Sticky Chicken Drumsticks: Air Quotes Asian

As a kid, getting to tell people the real story behind fortune cookies was incredibly satisfying. And honestly, I still get amusement out of getting to remind people that Chinese American food is really not what people in China eat. Same goes for Chipotle and probably most of the ethnic food that we eat in the US. Which is really sad if you think about it, or read the wiki page about American Chinese food that give racism and the resulting inability to get any actual jobs as part of how American Chinese food was developed.

I mean, when I was a kid, it was a revelation anytime you learned that what your teachers/parents taught you about the world was only one version of the super complex and messy truth. And this was before iPhones, and wireless internet (what up dial-up!), and twitter, and tumblr to teach you that everything in this world is a conspiracy. Nowadays, most people know that fortune cookies are not Chinese, and that Chipotle is not Mexican, but doesn't it terrify you to think about how back in the day your small community was the main source of knowledge, rather than like the infinite internetz?! It scares me at least, because think what research would be without pubmed, and think where the hypochondriacs of the world would be without webmd. Which reminds me of this amazing (AND IMPROVISED) line from the now departed, but forever loved show that is Parks and Rec.

Getting back to Sticky Chicken Drumsticks, this was lovingly categorized as "Asian" from the blog where I found this recipe at. But it's literally the epitome of American Asian cuisine. Like homemaker, food blogger, small town American Asian. Chicken drumsticks, I *think* aren't really part of Asian cuisine? From my n=1 experience, I don't really remember ever eating chicken legs while visiting relatives in China (chicken feet on the other hand, yes). But Asia is literally a continent, and while China is huge, Asia is even larger and there may very well be people in actual Asia who eat chicken legs sans air quotes.

I literally googled "Sticky Chicken History" to see if I could find a wiki page about this dish, like the one for fortune cookies, but alas, goose eggs. This dish is, however, incredibly popular on pinterest, with the words "finger lickin' good," or "melt off the bone," frequently accompanying photos. While I do like "real" Chinese/Asian food, this doesn't exclude me or my family from enjoying things that are "Asian" either. For example, cream cheese wontons? I would happily eat those on a daily basis.

And if you should care to know, fortune cookies are not Chinese, but actually were invented in the early 20th century in San Francisco. So if anything, they're American fortune cookies.
Recipe via Farm Girl Gourmet