What is up, everyone?
Today we're making Salt & Pepper Chicken Wings,
one of my favorite dishes growing up.
It was always this addictive treat
that my dad would get me whenever we went to Chinatown
or bring home from the restaurant.
I've never made this before,
so my dad's going to walk me through it,
and then my family's going to grade me on how I did,
so I'm kinda nervous.
my dad’s going to show me how to prepare the chicken wings.
We're going to wash the chicken first.
That's right, give them a quick wash.
With clean water,
we’re going to wash and squeeze the wings.
Why do I need to do that?
Squeeze out the myoglobin.
Like this?
There's not much
because these wings are very good.
My dad often uses water to rinse out
any excess myoglobin in meat
to get a more tender final product.
Do I squeeze them while they're in the water,
or do I lift them out and squeeze?
It doesn't matter.
Do we have to wash them?
Of course, you can't guarantee that they're clean,
so we always wash them at home.
Pour the water out.
This?
In the sink.
Paper towels.
Get 3 sheets.
Pat the wings dry.
So if the chicken wing is wet,
it won't fry up as well?
Dry wings will also soak up flavor faster.
Are bigger wings or smaller wings better?
Moderately sized wings are best.
How's this size?
These are okay.
Now, my dad will show us a trick
to help the wings cook all the way through.
Make two cuts across the back of the flat.
This will make them cook through faster,
and make the flavor penetrate better.
Like these.
Rather than holding it like this,
it’ll be easier and safer to set the wings
on the cutting board when doing this step,
like my dad does here.
Right here.
Cut down with the knife here.
Just two cuts?
Across?
Yeah, and again.
Yeah, like that!
Put it there.
With these drumettes,
use a sharp paring knife.
Like this,
jab it in.
For the drumettes,
we’ll pierce them twice with a small knife,
once on each side,
into the thickest part of the meat.
For safety, we also recommend doing this step
with the chicken on the cutting board
and not like my dad here.
It’s also important to keep a firm grip
on the knife during this step.
Notice how my dad grips the knife
further up the handle
and keeps his index finger
on the side of the blade to guide it.
As an example of what not to do,
here’s me doing the same step.
Just give it a quick jab.
Gently pierce into it.
You should not hold your knife like this, ever,
and especially if you’re a beginner,
do not do this
do not do this while holding the drumette in the air.
Or you could hurt yourself,
like I almost did here…
Hold it properly.
Oh my gosh!
This is dangerous...
You're fine...
Make sure to also have the sharp side of the knife
facing away from the hand holding the chicken,
like my dad is doing here.
After these are all prepared,
we'll season the wings.
Next, we’ll create our marinade.
Oh my gosh.
Oh! Okay.
In a large bowl, we’ll add 1/2 a tsp of salt,
1 tsp of sugar,
1/2 a tsp of white pepper powder,
1 tbsp of light soy sauce,
1 tbsp of oyster sauce,
1/2 a tsp of dark soy sauce,
and 1 tbsp of cooking wine.
All right!
Then mix together.
Mix it up.
Then mix the chicken wings in.
In we go!
We’ll put all the chicken into the bowl,
then mix into the marinade.
Massage them with your hands too.
Yes!
As you mix with your hands,
squeeze the chicken so that the marinade
actually seeps into the meat.
Once the chicken is marinated,
it’s time to cut up some ingredients.
Green onions?
Chop them.
Split them in half first.
Yeah!
Okay!
Yes, like that.
You can just cut the last bits two at a time
to make it easier.
Right?
I don't need to, but it's helpful for you.
I can just chop them all at once.
Shade!
Now, we’ll chop up some shallots.
Cut it into slices.
Yes, good!
Yeah!
Oh gosh!
Next up: garlic.
Smash it, yeah.
Okay, that's good.
Now I peel!
We’ll peel and mince the garlic.
Dad's so fast.
I can hear the Spongebob
Three hours later...
