These Sticky and Crispy Asian Chicken Wings have the perfect crunch and sticky sweetness – the BEST chicken wings!
Updated for 2018 with video!
Telling you that these chicken wings always go down well is a serious understatement.
The first time I made them a couple of years ago, Chris was at work, so I served them up to the kids and got the following responses:
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- Complete silence for the first 10 minutes (except the sounds of frantic chewing/crunching)
- Eyes rolling back in heads
- Phrases like ‘you’re the best mummy ever‘, ‘we’re so lucky to have a mummy who’s a food blogger‘ and ‘oh my gosh these are the best things I’ve ever tasted‘
All in a day’s work hey! These wings make the top 10 list for Chris and the kids along with some other favourites like the Crispy Sesame Chicken and Crispy Chilli Beef. Did i ever mention i LOVE making Asian Recipes 🙂
When Chris did come home from work, he had 5 minutes before he had to be on a phone call, so he literally hovered over the plate I’d saved for him and devoured the lot.
4 people, 1.5kg of chicken wings. Gone.
The crispiness of the chicken wings is amazing – especially considering they’re oven baked. I have Nagi’s recipe from Recipe Tin Eats to thank for that. She’s the chicken wing queen!
Each wing is chopped into the two pieces, then mixed in a bowl with baking powder (it HAS to be baking powder, NOT baking soda), salt and pepper. There’s quite a lot of baking powder and salt in this recipe, which sounds a little strange, but it really draws the moisture out of the chicken to get that perfect crunchy crispness.
They’re cooked at low temperature initially, to slowly render out the fat, then the heat is turned up until the wings are crisp and browned.
The delicious sticky sauce is based on the one I use for my sticky Chinese pork belly (another family favourite!). I doubled it for this recipe, and changed a couple of the quantities very slightly.
It’s poured over the wings right before serving, and it works so well!!
Can I make these chicken wings gluten free?
Yes, you can replace the soy sauce with tamari. Also, make sure you’re using a gluten-free baking powder and sweet chilli sauce.
Can I make them ahead?
I prefer these wings fresh out of the oven, but you can make the wings ahead – without the sauce- then cool, cover and refrigerate for up to a day. Reheat them on a wire rack over a tray for about 5-6 minutes at 200C/400F until they’re crisp again.
You can also mix the sauce ingredients together, then cover and refrigerate (uncooked). Pour into a pan and boil as per instructions before serving.
Is there a vegetarian option?
I have been asked this question a number of times and after much testing i made a veggie option. These Baked Asian Cauliflower Wings are as good as this chicken version.
Equipment used:
In order to make these amazing Sticky and Crispy Asian Chicken Wings you will need:
- Large Bowl
- Tray with rack
- A good Kitchen knife.
- Chopping Board.
- Fying Pan/Skillet
- Measuring Spoons
- Grater for grating the ginger.
- Wooden or Silicon Coated Spoons. We have just bought these and love them!
The Sticky AND Crispy Asian Chicken Wings Recipe:
- 1.5 kg chicken wings
- 2 level tbsp baking powder (It has to be baking powder, NOT baking soda)
- ¾ tsp salt (make sure it's regular table salt)
- ½ tsp pepper
- 3 tbsp chopped spring onions/scallions
- 1 tsp vegetable oil
- pinch of salt and pepper
- 1 thumb-sized piece of ginger peeled and minced
- 1 tbsp sweet chilli sauce
- 2 tbsp honey
- 4 tbsp brown sugar
- 5 tbsp dark soy sauce
- 1 tsp lemon grass paste
- 2 cloves garlic peeled and minced
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Preheat the oven to 120C/250F and place a rack on a large baking tray.
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Cut each wing at the joint so you have a mini wing and a drumette. Dry the wings with paper towels, then place in a large bowl and add the baking powder, salt and pepper. Toss to combine.
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Place in a single layer on the rack, skin side up. It's fine for them to be touching. Place on the lower shelf of the oven for 30 minutes.
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After 30 minutes, turn the oven up to 220c (425f), rotate the tray and place on a higher shelf in the oven for 45-50 minutes until the wings are golden and crispy. Take out of the oven to cool slightly.
