Chinese style chicken wings

恭喜发财 / 恭喜發財

GŌNGXǏ FĀCÁI / KUNG HEI FAT CHOI

These Chinese Style Chicken Wings are sticky, sweet and aromatic, with plenty of fresh ginger, garlic and chilli. I originally made these for Chinese New Year, and they make a fantastic sharing dish for celebrations, gatherings or simply when you fancy something a little different.

The chicken wings are cooked until beautifully tender and coated in a rich, glossy sauce that’s full of flavour. They’re easy to make and seriously moreish — perfect served as part of a Chinese-inspired feast or enjoyed on their own.

  • 500g chicken wings, halved
  • 3 garlic cloves, grated
  • 40g ginger, grated
  • 1 red chilli, chopped; remove seeds if you don’t like too much heat
  • 1 tbsp tomato paste
  • 1 tsp five spice paste (you can use the powder if you can’t find the paste)
  • 2 tbsp hoisin sauce
  • 2 tbsp runny honey
  • 1 tbsp brown sugar
  • 2 tbsp light soy sauce
  • 1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
  • 2 star anise
  • 4 tbsp apple juice
  • 1 tsp red food colouring (optional)
  • 1 tsp sea salt
  • Season the wings with the salt.
  • Place all of the marinade ingredients into a bowl and mix well. I crushed my star anise. You can leave these whole and remove later.
  • Taste the marinade. It should be sweet with a little heat. Make sure there’s enough spice and sweetness.  If not, add a little more soy or honey.
  • Once the marinade tastes great, pour it over the wings and mix well. Cover and marinate overnight in the fridge.
  • To cook, preheat the oven to 220°C.
  • Place the wings evenly into an oven dish. Pour over the apple juice. Make sure you get all of the marinade into the dish.
  • Cover with foil and cook for 15 mins. Then reduce the oven temperature to 180°C and cook for a further 20 minutes.
  • Remove the wings and place them onto another tray lined with parchment. Set the wings aside for a moment and reduce the remaining marinade.
  • Place the remaining marinade in a saucepan over a high heat. Bring to a boil and allow it to bubble, thicken and reduce. I added another tablespoon of honey to mine.
  • Brush the wings with a little of this reduced sticky marinade, return to the oven at 220°C for 5-8 minutes or until charred.
  • Once cooked, toss the chicken in the rest of the sticky marinade and serve.

LULU’S NOTES

REDUCING THE MARINADE

When you remove the chicken from the oven for the first time, the marinade will be quite runny. It needs to be reduced to create that sticky, thick sauce. If you have cooked the chicken in an oven tray that can go directly onto the hob, there is no need to pour the marinade into another pan. The wider the pan, the better the reduction.

HOW TO SERVE

I sprinkled sliced spring onion and chillies over mine, and we ate them as a side or a starter. You can of course serve them with some fries or fried rice!

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