Photo by Faride Sadegin
Serve: 4 to 6
Preparation time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Total time: 2 days
material
For chicken brine:
2 teaspoons dark brown sugar
½ cup | 125ml tsp fish sauce
½ cup | 125ml soy sauce
1 tablespoon and 1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 teaspoons whole black pepper
4 bone-in skin-on chicken thighs
4 chicken thighs
For chicken marinade:
2 ⅔ cups | 625 ml buttermilk
3½ tbsp | 50ml hot sauce, preferably crystal
3 tablespoons fish sauce
3 tbsp soy sauce
1 tablespoon kosher salt
2 teaspoons garlic powder
2 teaspoons onion powder
1½ tsp Cayenne
½ teaspoon MSG
2 large egg whites
¼ cup and 3 tbsp | 100ml pickle juice
¼ cup and 1 tbsp | 70ml vodka
For Annatto Oil:
2 cups | 500ml canola oil
2 tablespoons annatto seeds
For Annatlou:
¼ cup | 60ml annatto oil
⅓ cup | 50 grams of all-purpose flour
For curry:
1/2 cup | 125 ml and 2 tbsp annatto oil
1 carrot (peeled and coarsely chopped)
1 small Yukon Gold potato, coarsely chopped
¼ cup | 30 grams Vietnamese curry powder
kosher salt, to taste
1 thick-stemmed lemongrass, crushed and cut into 3-inch batons
1/4 cup | 35 grams of minced ginger
2 tablespoons minced garlic
1 large shallot, diced
1 diced Spanish onion
1 bird’s eye chili (cut in half)
4 ¼ cups | 1 liter roasted chicken stock
1 cup | 250 ml coconut milk or similar alloy-d
dark brown sugar to taste
fish sauce, to taste
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
coriander, garnish
For dredging:
canola oil for frying
3 cups | 420 grams all purpose flour
⅔ cup | 110 grams potato starch
3 tablespoons chickpea flour
2 tablespoons kosher salt
1 tablespoon cayenne
Onion powder 1 tablespoon
Garlic powder 2½ tsp
1 teaspoon MSG
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
serve:
Vietnamese curry powdertaste
ground Taginetaste
baguette
cooked white rice
direction
- Brine chicken: In a large bowl, combine brown sugar, fish sauce, soy sauce, salt and black pepper in 4 ¼ cups | 1 liter of water and whisk until dissolved. Add the chicken, cover, and marinate in the refrigerator for 6 hours or overnight.
- Marinate the chicken: After salting the chicken, whisk together the egg whites, buttermilk, pickle juice, vodka, hot sauce, fish sauce, soy sauce, salt, garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne, and MSG in a large bowl. Mix in a bowl. Remove chicken from brine, place in marinade, cover, and refrigerate 6 hours or up to overnight.
- Make annatto oil: Combine oil and annatto seeds in a small saucepan. Heat over medium heat until a frying thermometer reads 300°F and let it sit for 30 minutes. Strain and reserve.
- Make the roux: Heat the annatto oil in a small skillet over medium heat. Add the flour and whisk constantly until the roux is a tan khaki color, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat, set aside and let cool.
- Make the curry: Heat 2 tablespoons of annatto oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add carrots and potatoes and season with salt. Stir-fry until browned, then add 1 tablespoon of curry powder. Bake until golden brown, then about 2 minutes more. Remove with a slotted spoon and save. In the same pan, heat 1/2 cup|125 ml of annatto oil over medium heat. Add lemongrass and cook until golden and fragrant, about 1 minute. Add ginger and garlic and simmer until fragrant, about 1 minute, then add onions, shallots, and chili. Add salt to taste, add the remaining curry powder, and sauté for 2 minutes until fragrant and the onion softens. Deglaze with chicken stock, bring to a boil, then reduce heat. Add coconut milk and season with salt, brown sugar, fish sauce and black pepper. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes to 2 hours (1 to 2 hours is best).
- After 1 hour, add carrots and potatoes back in and simmer for 15 minutes, until tender. Add 2 tablespoons of annatto roux to the curry and bring to a boil, cook until the curry thickens, then add the roux 1 tablespoon at a time and simmer until desired consistency, about 3 minutes. Once seasoned, place the ladle in a bowl and finish with a drizzle of annatto oil, freshly ground black pepper and coriander.
- Fry the chicken: Heat 3 inches of oil in a large pan over high heat until the fry thermometer registers 350°F. In a large bowl, whisk together the dredge ingredients. Before adding the chicken, dredge some of the marinade onto the dredge and massage to create a “clatter”. Dredge each piece of chicken directly from the marinade to coat thoroughly. Working in batches, fry the chicken until golden and crisp. A thermometer inserted in the thickest part reads 165°F for about 8-10 minutes per batch. Sprinkle with ground tagine. Repeat with remaining chicken, being careful to bring the oil back up to temperature between batches.
- To serve, divide the chicken into plates, garnish with a bowl of curry to dunk the chicken and a baguette to make mini sandwiches. Because it’s rice! !
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