Crunchy Baked Chicken Wings

Crunchy Baked Chicken Wings
My favorite way to describe chicken wings is as “chicken’s version of bacon.”  The fat/meat/crunch ratio is so utterly satisfying, eating only one in a helping is doubtful.  Ideally, the best way to achieve this is through deep fat frying.  I would happily oppose any deep fried wing with my oven baked version.  Yes.  They’re that good.

1 lb chicken wings

2 T vegetable oil
1 t salt
1 t pepper

First do this:

Move one of the racks in your oven to the very bottom row.  Pre-heat to 450°.  Break down the chicken wings by separating the “drummette” from the wing, from the wing tip.  Rinse the chicken in cool running water.  Dry the chicken very well with paper towel.

Then do this:

Toss the drummettes and wings in the vegetable oil, salt and pepper until very evenly coated.  Place the oiled and seasoned chicken wings and drummettes on a sheet pan, separated by at least 1/2”.  Place on the bottom rack of the oven and bake for 10 minutes.  With a tongs, flip the half cooked chicken onto the other side and cook for another 10 minutes.

Now do this:

Remove the hot chicken from the oven, cover in your favorite wing sauce, and serve immediately.

Eat it like this:

Using your fingers, dig in with a bunch of friends, a bunch of napkins, and a bunch of cold beer.

If you’re goin’ rogue:

Adjust the salt and pepper to your liking.  I like salty/spicy/crunchy wings. 

If you want a sauceless hotwing, add ¼ - 1/8 t ground cayenne pepper with the salt, black pepper, and oil.

Keep this in mind:

Don’t throw away your wing tips, save them to make chicken stock!

Cut the chicken at  the joints to effortlessly break down the wings.

Steps to guarantee the crunch factor:  Thoroughly dry that chicken, ensure plenty of space between the wings while baking, and don’t just “toss” them with a spatula when it is time to turn them over!  A little care will go a LONG way here.