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Place all of the sauce ingredients into a saucepan, stir and bring to the boil. Allow to bubble for 5-10 minutes until the sauce reduces and thickens slightly (it will thicken more as it cools). Turn off the heat.
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Place the wings in a large bowl and very carefully pour over the sticky sauce (be careful, it will VERY hot). Toss to combine, then serve topped with chopped spring onions.
Recipe Video
Can I make these chicken wings gluten free?
Yes, you can replace the soy sauce with tamari. Also, make sure you're using a gluten-free baking powder and sweet chilli sauce.
Can I make them ahead?
I prefer these wings fresh out of the oven, but you can make the wings ahead - without the sauce- then cool, cover and refrigerate for up to a day. Reheat them on a wire rack over a tray for about 5-6 minutes at 200C/400F until they're crisp again.
You can also mix the sauce ingredients together, then cover and refrigerate (uncooked). Pour into a pan and boil as per instructions before serving.
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Nutritional information is per chicken wing.
This post was first published in June 2016. Updated in June 2018 with additional tips and recipe video.
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Sarah says
I followed the recipe exactly, wings were dry and sauce was too sweet and dried like toffee. I also thought they tasted too salty. It’s the makings of a good recipe, just needs a few adjustments.
Chris Corbishley says
Sorry it didn’t work for you, its a huge success in our house and is our go-to wings recipe
Thanks
Chris & Nicky
Sharifah Jamali says
We made this for dinner tonight. With 2kg of chicken wings. Turns out gorgeous! Very tender & juicy! My family of four finished them within 45min. I will make this dish again & recommend to the others.
Thanks for sharing!
GEORge says
Awesome would recommend this recipe to everyone! Def making again! I only had normal soy and no lemon grass but they still were great!
Jane says
You mention garlic in your video but there is no garlic listed in recipe.
Chris Corbishley says
Hi Jane,
Good catch. I have updated the recipe to include 2 cloves of garlic peeled and minced to the sauce ingredients.
Thanks
Chris & Nicky 🙂
ELEANOR says
I made this tonight and OMG it was out of this world. I added garlic paste, used ginger paste, used black pepper and used 4 tsp of light brown sugar. My daughter had 10 wings, dad and I both had 6 each. Would make this again and recommend to friends and family. I wish I could post pictures
Tonya says
Have to be honest, I never expected these to turn out so good. I haven’t done the lower heat first, then blast it high for an extended time. I think that might be what made the difference. This will be a go-to for us.
Thanks for sharing,
Tonya- Dallas, TX
Si says
I haven’t tried the recipe yet but is it correct that the wings need to be in the oven for 45 minutes at 425F after already being in there for 30 minutes at 250F? Won’t the wings be overcooked or come out dry?
Nicky Corbishley says
Hi Si, Yes the instructions are correct. The wings should be lovely and crispy on the outside, and tender inside. Hope you enjoy 🙂
Paul says
Hi there. These sound delicious and I can’t wait to try them. I was hoping to leave out the lemongrass paste as this is not something that I have on-hand but the I noticed in the video that you didn’t use it either, but you did use garlic. How much garlic would you include in the sauce?
Thanks!
Paul
Chris Corbishley says
HI Paul,
Its 2 cloves garlic peeled and minced. We have updated the recipe as we missed it of originally.
If you give it a try please let us know how you get on.
Thanks
Chris & Nicky
Wilma says
Hi Nicky I made these today and at first I thought they wouldn’t have enough coating on them but boy did they surprise me.
They were simply delicious. Best I have ever tasted.
Thanks for sharing this recipe with me.
Danielle says
These are our go-to wing recipe! Absolutely delicious!
Vikas says
perfect.
Danielle says
I’ve got to try this cooking technique to get the nice crispy wings. I’ve never tried cooking them low first and these look awesome. That sticky asian sauce sounds just so good!
Earnest says
Hello is it possible to grill the wings instead of oven?
Chris Corbishley says
Hi Earnest,
Sorry these ones cant be grilled, With the coating for these wings they need to be baked in the oven.
Thanks
Chris & Nicky
Kevin says
Hi Earnest,
I’m a couple months late here, but of course you can grill them instead of using the oven! You can use a similar method as recommended here (low or indirect heat at first, then high heat to get them crispy, although cooking time on the grill will vary). Then toss them in the sauce afterward just the same.
Enjoy!