) I use 3 Crabs brand. Red Boat is also good, and it’s gluten-free if that’s an issue.
1 cup white vinegar
3/4 cup rice vinegar
2 heaping tablespoons minced garlic
1 rounded tablespoon red pepper flakes
1 large flat of chicken wings (about 20 wings), cut into 3 sections, discard tips, or 1 flat drumsticks (about 16)--Bootie and Bossy both used boneless, skinless thighs and it came out great! Just adjust for timing--thighs will take less time then drumsticks or wings, about 5-10 minutes per side.
2 tsp cornstarch, combined with 2 tsp cold water
1/2 bunch cilantro
In a quart-size jar with tight-fitting lid, combine marinade ingredients. Seal and shake until sugar is dissolved.
Marinate wings/drums in sauce about 4 hours in refrigerator.
Grill wings/drums on medium-low temp to brown and cook through, turning every 5 minutes. Drumsticks take about 25-30 minutes. I’ve never used wings, so you’re on your own for timing. They’re traditional, though.
While grilling, put about half the remaining marinade into a sauce pan and bring to boil.
Add cornstarch/cold water mix to thicken a bit, I used about 2 teaspoons of corn starch.
Chop up fresh cilantro.
When wings/drums are done, put in large bowl, pour in some thickened glaze and stir. Arrange on platter and garnish with cilantro.
Enjoy!
