Chicken wings boiled for 8 minutes to render the fat, patted dry and baked on a rack at 230 °C / 450 °F for 25 minutes, then coated in a glaze of Coca-Cola cooked down with onion, garlic, soy sauce, chili flakes, smoked paprika and apple cider vinegar and returned to the oven for 5 minutes until sticky. Sweet first, then smoke, then a little heat. Serves 4.
Instructions
- 1
Drop the wings into a large pot of boiling water and boil for 8 minutes. This melts the extra fat out from under the skin.
08:00 - 2
Lift the wings out and pat them bone dry with paper towels. Dry skin browns, wet skin steams.
- 3
Set a wire rack on a sheet pan and lay the wings on it in a single layer.
- 4
Bake at 230 °C / 450 °F for 25 minutes until golden.
25:00 - 5
Meanwhile pour the cola into a saucepan, add the diced onion and the pressed garlic and bring to a boil.
- 6
Add the soy sauce, chili flakes, smoked paprika and apple cider vinegar. Simmer until the glaze reduces to a thin syrup.
- 7
Stir the cornstarch into a spoonful of cold water, whisk it into the glaze and cook a minute more until it coats a spoon.
- 8
Turn the baked wings in the glaze until coated, set them back on the rack and bake 5 more minutes. The sugar caramelizes and the glaze turns dark and glossy.
05:00 - 9
Serve hot. Napkins are not optional.
Watch the video
Notes from our kitchen
Use regular cola: the sugar is the glaze, and diet cola does not reduce to a syrup. Boiling first renders fat and keeps the meat juicy, so the wings can take the high oven heat. A rack lets the heat reach the underside. The cornstarch keeps the glaze on the wings instead of running onto the pan. Watch the last 5 minutes: once the sugar starts to darken it goes from glossy to burnt quickly.
Variations
- Hotter. Double the chili flakes or add a pinch of chipotle powder to the glaze.
- Air fryer. After boiling and drying, air-fry at 200 °C / 400 °F for about 18 minutes, glaze, and give them 3 more minutes.
- To serve. Scatter sliced green onion over the finished wings.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use Diet Coke or Coke Zero?
No. The glaze works because the sugar in regular cola cooks down into a syrup and caramelizes in the oven. Sugar-free cola stays thin and never turns sticky.
Why boil the wings before baking?
Eight minutes in boiling water melts out much of the fat under the skin, so the wings crisp faster at 230 °C and the meat stays juicy instead of drying out while you wait for the skin.
Does the glaze taste like cola?
Not once it is reduced. It tastes of caramel and soy with smoke from the paprika and a little heat from the chili; the vinegar keeps it from being only sweet. Onion and garlic give it body.
Can I make the glaze ahead?
Yes. Reduce it, cool it and keep it in the fridge for up to 3 days. Warm it before coating the wings, as it thickens when cold.
Related Recipes
Crispy Oven-Baked Chicken Wings with Honey Soy Glaze
Crispy Onion Chips in the Air Fryer
Air Fryer Buffalo Nuggets
Candied Pickle Bacon
Restaurant-Style Blooming Onion
