Saké Hoisin Pan-Asian Wings

I am not a big fan of saké, a Japanese wine made from rice.  I was given some as a hostess gift and was trying to think of something to do with it besides re-gifting it.  I also had some hoisin sauce in the fridge. Hoisin sauce is sometimes called Chinese BBQ sauce and is used in much the same way, to glaze meats.  So I dreamed up this pan-Asian snack.  Jeff really liked this dish and asked me to add this to the rotation.

Servings:  Dozen wings

Hardware:  Kitchen scissors, measuring spoons and cups, a large plastic container with a lid, tongs, a baking sheet, a cooling rack (or foil), a sauce pot, wooden spoon
Time: Prep-10 minutes, Marinate-4-6 hours, Cook-50 minutes

Ingredients:

• 12 wings
• 1 cup saké + 2 tablespoons saké
• ½ cup low sodium soy sauce
• ½ cup vegetable oil
• ¼ cup hoisin sauce
• ½ stick of butter
• Cooking spray
• A chopped green onion for garnish

1. Use the kitchen scissors to separate the flaps from the drummettes.  Also snip the points from the flaps. (Save the snips for chicken stock.)
2. Mix 1 cup of the sake, the soy sauce, and the vegetable oil together in the plastic container.  Add the wings and marinate in the fridge for 4-6 hours.  Shake the plastic container up a few times while marinating.
3. Remove the wings from the fridge about ½ hour before cooking. Preheat the oven to 400°
4. Place the cooling rack over the baking sheet.  If you don’t have a cooling rack, just line the baking dish with foil.  Spray liberally with cooking spray.
5. Drain the wings and discard the marinade.  Lay the wings in a single layer on the cooling rack and place in the oven.  Cook for 20 minutes. Flip and bake for 20 more. If you prefer crispier wings turn the broiler on for 5 minutes or so. Make sure to monitor them so they don't burn. Turn the oven off and leave in the warm oven for 10 minutes.
6. While the chicken is cooking, place the hoisin sauce, butter, and remaining saké in the sauce pot.  Heat on medium high, stirring until the butter is completely melted.
7. Remove the wings from the oven and toss in the hoisin sauce. Sprinkle with chopped green onion.  Serve warm.



Saké Hoisin Pan-Asian Wings