Essential · 1 h 30 min, plus 8–24 hours of drying in the refrigerator · Serves 4
Crispy oven wings with honey, soy and garlic glaze
The same root as the five Signature wings of the family: very crisp skin, tender meat and a glossy lacquer that clings to every piece. This version does everything in the oven, with no brine or confit, and is ready for a snack platter or a starter to share.
The twist is to get the crunch of frying with two oven tricks. The wings dry overnight in the refrigerator with salt and baking powder, which raises the pH of the skin and makes it brown and blister, and they bake in two stages on a rack: first at low temperature, so the fat renders, and then hot, to brown. A short glaze of honey, soy, garlic, butter and lemon lacquers them as they come out, without softening them.
Special equipment: wire rack that fits in a baking sheet; instant-read thermometer recommended
Ingredients
Dried wings
- 1500 g whole chicken wings (about 12 wings, 24 separated pieces)
- 12 g fine salt
- 10 g baking powder, with no aftertaste (not baking soda)
- 3 g freshly ground black pepper
- 3 g garlic powder, optional
Honey, soy and garlic glaze
- 60 g honey
- 40 ml soy sauce
- 3 garlic cloves, finely grated
- 10 g fresh ginger, grated, optional
- 30 g butter
- 15–20 ml lemon juice
- 1 pinch of crushed chili flakes, optional
Finishing
- 2 scallions (spring onions), green part only, in thin rings
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds
- 1 lemon, in wedges
Method
Dried wings
- Breaking down. Separate each wing at its joints into drumette and flat; set the tips aside for a stock. Pat them very dry with paper towels.
- Drying. Mix the salt, baking powder, pepper and, if using, the garlic powder. Put the wings in a bowl, sprinkle the mixture in two or three additions, tossing, until they are covered by a thin, even coat, with no clumps: the excess leaves a metallic taste. Arrange them on a rack set over a baking sheet, skin side up and not touching, and refrigerate uncovered for 8–24 hours. The skin should look dry and taut.
- Two-stage baking. Place the rack with the wings on the middle shelf of the oven, over a sheet lined with aluminum foil. Bake 30 minutes at 120 °C (250 °F), so the fat in the skin renders and drains. Without taking them out, raise the oven to 220–230 °C (430–445 °F) and bake 40–50 minutes more, turning them halfway, until the skin is deeply golden, blistered and sounds crisp when tapped with tongs. The meat should be tender, with no pink near the bone, and reach 74 °C (165 °F) at the thickest part.
Honey, soy and garlic glaze
- Reduction. In a wide pan over medium heat, melt the butter and cook the garlic and, if using, the ginger for 30–40 seconds, without browning. Add the honey, soy and chili and simmer gently for 2–3 minutes, until the bubbles become large and slow and the sauce coats a spoon. Turn off the heat and add the lemon juice. It should be glossy, both salty and sweet, without a raw-honey taste.
Finishing
- Lacquering. With the wings fresh out of the oven, tip them into the pan with the hot glaze and toss off the heat for 20–30 seconds, until covered by a thin, glossy film. Do not leave them in the sauce: they soften.
The dish
Use a wide platter or board, or a flat plate per person. Arrange the lacquered pieces with some volume, the glossiest sides up, and drizzle over whatever glaze is left in drops, without forming a pool. Finish with the scallion rings and sesame, and add the lemon wedges on the side. Serve at once. Final look: caramel-brown, glossy wings with blistered skin, the green of the scallions, the pale dots of sesame and the yellow of the lemon.
Key points
- Dry the wings uncovered in the refrigerator: without dry skin there is no crunch.
- Use a thin coat of baking powder, never baking soda.
- Bake on a rack, so the air circulates and the fat drains.
- Reduce the glaze until it coats a spoon, and lacquer off the heat.
- Serve as soon as they are lacquered.
Pairing
A very cold lager or an IPA. Without alcohol, ginger lemonade.
Notes
- Air fryer: after drying, cook at 180 °C (355 °F) for 20 minutes and at 200 °C (390 °F) for 8–10 minutes more, in batches without crowding.
- Other sauces: any of the sauces from the five Signature versions works to lacquer these wings.