Garlic-Lemon Grass Chicken Wings

Name: Garlic-Lemon Grass Chicken Wings
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 45 min
Yield: 4 Servings
Ingredients: 1/4 cup white sugar; 1/4 cup fish sauce; 1/4 cup lime juice, plus lime wedges to serve; Kosher salt and ground black pepper; 1/3 cup potato starch; 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric; 2 quarts plus 1 tablespoon peanut or canola oil, divided; 2-2 1/4 pounds chicken drumettes, flats (wingettes) or a combination, patted dry (see headnote); 6 medium garlic cloves, minced; 2 stalks fresh lemon grass, trimmed to the bottom 6 inches, dry outer layers discarded, minced; 2 medium shallots, minced; 2 Fresno or serrano chilies, stemmed and sliced into thin rings; 1/4 cup lightly packed fresh cilantro leaves, chopped

Adapted by Courtney Hill

4 Servings

45 minutes

Free

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These crisp, salty-sweet chicken wings were inspired by the ones we tasted at Coupi Street Kitchen, a Vietnamese-inspired café in the Left Bank of Paris. A dusting of potato starch gives them a thin, crackly exterior, which stays crisp even after the wings have been sauced. High-impact ingredients, including fragrant lemon grass, punchy alliums and zingy chilies, bring big, bold flavor, while fish sauce, lime juice and sugar contribute sweet, tart and salty notes. After the wings are fried, the sauce is made separately, reduced in a skillet to a sticky glaze for coating the chicken. The recipe works with drumettes, flats (also called wingettes) or a combination. If you purchase whole wings, you will need to cut between the joints to separate the parts. Since the wing tips are not used in this recipe (if desired, they can be saved for making chicken broth), you may wish to opt for 2¼ pounds of wings, or even a little more.

4

Servings

Tip

Don’t let the sauce simmer for more than a couple minutes, otherwise it may become too thick to evenly glaze the wings. Reduce just until the mixture is syrupy with large bubbles forming across its surface; this will yield enough to evenly coat the wings while ensuring they stay crispy.

45 minutes

1/4 cup white sugar

1/4 cup fish sauce

1/4 cup lime juice, plus lime wedges to serve

Kosher salt and ground black pepper

1/3 cup potato starch

1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric

2 quarts plus 1 tablespoon peanut or canola oil, divided

2-2 1/4 pounds chicken drumettes, flats (wingettes) or a combination, patted dry (see headnote)

6 medium garlic cloves, minced

2 stalks fresh lemon grass, trimmed to the bottom 6 inches, dry outer layers discarded, minced

2 medium shallots, minced

2 Fresno or serrano chilies, stemmed and sliced into thin rings

1/4 cup lightly packed fresh cilantro leaves, chopped

Ingredients

¼

cup white sugar
¼

cup fish sauce
¼

cup lime juice, plus lime wedges to serve
Kosher salt and ground black pepper
⅓

cup potato starch
½

teaspoon ground turmeric
2

quarts plus 1 tablespoon peanut or canola oil, divided
2-2¼

pounds chicken drumettes, flats (wingettes) or a combination, patted dry (see headnote)
6

medium garlic cloves, minced
2

stalks fresh lemon grass, trimmed to the bottom 6 inches, dry outer layers discarded, minced
2

medium shallots, minced
2

Fresno or serrano chilies, stemmed and sliced into thin rings
¼

cup lightly packed fresh cilantro leaves, chopped

Directions

01

In a small bowl, stir together the sugar, fish sauce, lime juice and ¼ teaspoon pepper until the sugar dissolves; set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together the potato starch, turmeric and 1 teaspoon each salt and pepper; set aside. Set a wire rack in a rimmed baking sheet.
02

Add 2 quarts oil to a large Dutch oven; it should reach a depth of about 1½ inches. Heat over medium-high to 350°F. Meanwhile, add the chicken wings to the potato starch mixture and toss to coat, pressing so the starch adheres.
03

When the oil has reached 350°F, carefully add one or two wings at a time, shaking off excess starch, until about half are in the pot. Cook, stirring and turning occasionally, until golden brown and crisp, 10 to 13 minutes. Using tongs, transfer the wings as they are done to the prepared rack. Cook the remaining wings in the same way; set aside.
04

In a 12-inch skillet over medium-high, heat the remaining 1 tablespoon oil until shimmering. Add the garlic, lemon grass, shallots and chilies; cook, stirring often, until lightly browned, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the fish sauce mixture, bring to a simmer and cook, stirring, until lightly syrupy, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the wings and cook, tossing to coat, until glazed and the skillet is dry, 1 to 2 minutes. Off heat, toss in the cilantro, then taste and season with salt and pepper.

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Reviews

Lindsay P.

February 14, 2024

Would your baking method for wings work with this recipe? Would the potato starch crisp up well in the oven? Thanks!

Stephanie L.

May 10, 2023

As advertised and simply wonderful

These were great. Recipe was spot on. I deep fried in a wok so maybe cooked a tad quicker with less turning. Just temped them. Will definitely make again. Yum.

Elaine P.

February 8, 2024

Wow!

I like to consider myself something of a wing aficionado and this wing recipe is outstanding. The flavor combination was superb - absolutely delicious. Make these - you will not be disappointed.

Thom S.

April 20, 2024

Repeat Recipe?

Is this the same recipe that was presented in early 2023 or has it been updated?

Erik G.

March 25, 2024

Consider more sugar?

Made this last night. Generally speaking, most Milk Street recipes do not disappoint, although these did not go over as well as I would have hoped. Personally, I am wondering if the sugar should be increased to 1/2 cup instead of 1/4 cup (which would make it more of a simply syrup with the lime juice and fish sauce). As is, even though the mixture boiled down to syrupy consistency and coated the chicken well, the final product was too lime-forward and sour, not the salt-sweet-sour balance I was expecting. Adding more sugar upfront or adding equal parts sugar and honey might alleviate this issue. Texture-wise, the wings were fine; it's amazing such a small amount of potato starch works well for coating. Just flavor-wise, these were disappointing.