Apple-Smoked Teriyaki Chicken Wings

By Sprig Originals ✓ · cooked up in Sprig

Chicken wings smoked low and slow over apple wood until the meat pulls back from the bone, then glazed with a three-minute soy-mirin teriyaki and crisped up hot at the end. Twelve ingredients, mostly hands-off, and the smoker does all the real work.

Ingredients

• 3 lb chicken wings, split into flats and drumettes
• 2 tsp kosher salt
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 3 chunks apple wood chunks (or 2 cups apple wood chips)

• 1/3 cup soy sauce
• 1/3 cup mirin
• 3 tbsp brown sugar
• 1 tbsp fresh ginger, grated
• 2 cloves garlic, grated
• 1 tsp toasted sesame oil

• 1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds
• 3 scallions, thinly sliced

Instructions

1. Set up your smoker for indirect cooking at 250°F (120°C) and add the apple wood chunks to the coals or wood tray. Apple gives a mild, slightly sweet smoke that suits the soy glaze; hickory will overpower it here.
2. While the smoker comes up to temperature, pat the wings very dry with paper towels and toss them with the kosher salt and black pepper. Let them sit uncovered at room temperature for 20 minutes so the surface dries — dry skin takes smoke better.
3. Arrange the wings on the grate in a single layer, not touching, and smoke at 250°F with the lid closed for 1 hour 30 minutes to 2 hours, until an instant-read thermometer in the thickest part of a drumette (not touching bone) reads 175°F (79°C). Resist opening the lid more than twice.
4. Meanwhile, combine the soy sauce, mirin, brown sugar, ginger and garlic in a small saucepan. Simmer over medium heat for 5 to 8 minutes, stirring, until it coats the back of a spoon and has reduced by about a third. Take it off the heat and stir in the sesame oil.
5. Brush the wings all over with half the glaze. Open the vents and raise the smoker to 375°F (190°C) — or move the wings over direct coals — and cook 10 to 15 minutes more, turning once, until the skin is tight and lacquered and the wings hit an internal temperature of 185°F (85°C), where the collagen has fully rendered.
6. Pile the wings into a large bowl, pour over the remaining glaze and toss to coat. Scatter with sesame seeds and scallions and serve straight away, with plenty of napkins.

Chef's tips

Nutrition (per serving, estimated)

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