Duck Wings with Asian Chili Sauce

• Duck:

• 7 whole allspice berries
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons salt
• 3 garlic cloves
• 1 bay leaf
• Zest of half a lemon
• 2 pounds duck wing drumettes
• 6 cups duck fat or olive oil

• Sauce:

• 1/2 cup sweet chili sauce
• 1/4 cup plus 3 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons sambal olek
• 1/2 cup cornstarch
• Vegetable oil for frying

Heat a small skillet over medium heat. Toast the allspice, cinnamon, and black pepper until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Grind to a powder in a coffee grinder. Combine the spice mixture with the brown sugar, salt, garlic, bay leaf, and lemon zest. Mix well and set aside.

Trim the duck wings of any excess fat or skin. Place the wings in a container, then cover them in the brown sugar mixture, making sure that they are completely coated. Cover the container with plastic wrap and let the wings cure in the refrigerator for 3 days.

Preheat the oven to 225ºF. Gently rinse the spice mixture off the wings. Place them in a pot or Dutch oven that fits them snugly; cover with the duck fat or olive oil. Transfer to the oven and cook for 4 1/2 hours.

Remove from the oven and let the duck wings cool in the fat. When the wings have cooled, gently pull them out of the fat and lay them on a plate lined with paper towel or parchment paper.

Combine the sweet chili sauce, rice wine vinegar, and sambal olek in a small pot. Heat over medium heat until just beginning to boil. Whisk to combine. Remove from the heat, cover, and set aside.

In a large bowl, toss the wings in the cornstarch to coat. In a deep, heavy-bottomed pot, heat the vegetable oil to 375ºF. Working in batches, fry the duck wings until crispy, about 5 minutes. (Be careful not to fry too many wings at a time or the temperature of the oil will drop, which will result in greasy wings.) Toss the wings in the warm sweet chili sauce before serving.