There's so much to love about these ultra crunchy, crispy honey lemon pepper wings.
First, these crispy chicken wings STAY CRISPY FOR HOURS. Truly. I've tested this recipe multiple times to make sure of this (you're welcome ;)).
Then, it's juicy, lemony, sweet and garlicky with a delightful peppery finish. These mouthwatering, addictive honey chicken wings are so good that I think you're going to want to make them again and again!
Since the wings hold their crunchiness so well, they are perfect for entertaining.
For more crispy goodness, also try my aromatic salt and pepper squid! Love chicken wings? Try my 5 ingredient oven-baked sticky soy garlic chicken wings.
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Ingredients
- Deep frying oil - opt for neutral flavoured oils with a high smoke point. Here are some good oils for deep frying: sunflower oil, canola oil, vegetable oil and rice bran oil. You can use peanut oil too if you like the slightly nutty flavour. Stay away from flavour-rich, expensive oils such as extra-virgin olive oil.
- Cornflour (aka cornstarch) - key ingredient in making ultra crispy and light coating!
- Chicken wings - cut into drumettes and winglets. Tip: save the wing tips in the freezer to make chicken stock in the future.
- White pepper - adds a gentler, earthy flavour compared to black pepper.
Cooking instructions
Another appeal of these delightful crispy honey lemon pepper wings is that they take about just 25 minutes to make (excluding marinate time)!
Although, marinating the wings for about 1 hour or longer can make a difference to the overall flavour of the wings. Yummier, of course.
Marinate
To start, marinate the chicken wings with lemon juice, soy sauce, minced garlic, salt and white pepper.
Mix well then cover and let the chicken marinate in the fridge for 1 hour or longer (if you wish).
If you're planning on making these for a party, I suggest marinating the wings the night before to ease the workload on the day!
Prepare the batter and flour coating
When ready to cook, prepare a thin batter and flour mixture coating. This combination is the key to super crispy chicken wings!
First, make the thin batter mixture. In a small bowl, combine cornflour (cornstarch), plain flour and a little water. Mix well until the batter is smooth and lump-free. Set aside.
In a separate large bowl, combine cornflour, plain flour, salt and white pepper. Mix well. This will be the dry flour coating for the chicken wings. Set aside.
Batter and flour the wings
Preheat the oil for deep frying. Opt for a large pot, wok or fryer.
Meanwhile, pour the prepared thin batter into the marinated chicken wings. Mix well.
Then, coat the chicken wings with the dry flour mixture, working in batches of ~4 pieces at a time. Gently shake off any excess flour mixture once the wings are coated.
Once all of the wings have been coated, check that the frying oil is hot enough.
An easy way to see if the oil is hot enough is by dipping the tip of a wooden chopstick into the oil. If the tip starts to sizzle straight away then the oil is hot enough.
Alternatively, the oil is hot enough when it reaches about 170°C - 180°C (340°F to 360°F) when tested with a food thermometer.
Double fry for truly crispy wings
The most important trick to crispy chicken wings that STAYS CRISPY is to double fry them.
First fry: deep fry the coated chicken wings for 4 minutes on medium heat. You most likely will have to work in 2 batches to avoid overcrowding. Once 4 minutes is up, the colour of the wings should be lightly golden. Set the wings aside on a paper towel lined plate.
Once both batches have been fried once, allow the oil to come back to a hot temperature of 170°C - 180°C (340°F to 360°F) or when it passes the chopstick test.
Second fry: deep fry the wings (again, in 2 batches) this time for 2 minutes on high heat. After 2 minutes, the wings should be deep golden in colour and crispy. Set the wings aside on a paper towel lined plate.
A total of 6 minutes of deep frying should be sufficient for the chicken wings to be fully cooked. If you're using extra large wings, add an extra 1 minute when frying for the second time. You can test the doneness of the wings by cutting a piece open with a knife to make sure.
Avoid over-frying the wings as they can turn out a little dry.
Now that the wings are golden, crispy and cooked, it's time to coat them with a mouthwatering, appetising honey lemon glaze!
Coat with honey lemon glaze
To make the glaze, simply combine honey, lemon juice, soy sauce and salt in a large wok (or a large frying pan).
Mix the ingredients well and bring them up to a bubbling simmer (just like the picture below). Simmer the glaze for about 3 minutes to let the glaze reduce to a thick, sticky consistency. Turn the heat off.
