Crispy Dry-Brined Fried Chicken Wings (Three Sauces)

By Sprig Originals ✓ · cooked up in Sprig

Wings dry-brined overnight so the skin dehydrates and shatters, dredged in a thin cornstarch-flour coat, then fried in a Dutch oven in two stages for deep-fry crunch without a deep fryer. Toss in buffalo, honey-garlic-soy, or a dry BBQ rub — plus a no-fry oven method that gets genuinely close.

Ingredients

• 3 lb chicken wings, split into flats and drumettes, tips removed
• 1 tbsp kosher salt
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 6 cup peanut or vegetable oil, for frying

• 1/2 cup Frank's RedHot or other cayenne pepper sauce
• 5 tbsp unsalted butter
• 1 tbsp honey
• 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce

• 1/3 cup honey
• 3 tbsp soy sauce
• 4 clove garlic, finely grated
• 1 tbsp rice vinegar
• 1 tsp toasted sesame oil
• 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
• 1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds, for finishing

• 1 tbsp light brown sugar
• 2 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1/2 tsp mustard powder
• 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt

• 4 stalk celery, cut into sticks
• 1 cup blue cheese or ranch dressing

Instructions

1. Dry the wings thoroughly with paper towels — this is the single biggest factor in crisp skin. In a small bowl, mix 1 tablespoon kosher salt, the baking powder, garlic powder, and black pepper.
2. Set a wire rack inside a rimmed baking sheet. Toss the wings with the salt mixture until evenly coated, then arrange them in a single layer on the rack, skin side up and not touching. Refrigerate uncovered at least 4 hours and ideally 12 to 24 hours. The skin should look dry and slightly translucent.
3. When ready to cook, let the wings sit at room temperature for 20 minutes. Meanwhile whisk the flour, cornstarch, smoked paprika, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a wide bowl.
4. Pour 2 1/2 to 3 inches of oil into a 5- to 7-quart Dutch oven — the oil should come no more than halfway up the sides. Clip on a thermometer and heat over medium-high to 300°F.
5. Working in batches, toss 8 to 10 wings in the dredge, shaking off all but a thin film of coating, and lower them into the oil. First fry at 300°F for 8 to 9 minutes, moving them once or twice, until pale gold and cooked through. Drain on a clean rack. Repeat with remaining wings, letting the oil return to 300°F between batches.
6. Raise the heat and bring the oil to 375°F. Fry the wings a second time in batches for 2 to 3 minutes each, until deep golden and audibly crisp. Drain on the rack; the interior should read at least 175°F on an instant-read thermometer. Do not drain on paper towels, which steams the bottoms.
7. For buffalo: melt the butter in a small saucepan over low heat, then whisk in the hot sauce, honey, and Worcestershire until glossy and emulsified, about 1 minute. Keep warm off the heat.
8. For honey garlic soy: simmer the honey, soy sauce, garlic, rice vinegar, sesame oil, and red pepper flakes in a small saucepan over medium heat for 3 to 4 minutes, until it coats the back of a spoon. Watch closely at the end so it doesn't scorch.
9. For the dry BBQ rub: stir all the rub ingredients together in a bowl, breaking up any lumps of brown sugar.
10. Toss the hot wings in a large metal bowl with your chosen sauce, adding it 2 tablespoons at a time until every wing is glazed but not soggy — you want a coat, not a puddle. Sprinkle sesame seeds on the honey garlic wings; for the dry rub, toss the wings with 1 tablespoon of oil-free rub per pound while they're still hot so it sticks.
11. Serve immediately with celery sticks and blue cheese or ranch for dipping. Wings lose their crunch within about 10 minutes of saucing, so sauce only what you're about to eat.
12. No-fry oven option: dry-brine as directed, then bake the wings on the wire rack at 250°F on a lower oven rack for 30 minutes to render the fat. Move the pan to the upper third, raise the heat to 425°F, and bake 40 to 45 minutes more, flipping once at the 20-minute mark, until deeply browned and blistered. Skip the flour dredge entirely — the baking powder in the brine does the crisping. Sauce as above.

Chef's tips

Nutrition (per serving, estimated)

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