These spicy gochujang honey wings are baked to a dazzling golden brown, then coated in a fermented chili paste, honey, and garlic sauce. They’ll leave you finger-licking and wanting more. This amazing, sweet and spicy Korean-inspired sauce sticks to the crispy edges of the baked wings and leaves you thinking about the next time you have goutang.
Ingredients
For the Wings:
- 3 pounds of chicken wings: drumettes and flats separated, and tip removed
- 2 tablespoons of baking powder (do not use baking soda)
- 1 teaspoon of salt
- 1/2 teaspoon of black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder
- For the Sauce:
- 1/4 cup of gochujang (aka Korean red chili paste)
- 1/4 cup of honey
- 3 tablespoons of soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons of rice vinegar
- 2 tablespoons of sesame oil
- 4 minced garlic cloves
- 1 tablespoon of freshly grated ginger
- 1 tablespoon of brown sugar
- For Garnish
- 2 tablespoons of toasted sesame seeds
- 3 sliced green onions
- (Optional) Some fresh cilantro leaves
Instructions
Prep the Wings
Pat chicken wings completely dry with paper towels.
To get crispy skin, it’s important to get moisture completely off the surface of the wings.
Otherwise, moisture will steam the wings instead of crisping them.
In a large bowl, combine baking powder, salt, black pepper, and garlic powder.
The baking powder will raise the pH of the skin, which will help it brown and crisp faster.
Season and Rest
You should see a light, even coating of the baking powder.
Once all the wings have been coated, place them onto a wire rack that has been set over a baking tray.
Make sure there is some space between the wings so that air can flow around them.
Place the tray and rack in the fridge, uncovered, for one hour or as long as overnight.
This will help to dry the wings out a little more, so they will be as crispy as possible.
Prepare for Baking
The wings should be taken out of the fridge for around 20 minutes before they will need to go in the oven, so that they can warm up to room temperature before baking.
In that time, your oven should be preheated to 425°F.
Grab a large tray and a roll of aluminum foil for an easy clean up, and place a wire rack over the tray.
Lay out the wings on the wire rack, so they are in a single layer and not touching each other.
This will help hot air to flow around each wing.
Bake the Wings
After baking them for 30 minutes, use some tongs to flip each wing over.
Bake them for an additional 25-30 minutes.
The wings are done once they are a deep golden brown color, and the skin is bubbly, and the skin has a lot of cracks.
To give them a little tap with tongs to check that they are firm and crispy.
The wings are finished cooking once the internal temperature is 165°F.
For the best results with temperature and cooking, aim to reach 175-180°F.
Make the Sauce
Get a medium-sized saucepan and heat the gochujang honey sauce over medium heat.
Make sure to heat the gochujang, honey, soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil, minced garlic, and ginger mixture.
While you are doing this, make sure that you are consistently whisking the mixture so that it turns into a smooth leg without any lumps that are left over because of the gochujang.
Simmer and Thicken
After you whisk the mixture, let it come to a gentle simmer.
Take it down to medium-low heat and let it continue to come down.
Coat the mixture on the back of the spoon.
As it keeps simmering, it should come to the proper temperature to the point where it is thick enough to reduce a little, and darken a little as well.
After it has simmered for 5-7 minutes, turn the heat off and take it off the burner.
You should let it sit for a while because it will keep thickening as it cools.
Toss and Coat
Place your hot, crispy wings in a large mixing bowl.
Then, pour three-quarters of the sauce over the wings and toss with tongs.
Every wing should be coated fully in the sticky sauce. It should coat the wings and stick in a shiny layer.
You want to work quickly while the wings are hot so the sauce adheres properly.
Serve
Place the coated wings on your serving platter.
If you’d like, drizzle on any remaining sauce.
Now, add a big handful of toasted sesame seeds and sliced green onions.
For a pop of color, add a few sprigs of fresh cilantro.
The wings should be served immediately while they are hot and the coating is sticky.
Recipe Notes
Baking Powder vs. Baking Soda.
It is important to make sure you are using baking powder, not baking soda.
If you add baking soda to the recipe, the wings will have a metallic and unpleasant taste.
If you are looking for a way to achieve crispy skin on your wings without having to deep fry them, baking powder is the answer.
It is the key to making sure you achieve crispy skin on your wings.
Gochujang Heat
Different manufacturers vary in how spicy their gochujang is.
As such, it’s always a good idea to taste a bit to better gauge how spicy it is.
If you want the wings to be less spicy, gochujang could be brought down to 3 tablespoons, while the honey is increased to 1/3 cup.