Like this?
Just go chop chop chop.
We just picked these red chilis from the yard!
These are spicy.
Of course, if you don't want it as spicy,
you can use less or omit them altogether.
We’ll cut the chilis into small pieces.
Okay!
That's it?
Now, the sweet peppers!
Yes, cut those off.
We’ll first cut off all the stems.
Then cut in half lengthwise.
Take out the seeds.
Are these necessary?
You can leave them out.
For the video,
it's good for making the dish colorful.
One cut to halve each side,
then dice into small pieces.
Yeah, good!
Like that.
They can be big pieces.
Like the green onions,
just cut them down somehow.
Small pieces, right?
My dad first cuts them into strips,
then rotates to chop into small pieces.
Now, let’s prepare our simple dry seasoning.
Salt first.
1 tsp of garlic salt.
1/2 tsp of salt.
Scant 1/2, not a big 1/2.
1/2 tsp of white pepper.
More.
Okay, good!
Enough.
Mix it up.
Is white pepper necessary?
Yeah!
And garlic salt.
We have all of these ingredients listed on our blog at madewithlau.com
along with step-by-step instructions and video clips
to guide you as you make the recipe at home.
With our seasoning mixed, we’ll prepare to coat the chicken.
3 tbsp of cornstarch.
That's more than a tbsp.
Undercompensate.
Okay.
3 tbsp of flour.
Should I add more cornstarch?
Add a bit more cornstarch.
They were very generous tablespoons!
Add another 1/2 tbsp.
Okay, good!
Since I added too much flour,
I added a bit more cornstarch
since we want equal parts of each here.
Then we’ll mix to incorporate them.
How would you grade my cutting?
60.
60?!
Mix it all the way to the bottom.
You have to flip the stuff at the bottom.
Wait wait wait, let me do it.
Flip it.
Don't push it like that,
flip it up and around.
Oh, like this?
Straighten the spoon out.
Flip it here.
Oh, got it.
Okay.
You can also mix with a fork like my dad here.
If you used only flour, it'd be too soft.
If you used only cornstarch, it'd be too hard.
So if you mix the two, it's a good balance.
Now, we’re ready to coat our wings.
Use your dry hand to squeeze.
This is your wet hand, this is your dry hand.
Coat it in flour.
First, we’ll coat the wings
in the starch flour with one hand,
which will be our wet hand.
Once coated, use the other hand, our dry hand,
to squeeze the chicken so the coating sticks firmly.
After coating with flour, use this hand to squeeze.
Coat it more, there's not enough flour.
Squeeze?
Yeah, squeeze it tightly and put it there.
Enough, that's enough squeezing.
Do each wing one at a time.
Dry flour, not wet flour.
Remember to not use
your wet hand to squeeze the wing.
The coating will stick to your wet hand,
but it won't stick to your dry hand.
Squeezing that flour tightly on
will make the crust nice and crispy.
That flour's wet, so we'll move some fresh flour in.
I got a D on my cutting skills.
Hi, Maya!
I think we all know.
There's room for improvement.
Hi, Maya!
Hi, Dad!
You want to learn how to do this one day?
Oh, you squeeze it into there!
Gotta get it crispy, man!
I think that's a problem with a lot of mine.
Maya!
Hi, Dad!
Hi cutie pie!
She says...
"B+!"
"Can you use other cuts of chicken?"
Then you couldn't call it
Salt & Pepper Chicken Wings, son!
You can do Salt & Pepper Chicken Breasts
or Drumsticks.
You can do Salt & Pepper Fish, too.
You can Salt & Pepper this!
Chicken wings are one of America’s favorite foods of all time,
and a popular and delicious way of preparing them is by frying them.
If you’re not familiar with the origins of fried chicken as a dish,
check out our friend Andong’s in-depth video of its history.
Surprisingly, the popularity of chicken wings in particular
is relatively recent
with many overlooking the cut due to its lack of meat
or needing to eat around the bones.
