Chicken Wings

Chicken wings are such the rage in Columbia-way more so than anywhere else, I feel like.  I never grew up eating these, but there are a million wing places in town.  They are often fried and then COVERED in syrupy sauce and while it's fun to eat like that occasionally, these are so much better!!  I got this recipe from my mother-in-law because I've always felt she makes the BEST wings.  It's a bit time consuming and cutting the chicken is such work, but I am thinking next time, I might ask the butcher to cut them for me.  Regardless, these are worth the effort!!

Tip: Make the marinade a day in advance.

Marinade:

½ cup reduced (or regular) soy sauce

½ cup unsweetened pineapple juice ( I use the 6 oz. can of pineapple juice)

¼ cup vegetable oil

1 Tablespoon brown sugar

1 teaspoon garlic powder

2 teaspoons ground ginger

1 teaspoon dry mustard

¼ teaspoon ground pepper

*I left my MIL's annotated recipe because she is so great at her precise instructions.  

Heat all ingredients; bring to boil (watch; will boil over) and simmer for 5 minutes. Cool. Pour over meat; marinade for 30 minutes-1 hour. Chicken does not need to marinade longer than 1 hour. (Pineapple juice tenderizes meat; chicken becomes too tender if marinated too long.)

After cutting wings into sections (if you need to), rinse and pat dry with paper towels.  Using a plastic gallon bag, layer wing sections in the bag, salting each layer lightly.  A couple of hours before you plan to cook the wings, pour the marinade into the bag. Seal the bag , squeezing out most of the air to allow the liquid to cover the wings. Refrigerate, and turn bag a couple of times to coat wings thoroughly, allowing a couple of hours to marinade.  

Preheat oven to 350.  Cover large baking sheet with sides (I use a large jelly roll pan) with heavy duty foil. Tear enough foil for a second sheet to cover the pan and wings while they bake.  Remove the wings from the marinade.  (Put some of the marinade in a pot to reduce for later use at the end of the baking time. See below. )  I like to put the drumettes in one area (if you put the first thicker part of the drumette up, the next one down, it helps conserve space in your pan) and the other wing section in another.  Put foil over the wings, crimping sides tightly.  Bake for 30-40 minutes ( longer time if wings are large).

While wings are baking, put marinade in low heat to begin to reduce to a syrupy consistency.  Remove wings from oven. Remove top foil. Salt lightly. Return to oven an bake for 30 minutes. Wings should be  browning. If not, bake for another 5 minutes or so.  Remove from oven. Turn wings over, salt lightly, and return to oven for about 15-20 minutes. Watch carefully. If wings are a deeper brown, remove from oven, baste with the reduced marinade, and bake for 3-5 more minutes.  Remove from oven. Cover with foil ( I use the other side of the foil) and allow to sit for 10-20 minutes to steam (or put them in a warm crock pot to keep warm til you serve them).