To better spice up the wings, you can also add 1/2 teaspoon of gochugaru (Korean red pepper flakes) to the sauce.
Drying Time
Wings should be placed down to dry in the fridge for as long as possible to end up the crispiest.
For the high ideal drying time of overnight, the drying time can also be done for a minimum of 2-3 hours, for a good enough difference as well.
Leaving the wings uncovered in the fridge should help with evaporating moisture from the wings.
Don’t Crow
If wings end up being placed too close to each other on the baking rack, they’re likely to steam cook rather than crisp up fully.
If this is a problem, a 2nd baking sheet can be used to better spread out the wings on the rack.
For the best baking of both sheets, right before baking, the sheets can be switched around.
Sauce Consistency
If the sauce is on the thicker end, feel free to add 1 tablespoon of water or rice vinegar.
If the sauce is instead very thin, the sauce has to be simmered for a longer time.
When done correctly, the sauce should be pourable but also not too watery, like very thin honey.
Substitutions for Ingredients
Gochujang
Stir together 3 tablespoons of sriracha with 1 tablespoon of miso paste and 1 teaspoon of sugar for gochujang.
It is not exactly the sweet-spicy profile that it is trying to capture, and it does not have the same fermented depth, but it is somewhat similar.
Alternative to Honey
Agave nectar and maple syrup can easily serve the same purpose as honey.
The sticky texture can be replicated by brown rice syrup.
The sweetener can be reduced to 3 tablespoons in case someone wants it to be less sweet.
Alternative to Soy Sauce
A good substitute is tamari, which is gluten-free.
For a soy-free dyientation, coconut aminos can be used, although it is a tad sweeter and not as salty.
If coconut aminos are used, honey should be reduced by 1 tablespoon.
Swap For Sesame oil
Sesame oil can be substituted for neutral oil in equal amounts with the addition of 1 tablespoon of tahini for a nutty flavour, although this is not recommended as it loses some authentic flavour.
Using Ground Ginger Instead of Fresh Ginger
In a situation where this is the only option available, that is fine.
If using fresh, ground 1 tablespoon to 1/2 teaspoon of ground ginger, as the withdrawn flavour will still be a good contribution to the warmth of the sauce.
Storage and Reheating
You can keep leftover wings in a sealed container in the fridge for four days.
It’s best to keep the additional sauce in a different container.
After a while in the fridge, the wings will lose some of their crisp, but they will still be good to eat.
Cooked, unsauced wings can be frozen for about three months.
To do this, freeze them in a single layer on a baking sheet, and don’t stack them until they are frozen solid.
After that, they can be placed in a freezer bag. When it’s time to eat them, thaw the wings in the fridge overnight.
It’s better to make a fresh sauce instead of freezing the wings with sauce, because the sauce will become soggy.
If you want to keep the wings crispy when you reheat them, the best way to do it is in the oven.
Preheat to 375°F and put the wings on a wire rack for 10-12 minutes, and they will get heated and crispy.
If you want to toss them in a sauce, do that after it’s finished reheating.
The air fryer is a good alternative, and it will get the wings crispy in 6 to 8 minutes at the same temperature.
If you want to keep gochujang honey sauce for grilling, glazing, or roasting, you can keep it in the fridge for 2 weeks.
If you need to reheat the sauce, you can do it in the microwave or on the stove, while adding a little water to it if it’s a thick sauce.
Spicy Gochujang Honey Wings
These spicy gochujang honey wings are baked to a dazzling golden brown, then coated in a fermented chili paste, honey, and garlic sauce. They'll leave you finger-licking and wanting more. This amazing, sweet and spicy Korean-inspired sauce sticks to the crispy edges of the baked wings and leaves you thinking about the next time you have goutang.
Ingredients
- Ingredients
- For the Wings:
- 3 pounds of chicken wings: drumettes and flats separated, and tip removed
- 2 tablespoons of baking powder (do not use baking soda)
- 1 teaspoon of salt
- 1/2 teaspoon of black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder
- For the Sauce:
- 1/4 cup of gochujang (aka Korean red chili paste)
- 1/4 cup of honey
- 3 tablespoons of soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons of rice vinegar
- 2 tablespoons of sesame oil
- 4 minced garlic cloves
- 1 tablespoon of freshly grated ginger
- 1 tablespoon of brown sugar
- For Garnish
- 2 tablespoons of toasted sesame seeds
- 3 sliced green onions
- (Optional) Some fresh cilantro leaves
Instructions
Prep the Wings
Pat chicken wings completely dry with paper towels.
To get crispy skin, it's important to get moisture completely off the surface of the wings.
