Grilled Chicken Drumsticks with Savory Caramel
from https://www.bonappetit.com/, June 22, 2018

Great things happen when you combine fish sauce, fire, and a few packs of chicken drumsticks. These drumsticks are one of four glossy gooey genius glazed meat recipes Chris Morocco developed for our summer grilling issue that were designed to deliver the bold flavor of a marinade, but in a fraction of the time.

You simply season a few packs of drumsticks with salt, then grill them covered, over indirect heat, until they’re crisp, browned, and nearly cooked through. When the chicken is almost cooked through, it’s time to move those drummys over to high heat and hit them with sauce.

The sugar and fish sauce in the glaze will caramelize in the high heat, creating plenty of those delicious charred spots, everything will get beautifully lacquered, and you will feel like your best Bob Ross painting happy little trees as you baste with your pastry brush.

Vegetable oil (for grill)
4 garlic cloves, finely grated
1 lemongrass stalk, top third trimmed, tough outer layers removed, finely grated
½ cup sugar
¼ cup unseasoned rice vinegar
2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
2 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
3 Tbsp. fish sauce
12 large chicken drumsticks (about 3 lb.)
Kosher salt

Prepare a grill for high indirect heat (for a gas grill, leave one or two burners off; for a charcoal grill, bank coals on one side); oil grate. Bring garlic, lemongrass, sugar, vinegar, red pepper flakes, cumin, black pepper, and ½ cup water to a boil in a small saucepan, stirring occasionally, and cook until reduced to ½ cup (think teriyaki sauce), about 8 minutes. Let cool and stir in fish sauce. Transfer half of sauce to a small bowl and set aside for serving.

Season chicken with salt. Place over indirect heat and cover grill with vent open (if you have one) and positioned over chicken. Grill, turning once or twice, until skin is browned and crisp and meat is nearly cooked through, 25–30 minutes. Uncover and move chicken to hotter part of grill. Continue to grill, turning often and basting with remaining sauce, until lacquered and lightly charred in places, 6–8 minutes longer. Serve with reserved sauce alongside.