XO Cognac Fried Chicken Wings
Cognac and ginger juice are my mother's secret ingredients for her signature fried chicken wings. A long marinade is crucial, to let the wings absorb lots of flavour.
- Prep time
- 15 min
- Cook time
- 10 min
- Yield
- 12 servings
- Difficulty
- MEDIUM
Ingredients
- 12 chicken wings, about 1 kg
- 70 g ginger
- 1 clove garlic
- 3 shallots
- 2 tbsp light soya sauce
- 3 tbsp oyster sauce
- 1 tbsp Cognac
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp ground white pepper
- 1/3 cup tapioca flour
- oil for deep-frying
Instructions
- 1
Wash chicken wings and drain thoroughly. Dry with paper towels. Chop each wing along main joint into 2 pieces. Chop and discard tips if not eating.
- 2
Peel ginger and rinse. Cut into small pieces. Pound finely. Squeeze to yield 2 tbsp juice.
- 3
Peel garlic and shallots. Wash and pound finely.
- 4
Add ginger juice, garlic, shallots, light soya, oyster sauce, Cognac, salt and ground white pepper to chicken wings. Mix thoroughly.
- 5
Marinate chicken for 12-24 hours, refrigerated, turning over once every few hours.
- 6
20-30 minutes before cooking, remove chicken wings from fridge to come to room temperature.
- 7
When you're ready to deep-fry, drain and discard marinade. Dredge chicken in tapioca flour, patting gently to remove excess.
- 8
Deep-fry wings immediately in hot oil over medium-high heat till golden brown and cooked (meat feels firm when pressed). Remove from oil. Increase heat to high. Reheat oil to just smoking. Deep-fry wings again, this time till just golden brown.
- 9
Drain wings on rack or sieve lined with paper towels.
- 10
Serve immediately with sweet or garlic chilli sauce. Meat should be juicy, fragrant and nicely seasoned; batter should be crisp and not oily.