Chicken Drumstick Stew with Pineapple and Coconut Water

Chicken stew with coconut and pineapple is a specialty dish of the south of Vietnam. The sweetness and aroma of fresh coconut juice adds to the unique flavor of this dish. The South Vietnamese people are inhabitants around numerous coconut trees, and golden pineapples loaded on pole boats are sold on the river in the early morning. Those were my childhood memories that are still fresh in my mind as if it were yesterday when my family resided in the small village, Vi Thuy, by the river carrying the same name.  My family is originally from the north, but this dish became quickly well accepted in our family because it is delicious.  It was also very economical at that time for my mom to feed us.  My mom had so many part-time jobs, and one of them was helping to sell pineapples from the boat every morning and at the end of the work day so that she can get paid some money and, of course, some fresh pineapples.  This is a reason my mom learned how to prepare this dish and made it often too.  If cooked according to the taste of the people of the South, it is slightly sweet to us, so my mom changed it to a slightly saltier taste for us, and I grew up with loving the sweet taste of this dish.  Today, I will share this chicken recipe with all its aroma that I remember.  Although living in the United States, it is hard to find fresh pineapple or fresh coconut juice just picked from the tree.  However, this chicken dish always reminds me of my younger years when I was sitting next to my mother so I could taste the chicken when it was done cooking.

Ingredients:

10 chicken drumsticks

1/2 pineapple

2 tbs oil

Stew sauce ingredients:

2 cups coconut water

1 tbs fish sauce

1 tsp sugar

1 tbs honey

1 tsp salt

Black pepper

Other ingredients:

2 hot chilies

2 shallots, sliced

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 medium white onion, sliced

Serve with hot cooked rice or noodles

Directions:

Wash and drain chicken drumsticks (I always soak in salted and vinegar water for 2 hours).

Peel the pineapple and remove the eyes from the pineapple. Discard the core and slice into 1 inch-thick chunks.

In a medium pot, heat oil and add chicken drumsticks. When drumsticks start to brown, add sliced shallots and minced garlic. Cook for 5 minutes.

Add chopped pineapple, sliced white onion, some chilies, and stew sauce ingredients. Bring to boil.

Cover and simmer for 40 to 50 minutes on medium low heat or until drumsticks are tender to your liking. Uncover the lid in the last 5 minutes of cooking time so the sauce can be absorbed more.

If served with noodles, then leave the sauce in longer and add more coconut water with the stew sauce ingredients.  Enjoy either way!!