Spicy Honey Sesame Chicken Wings

If you’re looking for a great chicken wing recipe with just a hint of heat but a ton of flavor, these are your wings. And, if you don’t subscribe to the “wings have to be nuclear” line of thought, you might also love my spicy apricot wings, because they’re pretty delicious without being crazy hot, also. And don’t be tied down to doing this recipe with wings, because it’s a great sauce for legs, thighs, and even chicken breast, you’ll just have to adjust your cooking time accordingly.

I happened to have hung with a crowd from the Buffalo, NY area during the original Buffalo-style chicken wings heyday back in my New Haven days, and I can tell you they didn’t actually involve much more than deep frying the wings and then tossing them in Frank’s Red Hot, butter and (shhhhh) a shot of Amaretto while they were still hot. True story.  Not very exciting but that’s my story. I still swear by Frank’s Red Hot if you want hot wings because it’s a great, flavorful base to making a tasty hot chicken wing.

I’ll state here that I’m not in the camp of breading chicken wings or deep frying them; I like roasting mine in a hot oven and, if needed, crisping them up for a couple of minutes under the broiler. Less grease, less mess and a wee bit healthier. I also can’t stand a soggy-skin chicken wing. Char it a little and crisp up the skin or don’t bother giving it to me.

Chicken sauces are fun to play around with, as you can do so much in the way of flavors, so I try and mix things up once in a while. The sliced scallions and sesame seeds are key toppings with these wings because they add a huge burst of flavor and crunch to the overall dish. Mostly though, these are just chicken wings…have fun with them for Pete’s sake.

Spicy Honey Sesame Chicken Wings Recipe

• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 2-inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and minced
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1 teaspoon Thai hot chili garlic paste
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce or tamari
• 2 tablespoons sesame oil
• 1 teaspoon unseasoned rice vinegar
• 3.5 lbs chicken wings, cut at the joints, wing tips reserved for making stock at a later time. (about 3 lbs wing and drumettes)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 4 scallions, thinly sliced
• 1 tablespoon sesame seeds

In a large bowl, combine the first 7 ingredients (garlic through rice vinegar) and whisk together well.  Add chicken wings, toss well and refrigerate for at least 3 hours.

Preheat oven to 425º

1. Brush a large baking sheet with olive oil.(for easy clean-up, line with aluminum foil first)
2. Place wings on baking sheet, skin side up. Reserve any extra marinade.
3. Roast wings for 10 minutes. Turn wings over and brush with some of the reserved marinade.
4. Roast 15 minutes, turn wings over and brush with remaining marinade.
5. Roast for about 10 more minutes, until wings start to char a bit on the edges.
6. Remove from oven and transfer to a serving bowl or platter. Sprinkle with sliced scallions and sesame seeds and serve.

These are just about the perfect chicken wing recipe. Spicy, crunchy and full of sweet, hot flavor. If you want more heat, just add some more Thai garlic chili paste. If you don’t have the chili paste, feel free to add some minced jalapeno, habanero or other hot pepper.

Of course, if you want to lessen the heat, don’t add any chili paste or hot peppers at all..it’s just that simple.

These babies are sticky, so be sure and serve them with plenty of napkins. 🙂  And if you have to have a dipping sauce with your wings, these will still do just fine alongside your cup of ranch or blue cheese dressing.

Another variation on these is to do them with chicken tenderloin pieces on skewers. They still make a great meal or appetizer this way, but without the mess of bones.

Never, ever be afraid to play with your food.

Enjoy!