Alton Brown's perfectly crispy, no-fry chili-glazed chicken wings are tossed in a spicy-sweet glaze that makes them a game day crowd-pleaser.

Course: Appetizers

Keyword: Chicken, Chili-Glazed Wings, Entertaining, Game Day, Meats

Chili-Glazed Wings

ACTIVE TIME: 30

TOTAL TIME: 2

Yield: 6 servings

Crispy, no-fry chicken wings coated in a sweet and spicy glaze made with Thai chili and — yup — Dr. Pepper.

Being bar food, most chicken wings are deep-fried. I would argue, however, that deep-frying is not the best way to cook chicken wings because they already contain enough fat to...wait for it...fry themselves!

The secret to achieving crispy skin without filling your kitchen with the smoke that comes from roasting fat at a high temperature is to steam them first. Sure, it's an extra step, but you'll be rewarded with crisp skin, perfectly done meat and a smoke-free kitchen.

For the glaze, I tend to prefer Mae Ploy Sweet Chili Sauce. It’s pretty much the standard, plus it’s really made in Thailand.

This recipe first appeared in EveryDayCook.

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Software

24 chicken wing "drumettes"
1 cup sweet Thai chili sauce
1/4 cup rice wine or apple cider vinegar
1/3 cup Dr. Pepper
Kosher salt, to taste

Specialized Hardware

Steamer basket or Steel Lotus

ACTIVE TIME: 30

TOTAL TIME: 2

Yield: 6 servings

Procedure

Place a folding metal steamer basket in the bottom of a large saucepot and add enough water to come up almost to the bottom of the steamer.
Arrange wings on steamer like spokes on a wheel with the large meaty end pointing out and the bony narrow bit pointing inward. If you're working with a standard steamer basket, you'll probably have to work in two batches.
Cover the pot and bring to a boil over high heat. When steam comes out from under the lid, reduce heat to medium and steam wings for 10 minutes.
Remove wings from basket with your trusty spring-loaded tongs and lay out on a wire rack set in a half-sheet pan lined with paper towels. Refrigerate 1 hour. If working in batches, make sure chill time is 1 hour from last batch.
Meanwhile, combine chili sauce, vinegar, and Dr. Pepper in a small saucepan and reduce down to a glaze, 20 to 30 minutes, over medium heat. Final volume will be about 1/3 original amount.
Crank oven to 425ºF and place rack in middle.
Remove paper towels from half-sheet pan and move wings to oven. After 20 minutes, remove wings to a large mixing bowl and toss with the glaze. Return to rack and roast another 10 minutes.
Arrange on platter, sprinkle with kosher salt, and serve with plenty of napkins.