Learn how to make Chinese baked hot wings that have a crisp outer texture with a savory spicy heat. They’re perfect for game days, parties, or any time you’re craving wings. Brush them with my homemade honey hot sauce – they are literally finger-lickering good!
It’s hard not to love wings. But some wings are better than others. Unfortunately, so many are fried, which is not always the healthiest option. There are ways around that, though.
That’s why my Chinese Baked Hot Wings should be on your table. When you bake wings the right way, they come out with a crunchy and crispy exterior while retaining perfect juiciness within. Just like fried, but better, because they don’t skimp on flavor but they save you tons in calories.
I created my Chinese Baked Hot Wings by adapting Nagi’s Truly Crispy Wings recipe. I loved the texture and method, but I wanted to make something hot, sweet, and spicy. Consider it the best of East meets West!
Secret ingredient
My secret is to use doubanjiang for the marinade and the dipping sauce. It’s a Chinese fermented spicy bean paste which helps keep the meat juicy while adding a spicy and savory umami to the wings.
Using Nagi’s technique, my baked hot wings have that crunchy and crispy texture surrounding succulent chicken wing meat with a nice heat. I then finish them up by brushing on the sweet and savory honey hot sauce. They are addictively good and you will have no guilt even if you overeat.
Cooking process
Make the crispy baked wings
It’s super easy to make these crispy baked wings, but you do need to get organized and marinate the wings beforehand. The longer you marinate the wings, the more flavorful they will become.
- Mix the marinade in a big bowl.
- Toss the wings with the marinade. Marinate overnight in the fridge or at room temperature for at least one hour.
- Mix the dry rub.
- Pat dry the marinated chicken wings.
- Toss the marinated wings with the dry rub.
- Bake until they are super crispy and juicy.
Make the spicy honey dipping sauce
These wings are super tasty and can be enjoyed by themselves. But this honey hot sauce will make them even more irresistible. To make the sauce, simply:
- Saute the doubanjiang and ginger until fragrant.
- Lightly cook the rest ingredients, then blend the sauce.
NOTE: The dipping sauce is on the salty side, due to the doubanjiang. I highly recommend brushing a thin layer of the sauce onto the wings instead of dipping the wings in the sauce.
Also, don’t forget to save the leftover sauce for later. It goes well with other leftover meat, such as rotisserie chicken. It is also a perfect veggie dipping sauce.
Afterthought
While these would certainly be a party pleaser, my Chinese baked hot wings are a perfect, welcome treat any night of the week. They’ve got the same appeal as deep fried hot wings but they’re much easier to cook at home, and not to mention, much healthier, too. Turn on your favorite Netflix shows and snack on these wings with some cold beer, and you’ll have a great party going in no time.
More delicious Chinese appetizer recipes
- Salt and Pepper Shrimp
- Crispy Marinated Tofu
- Chinese Bang Bang Chicken
- Barter-Worthy Spam Musubi
- Sichuan Spicy Wonton in Red Oil
If you give this recipe a try, let us know! Leave a comment, rate it (once you’ve tried it), and take a picture and tag it @omnivorescookbook on Instagram! I’d love to see what you come up with.
Chinese Baked Hot Wings
Ingredients
- 3 lbs (1.3 kg) chicken wings
- Oil spray
Marinade
- 1/4 cup Doubanjiang
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 tablespoon Shaoxing wine (or dry sherry)
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon ginger powder
Dry Rub
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 tablespoon chili flakes
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon ginger powder
Hot Sauce (*Footnote 1)
- 1 teaspoon oil
- 1/4 cup Doubanjiang
- 1 inch ginger , grated
- 4 teaspoon rice vinegar
- 2 teaspoons Shaoxing wine (or dry sherry)
- 3 tablespoons honey
- 1 green onion , sliced
Instructions
Marinade
- Combine all the marinade ingredients in a large bowl and mix well. Add the chicken wings and toss with your hands (or a pair of tongs), until the chicken is evenly coated. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Marinate for at least an hour at room temperature, or overnight in the fridge.
- (Optional) Before cooking, take the top off of your marinating container and place it in the fridge, uncovered, for an hour. This will help dry out the outer layer of this skin to encourage crisping when baked.
Bake
- Preheat the oven to 250°F (120°C).
- Combine the dry rub ingredients in a large bowl and mix well.
- Pat dry the marinated chicken with kitchen paper towels, and remove the large pieces of chili pepper from the Doubanjiang. Place the chicken wings in the dry rub bowl and toss to coat evenly.
- Line a baking tray with foil and place a wire rack on top. Spray the rack with oil and spread the wings evenly across it.
- Bake at 250°F for 30 minutes.
