Thai Chicken Wings with Spicy Peanut Sauce
I premake the chicken wing coating and peanut sauce in advance and double the recipe. This is such a huge hit with guests and at parties; the guests always want more!
I premake the chicken wing coating and peanut sauce in advance and double the recipe. This is such a huge hit with guests and at parties; the guests always want more!
- 1 tbsp honey
- 1 pinch red pepper flakes
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 3/4 cup coconut milk
- 1 cup peanut butter
- 2 tsp soy sauce
- chicken wings:
- 2 1/2 lbs chicken wings/drummettes (approx.20)
- 1/2 cup salsa
- 2 tbsp creamy peanut butter
- 1 tbsp lime juice
- 2 tsp fresh ginger grated
- spicy peanut sauce:
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1/2 chicken stock
- 3 tbsp brown sugar packed
- 2 tbsp shallot chopped
- *for a more basic quick & easy recipe for peanut sauce see amanda's quick & easy
- Carbohydrate 24.026298749454 g
- Cholesterol 200.316666666667 mg
- Fat 81.6279658333189 g
- Fiber 2.93561667272273 g
- Protein 48.8979579159746 g
- Saturated Fat 28.6574799999971 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (460g)
- Sodium 624.647499642357 mg
- Sugar 21.0906820767312 g
- Trans Fat 5.75111437499566 g
- Calories 1006 calories
Step-by-step
- Preheat oven 400 F
- Place Chicken wings in a large bowl. Combine Salsa, 2 tbsp of peanut butter, lime juice, soy sauce and ginger. Pour over chicken wings and toss to coat.
- Arrange wings in single layer in casserole dish or roasting pan lined with tinfoil. Bake for about 20 minutes or until no longer pink in the middle.
- Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a saucepan. Add cup of peanut butter, cream, coconut milk, chicken stock, brown sugar, shallot, honey and red pepper flakes. Stir until smooth and heated through.
Most cooks make the error of applying thick sauces to chicken skin too early, trapping moisture and preventing the rendering process required for a crisp exterior. Applying a salsa-based marinade containing lime juice and grated ginger directly to raw poultry initiates a surface enzymatic tenderization, though keeping the initial bake at a moderate four hundred degrees Fahrenheit prevents the sugars in the brown sugar and honey from scorching before the meat cooks through. Baking the pieces in a single layer on foil-lined pans ensures that the released fats drain away rather than boiling the skin in accumulated juices. Understanding how these flavor components balance during cooking yields a distinct contrast between savory poultry and a rich condiment.
The Chemistry of Acid and Fat
Acidic components like fresh lime juice cut through the dense lipids present in heavy cream, coconut milk, and peanut butter, preventing the sauce from tasting cloying on the palate. When heat is introduced to the saucepan, the proteins in the dairy coagulate slightly while the starches and sugars dissolve into the oils, creating an emulsion that coats the back of a spoon smoothly. Emulsifying high-fat liquids requires continuous stirring over moderate heat so the olive oil and coconut milk do not separate into an oily slick. Red pepper flakes release capsaicin into the lipid phase of the sauce, meaning the heat distributes evenly across the tongue rather than hitting in a sharp, localized spike. Balancing the soy sauce provides sufficient sodium to amplify the sweetness of the honey and brown sugar without masking the aromatic punch of the minced shallots.Judging Doneness Without a Probe
Visual and tactile cues remain the most reliable methods for determining when poultry is finished cooking without relying on a digital thermometer. Piercing the thickest part of a drumette with the tip of a paring knife reveals juices that run completely clear rather than pink or opaque yellow. The skin should pull back slightly from the bone ends, exposing clean bone tissue as the muscle fibers contract under dry oven heat. Testing texture involves pressing the meat firmly; fully cooked chicken yields with slight resistance but springs back immediately instead of feeling mushy or soft.
