Honey Sriracha Wings

Ingredient Tips

FLOUR + CORNSTARCH + BAKING POWDER

• My not-so-secret tip to the best fried chicken is a combination of FLOUR, CORNSTARCH, and BAKING POWDER. When mixed with the flour, the cornstarch makes the flour coating crispier and gives it that golden brown color! (It has to do with prevention of gluten development.) The baking powder reacts with the oil and creates tiny air bubbles, which also helps form a crispy coating. Traditionally, some cooks will recommend using sparkling water or egg but I think my mix works even better (and saves you time & extra steps!)

NEUTRAL OIL

• My favorite neutral oil for frying is avocado oil, but you can also use canola or vegetable oil! I don’t use olive oil when frying chicken (or anything, reall) for two reasons: 1. It has a low burning point and 2. olive oil does not have a neutral flavor profile, so it’s not ideal for frying.

GARLIC AND GINGER

• I highly recommend using fresh garlic and ginger for this recipe, but if you are in a pinch, feel free to use 1/2 tsp of garlic or ginger powder instead.

Want a dry chicken wing recipe? Make my Baked Chicken Wings! Want the crispiest wings made in the air fryer? Try my Air Fryer Chicken Wings, which is the top recipe on my site!

Feeling like fried chicken? Make my super easy and crispy Fried Chicken!

Marinate the Chicken Wings

I opt to skip any wet batter in this recipe because of the sticky, garlicky, soy marinade that I have found sticks well to the chicken and allows the batter to create a crispy coating when frying (letting those wings rest after dredging is a key tip that I’ll talk about later).

• Salt
• White Pepper
• Garlic
• Ginger
• Soy Sauce
• Sesame Oil

I would recommend marinating your wings for at least 1 hour before dredging, but ideally, for the most flavorful wings, marinate them in a bowl the night before and let them sit in the refrigerator overnight before frying the next morning. They’ll come out so much better, I promise!

Dredge the Marinated Chicken Wings in Seasoning Mix

Once the chicken wings are marinated in that flavorful marinade, dredge them in the seasoning mix, which is that golden ratio of all-purpose flour, cornstarch, and baking powder. Prior to dredging the chicken, I like to add any leftover liquid marinade that hasn’t been absorbed into the chicken in the seasoning mix (you can also use a couple tablespoons of water). Then with my hands, I’ll rub that liquid together into the flour-cornstarch mixture to create extra little bits of dredge that help create more texture!

Really pack that dredge into the chicken so there are no bald spots on the chicken, and the batter sticks to the wings! The last thing you want is for the batter to fall off when frying.

Let the Chicken Wings Rest after Dredging

Once the wings are thoroughly dredged in the seasoning mixture, let them rest on a foil-lined baking sheet for 10-15 minutes while you heat up your frying oil. I’ve found that this small but important step also helps keep the batter sticking to the chicken!

It’s Time to Fry Those Wings!

Fry them once at 350F for 5-7 minutes and remove, then we will double fry them for another 2-3 minutes at the same temperature to give them an ultra crispy skin!

Make the Honey Sriracha Sauce

The Honey Sriracha sauce is quite simple to make on the stove top, and all you need is a medium sized saucepan or saute pan to create that sweet, spicy, sticky glaze:

• Honey
• Sriracha
• Rice Vinegar
• Brown Sugar
• Soy Sauce
• Water
• Garlic
• Neutral Oil
• Cornstarch + Water (Cornstarch Slurry)

Add those ingredients into your pan or saucepan, then heat over medium heat for 4-5 minutes until bubbling. Add your cornstarch slurry and mix until thickened and the sauce is done! Glaze them all over your chicken wings and enjoy your Honey Sriracha Chicken Wings!

Recipe Tips

CRAGGILY BITS

• Add any leftover marinade (or 1-2 tbsp of water) to your seasoning mix (flour/cornstarch/baking powder) and rub them together to create the craggily bits we all love!
• Adding a little bit of your water or marinade to your seasoned flour and rubbing together with your hands is key for extra texture! It will create small clumps that will stick to the chicken providing extra crunch (refer to video).
• Make sure to spoon some of the leftover brine to your seasoning mix (flour/cornstarch/baking powder) and rub them together to create the craggily bits we all love! They’ll stick to the chicken and create the perfect texture!

GRATE THE GARLIC AND GINGER

• I highly recommend grating the garlic and ginger for the chicken wing marinade, rather than chopping or mincing. This will allow those aromatics to absorb into the chicken meat and create super flavorful chicken wings, as well as enabling the seasoning dredge to stick to the chicken! Chopping or mincing the aromatics won’t have the same effect.

SAFETY FIRST

• You are handling boiling hot oil in this recipe, so please be safe! Use a small sauce pan you can handle comfortably when heating up the oil and be careful when pouring (go slowly).

INTERNAL TEMPERATURE

• If you are not a seasoned pro at cooking (and honestly, even if you are!) I would highly recommend you use a meat thermometer to check your chicken – you want the internal temp to be at 165F. Undercooked chicken can lead to food poisoning, so always err on the side of caution!

If you tried this Honey Sriracha Chicken Wings or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below!