- Turn the oven up to 450°F and bake for an additional 15 minutes.
- After 15 minutes, flip the wings to allow the bottom to crisp up, 5 to 10 minutes.
Hot sauce
- While baking the chicken, heat the oil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add the doubanjiang and ginger and saute until fragrant, around 30 seconds.
- Add the vinegar and Shaoxing wine. Cook until some moisture is evaporated, about a minute.
- Remove the sauce from the heat and pour it into a tall glass. Add the honey. Mix with an immersion blender until it forms a smooth sauce. Depending on the thickness of your Doubanjiang, you might need to add 1 to 2 tablespoons of water to the sauce to get the desired texture.
Serve
- Once the wings are cooked, remove them from the oven and let them cool for 10 minutes before serving.
- To serve, brush a thin layer of sauce onto the wings (*Footnote 2) and garnish with green onions. Enjoy!
Notes
- The recipe yields more sauce than needed, so it will blend better with an immersion blender. You don’t need to double the sauce if you plan to cook a double batch of chicken wings.
- The hot sauce is on the salty side. Brushing a thin layer of sauce onto the wings will yield a better taste than dipping the wings into the sauce directly.
Nutrition
Lilja Walter is a part of the Omnivore’s Cookbook team and worked closely with Maggie to develop and test this recipe.
Wow Maggie, these will make a great NYE appetizer! Love wings and I’ve also been preparing them baked lately! Love the spices! Pinned!
I love chinese hot wings.. and I do have some fermented bean paste sitting in my pantry waiting to be used, so this is a perfect recipe for me!
Every recipe of your is incredible! These look amazing Maggie!
oh my gosh, now I know what to do with all the Doubanjang I have leftover from a Korean recipe I made!! YUM! Maggie, you are the BEST, this flavour combo is perfect! How did I never think of using it for something like this? So simple, SO delicious!
This is yet another new ingredient to me, Maggie … really learning a lot from your blog 😉
Once again, though, I love how easy your recipes are. I definitely always thought Asian food had loads of ingredients … but now I see that’s not always true.
Thanks for this recipe – your photos are beautiful, too!
Just great!! Love chicken wings when they are made in the oven. 🙂
Oh my goodness, just look at this chicken. You know I love a good chicken dish and this looks amazing. Loving this. Happy New Year!
My boys love it spicy and your version looks amazing and I like that it is baked rather than fried as well. Finger licking good! Wishing you a super 2015!
Thanks for continuing to share your favorite recipes. I’ll be adding a little more spice to my chicken dishes in the future: when I can find the time to cook.
Thanks Hugh! I understand the feeling when things get too busy and it’s really difficult to find time to cook. Hope you have a great new year and will get extra time to relax and cook!
I’m seriously drooling all over my keyboard right now! These looks SO freakin’ good! I’ve never used Doubanjiang before, but it sounds delicious! I’m totally going to pick some up the next time I’m at the market!
I’m a big fan of hot and spicy, Maggie and I love that these are baked. These are perfect for all the football games this weekend!
thank you, a great alternative to the buffalo wing standard bar recipe love having a new flavor like doubanjiang to play with
Hi Maggie,
Thank you for sharing the recipe. Can I use fresh garlic and ginger instead of powder for the marinade and dry rub? Can’t wait to try it.
Thank you again.
Hi Zoe, I think you can add the fresh garlic and ginger to the marinade, but try to wipe them off the wings before baking, because they will burn in the oven. I wouldn’t add them to the dry rub. Alternatively, you can add the garlic to the sauce (same step when you add the ginger) and that should infuse the flavor well.
These are delicious. We will make them again.
Don’t hva doubanjiang.
Is there a substitute?
Maybe spicy black bean sauce?
Hi Peter, if you use spicy black bean sauce the result of the dish will be very different, but I think it should be tasty!
I’ve done similar things before using different cuts of chicken and the result was good.
What can I use as a substitute for doubanjiang? I can’t find it anywhere.
Gochujang should create a great result as well but the wings will be quite spicy.
Hi Maggie! I made this about a year ago and the whole family loved it. Sadly, where I live, chicken wing prices have skyrocketed. Can I make this with chicken breast or thigh? Or is there another cut you would recommend?
You can totally make this with chicken thigh (bone-in skin on). You will need a longer cooking time, maybe 50 mins at 250 F, then 15 mins at 450 F. The result should be juicy and crispy.
Is it possible to sub the wings for drumsticks? If so, does the cooking time change?
You definitely can! I have not test it out yet so I’m not sure about the exact time, but I think you should increase the time baked at 250 F, for 40 to 50 mins instead of 30 mins.