Add double-fried chicken wings into the wok and coat well with the sweet, zesty glaze.
Look at how crispy and yummy these honey lemon pepper wings are! A crowd pleaser for sure.
Reducing the glaze is key
You've doubled-fried the chicken wings, they're crispy, a little crunchy and perfect. Juicy on the inside.
The last thing you want is to cover it with a sauce that will soften the crispy coating and ruin all that hard work!
This is why reducing the honey lemon glaze to a thick, sticky consistency is super important. This step will evaporate the excess liquids (killer of crispiness) from the lemon juice and soy sauce.
The result is mouthwatering, crunchy, crispy, sweet, zesty, garlicky, lemon honey glazed chicken wings!
Useful tips and tricks
- Do not overcrowd when deep frying. Overcrowding will quickly lower the temperature of the oil and stops the chicken from crisping up. There are 2 ways to avoid this:
- Use a large pot or wok to deep fry the chicken wings with plenty of oil, allow plenty of wiggle room.
- Deep fry in batches. Roughly fry 500g/1 pound at a time.
- Firmly press the flour coating onto the chicken before deep frying for extra crispiness.
- Marinate the chicken wings the night before for extra flavoursome wings.
- Reduce the honey lemon glaze to draw out excess liquids. This is super important for the wings to stay crispy and not soften up!
Good to know
Double fry the chicken wings for these honey lemon chicken wings to be extra crispy.
6 to 8 minutes is all it takes.
High smoke point oils such as sunflower, canola or vegetable oil.
Leftovers/storage
In the unlikely scenario of any leftovers, these finger-licking crispy honey lemon pepper wings last in the fridge for up to 4 days. Always store in airtight containers.
Made this recipe? Let me know your thoughts or questions by dropping a note in the comments section below! I'd love to hear from you. 🙂
- Gen
📖 Recipe
Honey Lemon Pepper Wings (super crispy)
Ingredients
- 1 kg / 2 pounds chicken wings cut into drumettes and wingettes
- deep frying oil sunflower, canola, vegetable oils are all good
Chicken marinade
- 2 tablespoon lemon juice
- 2 teaspoon soy sauce
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon white pepper
Wet coating
- ¼ cup plain flour
- ¼ cup cornflour/cornstarch
- ½ water room temperature or cold
Dry coating
- 1 cup plain flour
- 1 cup cornflour/cornstarch
- 2 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoon white pepper
Honey lemon glaze (sauce)
- ½ cup honey
- 2 tablespoon soy sauce
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoon lemon juice
Instructions
Marinate + coat wings
- Combine chicken wings with the marinating ingredients in a large bowl. Mix well, cover and marinate for 1 hour or longer in the fridge (note 1).
- When ready to cook, combine wet coating ingredients in a small bowl then pour it into the marinated chicken wings. Mix well.
- In a separate large bowl, combine the dry coating ingredients. Mix well.
- Working in batches (4 or 5 wings at a time), coat all of the chicken wings with the dry coating mixture. Lightly press down the coating into the chicken wings (note 2).
Deep fry
- Preheat frying oil in a large pot/wok/fryer. The oil is hot enough when the tip of a chopstick sizzles when dipped in oil. Otherwise, when the oil is at 170°C to 180°C (340°F to 360°F) if using a deep frying thermometer.
- Frying #1: deep fry the chicken wings in 2 batches, for ~4 minutes per batch on medium heat then remove and set aside on a paper towel-lined plate. Make sure to shake off excess flour coating before adding the wings into the oil.
- Frying #2: allow the oil to reach frying temperature again. Deep fry the wings for the second time in 2 batches. Fry for ~2 minutes per batch on high heat or until fully cooked and golden. Set aside on a paper towel-lined plate.
Coat with honey lemon glaze
- In a large frying pan or wok, combine honey lemon glaze ingredients. Bring the glaze up to a bubbly simmer then reduce the glaze over medium-low heat whilst constantly mixing. About 3 minutes (note 3). Turn the heat off.
- Add all of the crispy wings into the wok/pan and coat the wings well with the glaze using a spatula. Serve.
Video
Notes
- Use a large pot or wok to deep fry the chicken wings with plenty of oil and allow plenty of wiggle room.
- Deep fry in batches. Roughly fry 500g/1 pound at a time.
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