Sticky Wings

As soon as I saw this recipe in the America Test Kitchen's Slow Cooker Revolution cookbook, I started craving wings. And I don't eat wings very often. Call me a wuss, but I'm not a fan of completely covering my fingers in a gooey sauce in order to eat my food. These wings, however, looked too good to pass up.


Unlike some of the recipes in the Slow Cooker Revolution, this one was super easy: mix the sauce ingredients, dump it into the slow cooker with the wings, and cook. A short stint under the broiler crisped up the skin and caramelized the sticky sauce. The sauce was sweet and tangy, with just a hint of heat. Once I started eating them, it took a supreme effort to stop.



Sticky Wings
Adapted from Slow Cooker Revolution
From America’s Test Kitchen

Wings:
¼ c dark brown sugar
1 Tbs soy sauce
2 Tbs minced fresh ginger
4 cloves garlic, minced
Dash of cayenne pepper
3 lbs chicken wings, drums and flats*
Salt and pepper

Sauce:
½ c dark brown sugar
½ tsp sambal oelek (or sriracha or ¼ tsp cayenne powder)
3 Tbs soy sauce
¼ c water
¼ c tomato paste

For the wings: Stir together the brown sugar, soy sauce, ginger, garlic, and cayenne in a small bowl. Season chicken with salt and pepper, and place in slow cooker. Pour soy sauce mixture in over the wings and toss to coat. Cover and cook until chicken is tender, about 4 hours on low.

Position an oven rack 10 inches from the broiler. Heat on broil. Coat a broiling pan (or a wire rack placed on a foil-lined rimmed baking sheet) with non-stick spray. Transfer wings to pan. Discard the liquid.

For the sauce: Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Brush the tops of the wings with the sauce. Broil until crispy on top, about 10-15 minutes (check a few times to prevent burning.) Flip wings and brush the tops with the remaining sauce. Broil until crisp and lightly charred, 5-10 minutes longer. Serve.