Don’t be fooled by the basic ingredients in this recipe. These wings are perfectly blackened, then baked in a zesty sauce resulting in tender and tasty Cantonese Chicken Wings.
I’m pretty sure there’s nothing authentically Cantonese about these wings, but my mom has been making them since we were kids. It’s a great recipe and the few ingredients just work so well together you’ll want to serve them with rice so you can enjoy every bit of the delicious sauce.
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The most important step is getting as much fat out of the skin as possible. This takes some patience but it’s worth it. You have to literally blacken the skin. Pat the pieces with some paper towel to remove any excess moisture, then brush liberally with a mixture of oil and soy sauce. Since you’re using the broiler, don’t use olive oil because it’s not the best oil for high heat cooking. Choose one that can withstand higher temperatures like vegetable or peanut oil.
Use a baking dish that’s wide enough that the wings aren’t overlapping too much. After brushing the oil mixture, arrange them so the side with the most skin is facing up. Try not to have the wing tips sticking up or they’ll get too burnt. You can tuck them under other pieces. Then sprinkle with half of the sugar and spice mixture.
Getting the wings blackened takes some patience but it’s so worth it! Use the middle rack and watch them carefully. You probably want the hood fan on too. If some pieces are getting too black before others, move them around to expose areas that need more time. Try different angles to get the best position for ultimate blackening.
Turn the wings over and sprinkle the remaining spice mixture evenly over top. Continue to broil until the other side is well blackened. Plan on about 10 minutes on each side.
The sauce is 2 ingredients. Tomato soup and vinegar. Yup, that’s the sauce. If you like some heat, add a little Sriracha if you like. It’s not a bad idea to heat up the sauce slightly before adding it to the hot pan. This will prevent the possibility of your dish cracking from having a cold sauce added to a hot pan. And don’t be alarmed by the colour, it looks orange at first but turns into a beautiful deep red colour as the wings cook.
You want to bake the wings for about 40 minutes. Take them out at the halfway point and spoon some of the sauce from the bottom of the dish over the wings. This helps get any of the seasonings and oil from the bottom well incorporated into the sauce. The meat will fall off the bone and the blackened skin is the best part.
We all still make many of mom’s recipes. Except liver. None of us ever cook liver. If you make Cantonese Chicken Wings, consider leaving a comment or rating below. Here’s the recipe:
Ingredients
- 12 full chicken wings not the separated pieces
- 2 Tbsp vegetable or peanut oil not olive oil
- 2 Tbsp soya sauce
- 2 Tbsp brown sugar
- 2 tsp chili powder
- 2 tsp celery seed
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 can tomato soup
- ⅓ cup white vinegar
- 1 tsp Sriracha Sauce optional
- minced chives optional for presentation
Instructions
- Whisk together oil and soya sauce. Brush over entire surface of both sides of the chicken wings. Arrange wings main skin side up in oven safe baking dish.
- Mix together brown sugar, celery seed and chili powder. Season with salt. Sprinkle half of mixture evenly over wings.
- Broil wings on the centre rack, watching closely so they don't burn too much. You want them to blacken as evenly as possible. Move wings around to maximize blackening areas.
- Turn wings over once tops are well blackened, sprinkle remaining sugar and spice mix over top. Return to broiler and blacken other side.
- Adjust oven to 350° set to bake. Mix together tomato soup and vinegar. Add Sririacha sauce for extra heat if desired. Heat mixture in microwave the prevent cracking baking dish. Turn wings so best skin side is facing up. Pour sauce evenly over top, stirring oil and spices from the bottom into the sauce and spooning over wings.
- Bake uncovered in centre of the oven for about 40 minutes until sauce is thickening and bubbling. Spoon sauce over top at halfway point to ensure pieces are well coated.
- Serve with rice and garnish with fresh chives if desired.
My mother as well us to make this recipe minus the sriracha sauce – they were always very tasty
My mom didn’t use Sriracha either. We loved them!
Always a favorite! Thanks for posting.
The wings look delicious,I will try them soon?
I hope you like them!
Hi Marci I’m planning on making the wings tomorrow for Greg’s Birthday! Will let you know how it goes! Annette
Oh great! Happy birthday Greg!!