Otherwise, moisture will steam the wings instead of crisping them.
In a large bowl, combine baking powder, salt, black pepper, and garlic powder.
The baking powder will raise the pH of the skin, which will help it brown and crisp faster.
Season and Rest
You should see a light, even coating of the baking powder.
Once all the wings have been coated, place them onto a wire rack that has been set over a baking tray.
Make sure there is some space between the wings so that air can flow around them.
Place the tray and rack in the fridge, uncovered, for one hour or as long as overnight.
This will help to dry the wings out a little more, so they will be as crispy as possible.
Prepare for Baking
The wings should be taken out of the fridge for around 20 minutes before they will need to go in the oven, so that they can warm up to room temperature before baking.
In that time, your oven should be preheated to 425°F.
Grab a large tray and a roll of aluminum foil for an easy clean up, and place a wire rack over the tray.
Lay out the wings on the wire rack, so they are in a single layer and not touching each other.
This will help hot air to flow around each wing.
Bake the Wings
After baking them for 30 minutes, use some tongs to flip each wing over.
Bake them for an additional 25-30 minutes.
The wings are done once they are a deep golden brown color, and the skin is bubbly, and the skin has a lot of cracks.
To give them a little tap with tongs to check that they are firm and crispy.
The wings are finished cooking once the internal temperature is 165°F.
For the best results with temperature and cooking, aim to reach 175-180°F.
Make the Sauce
Get a medium-sized saucepan and heat the gochujang honey sauce over medium heat.
Make sure to heat the gochujang, honey, soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil, minced garlic, and ginger mixture.
While you are doing this, make sure that you are consistently whisking the mixture so that it turns into a smooth leg without any lumps that are left over because of the gochujang.
Simmer and Thicken
After you whisk the mixture, let it come to a gentle simmer.
Take it down to medium-low heat and let it continue to come down.
Coat the mixture on the back of the spoon.
As it keeps simmering, it should come to the proper temperature to the point where it is thick enough to reduce a little, and darken a little as well.
After it has simmered for 5-7 minutes, turn the heat off and take it off the burner.
You should let it sit for a while because it will keep thickening as it cools.
Toss and Coat
Place your hot, crispy wings in a large mixing bowl.
Then, pour three-quarters of the sauce over the wings and toss with tongs.
Every wing should be coated fully in the sticky sauce. It should coat the wings and stick in a shiny layer.
You want to work quickly while the wings are hot so the sauce adheres properly.
Serve
Place the coated wings on your serving platter.
If you'd like, drizzle on any remaining sauce.
Now, add a big handful of toasted sesame seeds and sliced green onions.
For a pop of color, add a few sprigs of fresh cilantro.
The wings should be served immediately while they are hot and the coating is sticky.
Notes
Recipe Notes
Baking Powder vs. Baking Soda.
It is important to make sure you are using baking powder, not baking soda.
If you add baking soda to the recipe, the wings will have a metallic and unpleasant taste.
If you are looking for a way to achieve crispy skin on your wings without having to deep fry them, baking powder is the answer.
It is the key to making sure you achieve crispy skin on your wings.
Gochujang Heat
Different manufacturers vary in how spicy their gochujang is.
As such, it's always a good idea to taste a bit to better gauge how spicy it is.
If you want the wings to be less spicy, gochujang could be brought down to 3 tablespoons, while the honey is increased to 1/3 cup.
To better spice up the wings, you can also add 1/2 teaspoon of gochugaru (Korean red pepper flakes) to the sauce.
Drying Time
Wings should be placed down to dry in the fridge for as long as possible to end up the crispiest.
For the high ideal drying time of overnight, the drying time can also be done for a minimum of 2-3 hours, for a good enough difference as well.
Leaving the wings uncovered in the fridge should help with evaporating moisture from the wings.
Don't Crow
If wings end up being placed too close to each other on the baking rack, they're likely to steam cook rather than crisp up fully.
If this is a problem, a 2nd baking sheet can be used to better spread out the wings on the rack.
For the best baking of both sheets, right before baking, the sheets can be switched around.
Sauce Consistency
If the sauce is on the thicker end, feel free to add 1 tablespoon of water or rice vinegar.
If the sauce is instead very thin, the sauce has to be simmered for a longer time.
When done correctly, the sauce should be pourable but also not too watery, like very thin honey.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
6 servingsServing Size:
4-5 wing pieces per personAmount Per Serving: Calories: 420 kcalTotal Fat: 24ggCholesterol: 145mgmgCarbohydrates: 18ggProtein: 32gg