Sweet and Sour Chicken Wings

closeup shot of fingers holding chicken wing garnished with spring onion and sesame seeds

5 from 1 vote

These Sweet and Sour Chicken Wings are baked in the oven until perfectly crispy, then doused in a homemade sticky sweet and sour sauce!

Prep Time15

Cook Time1 10

Total Time1 25

Course: Appetizer, Finger Food

Cuisine: American, Asian

Servings:

Author: Chris Collins

Cost: £2 / £2.50

Equipment

Large Baking Tray & Wire Rack
Aluminium Foil
Zip Lock Bag
Sharp Knife & Chopping Board
Small Pot & Wooden Spoon/Whisk (for sauce)
Large Mixing Bowl
Paper Towels

Ingredients

Chicken Wings

2lb / 1kg Chicken Wings (divided into wingette/flat & drumette)
2 tsp Baking Powder (see notes)
1/2 tsp Salt
Oil, to rub on wire rack

Sweet and Sour Sauce

1/2 cup / 120g Brown Sugar
1/2 cup / 120ml Apple Cider Vinegar
1/4 cup / 60ml Pineapple Juice
1/4 cup / 60g Ketchup
1 tbsp Light / All Purpose Soy Sauce
1 tbsp Cornstarch / Cornflour
Salt, to taste

To Serve

Sesame Seeds
Green/Spring Onion

Instructions

Thoroughly pat your wings dry with paper towels (see blog post/video for guidance on dividing whole wings) then place in a zip lock bag. Add 2 tsp baking powder (not baking soda/bicarb soda!), 1/2 tsp salt and mix about with your hands until fully coated.
On an oiled wire rack above a tray lined with foiled, space out your wings skin side up. Bake at 250F/120C on the lower-middle rack for 30mins. This step is to render down the fat, not to cook them through.
Take them out, turn the tray around, then place in the middle-higher rack at 430F/220C until golden and crispy. This will take approximately 40-45mins, with larger wings taking up to around 50mins and smaller ones potentially slightly less. Take out the tray half way and rotate again. All ovens can be slightly different, so just be vigilant. If they start to char at all turn down the heat and lower the rack.
Meanwhile, in a small pot over medium heat add brown sugar, apple cider vinegar, ketchup, pineapple juice and give it a stir until fully blended. In a small cup, combine 1 tbsp soy sauce with 1 tbsp cornstarch/cornflour until completely blended (make sure there's no lumps). Pour this into the sauce and quickly stir to combine. Simmer for a few mins until the sauce thickens, then take off heat. *taste test for sweetness/acidity and adjust to your liking with more sugar or vinegar.
Once the wings are cooked allow them to rest for a few mins, then combine in a large bowl with the sauce.
Serve by sprinkling over sesame seeds and finely diced spring onion.

Video

Notes

a) Paper Towels - Really important to thoroughly dry the wings. This will remove moisture, which not only ensures the wings crisp up (as opposed to steaming from excess moisture), but also ensures the baking powder doesn't clump up and coat the wings too thick.

b) Baking Powder - Ensure it is baking powder (without aluminium sulfate) NOT baking soda or bi-carb soda. Both of these will completely ruin the wings. Flour/cornstarch not suitable replacements.

c) Oil - This is only to lubricate the wire rack so the wings don't stick. Do not use this to coat the wings themselves. I recommend an oil with a high smoking point (i.e vegetable oil) but olive oil will be fine if that's what you have.

d) Method - The twice bake of the wings is inspired/tweaked from recipetineats!

e) Calories - Whole recipe shared between 4 people.

Nutrition