Oven baked balsamic chicken wings are sweet, sticky, & spicy with a pop of fresh lemon flavor. They may become your new favorite chicken wing flavor.
Course Appetizer, Main Course
Cuisine American, Italian
Keyword Anchovies, Balsamic Vinegar, Chicken, Chicken Wings, Chili Peppers, Garlic, Lemon, Onions, Party Food
Prep Time 20 minutesminutes
Cook Time 1 hourhour20 minutesminutes
Dry Brine Time 6 hourshours
Servings 2
Ingredients
2 ½lbschicken wingsseparated into flats and drumettes
Dry Brine
1tbspkosher salt
1tbspsugar
2tspbaking powder
½tspcrushed red chili pepper
lemon zest from one lemon
Chicken Wing Sauce
½tbspolive oil
½tspkosher salt
½largeonioncut into thin slices
6tbspsugar
¼cuphot waterjust under a boil (to dissolve the sugar)
¼cupbalsamic glazesee note
4clovesgarlicfinely minced or grated on a microplane grater
1tspcrushed red chili pepper
3anchovies packed in oilminced very finely
1lemonzest and juice
herbs of your choiceparsley, green onions, chives, or basil will work great
Instructions
In a large bowl, mix together the salt, sugar, baking powder, ½ tsp chili pepper, and zest of one lemon. Add the chicken wings to the bowl and toss to coat well. Remove and place the wings on a baking rack over a sheet pan lined with foil. Place the pan in the refrigerator, uncovered, for 6-24 hours. Flip the chicken wings halfway through this time. The longer you can let these rest in the fridge, the drier the skin will get, and the crispier the wings will get when they bake.
Heat your oven to 350F. Once the oven hits 350F, move the wings from the fridge to the oven. Bake for an hour.
While the wings are baking, make the sauce. In a medium, non-stick frying pan, heat ½ tbsp olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and ½ tsp of kosher salt. Cook very slowly, stirring occasionally, until the onions become very soft and lightly golden brown. This will take about 45-minutes.While the onions are caramelizing, pull together the rest of the sauce. In a large bowl, add the sugar and hot water. Stir until the sugar is dissolved. Add the balsamic glaze, garlic, crushed red chili pepper, anchovies, and lemon zest. Whisk to combine well. When the onions are caramelized, add them to the bowl with the sauce and stir.
After the chicken wings have cooked for an hour, remove them from the oven. Set the oven temperature to 375F. Using tongs, add the chicken wings to the bowl with the sauce. Toss to coat well. Remove them and place back on their rack. Use the tongs to pull out most of the caramelized onions from the sauce and evenly distribute them on top of each wing.
Bake again for 20 minutes once your oven heats up to 375F.
Add the juice of one lemon to the remaining sauce in the bowl while the wings are cooking. Once they are done, plate them. Drizzle the remaining sauce over the wings. Sprinkle with green onions. Or parsley. Or some torn basil.
Notes
I've made the sauce with balsamic vinegar and balsamic glaze. Both taste great. But I prefer the balsamic glaze because it creates a stickier sauce experience. BUT, if all you have in the pantry is balsamic vinegar, these wings will still taste great--you'll just miss out on the sticky glaze. Honestly, either way, you're going to love the wings!