For the second installment of my online gastric masterclass I bring you an old finger favourite: Chicken wings. Wings I think are the most overlooked part of the bird. On a roast they get overcooked and dry and not many people buy the wings themselves, despite the fact that they are dead cheap and make a fantastic meal. They work out about £1 per succulent kilo which is nothing compared to the rest of the bird. Perfect student food and guaranteed to satisfy.
The recipe is as simple as:
Preheat the oven to 200C
1 box of raw chicken wings, normally 10 in a pack
2 tablespoons of dark soy sauce
1 small tablespoon of runny honey
I like to cut the wings up into wings and wing-drumsticks but you need a pretty broad sharp knife to do this so don't attempt it with a small one. They cook just as well whole, I just like them to be finger food. Chop the tails off and discard, stretch the wing open and chop through the knuckle.
Put them in a baking dish, cover with the soy sauce and honey and spoon them around so the wings are well coated. As they cook the water will evaporate out the sauce and leave a delicious brown glaze on the outside. If you can leave them overnight to soak up the marinade then all the better but you can cook them straight away.
Cooking: place them in the oven for about 45 minutes, turning them and shaking them around to pick up the glaze off the bottom of the dish every 15 minutes. When the wings cook they will start to change. For the first 35 minutes in the oven they will look fairly similar to when they went in. At some point around the 45 minute mark, sometimes longer, the wings will be done. The skin suddenly crisps up and browns slightly and the glaze will dry out in the pan. The oil from in the skin will start to bubble out into the glaze and this is when they are done. The texture of the cooked chicken will have gone from being slightly rubbery to succulent and juicy. If you're not sure then leave them in for another 5 minutes.
This serves absolutely perfectly with mixed veg stirfry, jacket potato or spicy rice: Add to a hot saucepan a good slug of oil (stops the rice sticking together), half a cup of rice, a squeeze of tomato puree or chopped tinned tomatoes, one cup of hot water, a handful of peas, half a chicken stock cube, half a teaspoon of paprika and chilli to taste. Bring quickly to the boil, cover and reduce the heat down as low as it goes. Let it simmer down until all the liquid is gone which will take about 10-12 minutes. Turn that out onto a plate and top with the wings, mmmmm delish
New for 2007, a picture:
The recipe is as simple as:
Preheat the oven to 200C
1 box of raw chicken wings, normally 10 in a pack
2 tablespoons of dark soy sauce
1 small tablespoon of runny honey
I like to cut the wings up into wings and wing-drumsticks but you need a pretty broad sharp knife to do this so don't attempt it with a small one. They cook just as well whole, I just like them to be finger food. Chop the tails off and discard, stretch the wing open and chop through the knuckle.
Put them in a baking dish, cover with the soy sauce and honey and spoon them around so the wings are well coated. As they cook the water will evaporate out the sauce and leave a delicious brown glaze on the outside. If you can leave them overnight to soak up the marinade then all the better but you can cook them straight away.
Cooking: place them in the oven for about 45 minutes, turning them and shaking them around to pick up the glaze off the bottom of the dish every 15 minutes. When the wings cook they will start to change. For the first 35 minutes in the oven they will look fairly similar to when they went in. At some point around the 45 minute mark, sometimes longer, the wings will be done. The skin suddenly crisps up and browns slightly and the glaze will dry out in the pan. The oil from in the skin will start to bubble out into the glaze and this is when they are done. The texture of the cooked chicken will have gone from being slightly rubbery to succulent and juicy. If you're not sure then leave them in for another 5 minutes.
This serves absolutely perfectly with mixed veg stirfry, jacket potato or spicy rice: Add to a hot saucepan a good slug of oil (stops the rice sticking together), half a cup of rice, a squeeze of tomato puree or chopped tinned tomatoes, one cup of hot water, a handful of peas, half a chicken stock cube, half a teaspoon of paprika and chilli to taste. Bring quickly to the boil, cover and reduce the heat down as low as it goes. Let it simmer down until all the liquid is gone which will take about 10-12 minutes. Turn that out onto a plate and top with the wings, mmmmm delish
New for 2007, a picture:
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