Fish-Sauce Chicken Wings and Vietnamese Crawfish Fried Rice
By Chris Shepherd from “America the Great Cookbook”
Makes 6 servings
CHICKEN WINGS 12 chicken wings Salt and freshly ground pepper ¾ cup good-quality fish sauce
(Shepherd uses Red Boat) 1 cup granulated sugar 1 teaspoon minced garlic 1 tablespoon sambal paste 1 cup distilled white vinegar 3 cups water 3 tablespoons unsalted butter Fresh cilantro leaves for garnish Crushed peanuts for garnish
FRIED RICE 2 tablespoons vegetable oil 2 carrots, finely diced 1 small yellow onion, sliced 4 large eggs 8 cups day-old cooked jasmine rice 2 tablespoons good-quality fish sauce 1 pound cooked crawfish tails 1 cup shelled English peas 1 bunch green onions, green parts only, chopped Salt and freshly ground pepper
For the chicken wings: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Season the chicken wings with salt and pepper and place on a baking sheet. Bake the chicken wings until cooked through, 10-12 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside. While the chicken is baking, place the fish sauce, sugar, garlic, sambal, vinegar, and water in a wide pot and start to reduce over medium-high heat. Let the liquid reduce by half, then add the chicken to the pot. Add the butter and allow the liquid to turn into a nice glossy glaze. Remove the wings to a serving dish and garnish with the cilantro and peanuts.
For the fried rice: Make sure to have everything ready before you start cooking. Fried rice is a dish that is done over very high heat and at a very fast pace, so have all the ingredients ready to go. Heat the oil in the largest pan available, or in a wok, over high heat until light smoke starts to appear. Add the carrot and sauté briefly, about 1 minute. Add the onion and sauté for about 30 seconds. Using a wooden spoon, push the carrot and onion to one side of the pan and add the eggs to the other side. Stir the eggs in the pan until they are about halfway scrambled, about 30 seconds, then toss them together with the carrot and onion. Add the rice, breaking it up so there are no chunks stuck together, then add the fish sauce and stir until well incorporated.
Add the crawfish tails and English peas and toss to mix and heat through. Finally, add the green onions and a touch of salt and toss through the fried rice. Season generously with pepper and transfer to a serving dish.
Note: You will need about 2¾ cups uncooked jasmine rice to yield 8 cups cooked.