However, chicken wings feature
some of the most tender and flavorful dark meat on the chicken
with the added benefit of being the perfect size for easy cooking.
Today, our salt and pepper wings
or ziu jim gai jik in Cantonese,
feature the ever-popular Chinese salt and pepper seasoning
which, in my opinion, works well with almost any kind of protein,
such as pork, squid, or tofu.
With the wings all coated,
we’re ready to break out our stove and pot to fry them.
We’ll turn the heat to high
and pour the oil into the pot.
Okay!
Add all of the oil.
This is...
Corn oil.
Pour it out the corner.
Add about half of that.
Enough to cover the wings.
Let us see how hot this is.
It's at 220°F.
LoWah from Patreon asked,
How do you fry the chicken wings but not too oily?
Fry it at high heat for a less greasy result.
If you fry it at lower heat, things get oily
because they soak up all the oil.
Fry things at the appropriate temperature.
Fry the drumettes first and take them out,
then do the wings.
It's easier to fry that way.
When the oil reaches 300°F (149°C),
we can put in the drumettes,
since they’ll take longer to cook.
You can put them in.
Put them in.
If you don’t have a thermometer,
you can use my dad’s method
of seeing if the oil is hot enough.
He drops a small piece of a wet vegetable,
like onion or pepper, into the oil.
When the piece starts to float
and bubbles are coming up all around it,
the oil is ready for frying.
The drumettes are bigger.
So now it's 290°F.
Turning down the heat.
Medium heat?
Yes, that's fine.
If you fry it immediately on high heat,
the crust will burn before the inside can cook.
For this first fry,
we’ll try to keep our oil temperature
at around 300°F (149°C).
Stir?
Just flip them.
Look at that!
Put it back in.
What does stirring do?
Flipping it helps it cook evenly.
It fries more evenly.
It's already golden.
We're frying them twice.
The first fry cooks them through,
and the second fry crisps them up.
You can turn the heat up a bit.
Medium heat.
How do you know it's done?
Check the color, see if it's golden.
Scoop them up.
When the meat floats to the surface,
you know it's cooked.
That's basically true for everything you fry.
After about 5 minutes of frying
or when the drumettes are floating
and have turned golden brown,
we’ll take them out.
Now we fry these?
That's right.
Okay!
Yes, put them in.
Then we’ll put in the wings.
Wait wait wait!
I'm just taking a look to see if they're done.
Let me do it.
If you do it, I won't learn.
Give them a flip.
These cook very quickly.
Put it back in.
Okay, those are done.
Take them out now?
Yes, they're ready.
Wow.
That was fast!
After just 2 minutes of frying the wings,
we can take them out.
After the first round,
heat the oil back up,
and fry them again.
Frying them again will make the crust crispier.
When the chicken is out,
we’ll heat the oil on high up to 350°F (177°C).
Then we can put the drumettes back into the oil
for a second fry.
A lot of people asked,
"How do you get the perfect crispiness
without overcooking it or undercooking it?"
Check the temperature of the oil
and the frying time.
When they start to turn golden, scoop them out.
Then, fry them a second time.
But they start to turn golden really quickly.
That's when you scoop them up.
Drumettes take longer to fry
because the meat is thicker.
These flats are faster.
Do you have to keep the oil at 300°F (149°C)?
Yes, it's best to keep the oil at 300°F (149°C).
Add the rest.
Gently add them in.
After frying the drumettes for about 30 seconds,
we’ll add in the wings too.
Do you do anything special to make sure
the chicken is really juicy?
Don't fry them for too long.
If your frying oil is hot enough at 300°F (149°C),
it fries and tightens the crust,
and the tight crust keeps the juiciness inside.
The second fry also fries the crust and helps keep the juices inside.
If you take your time on lower heat,
by the time both the crust and the chicken are cooked,
all the juices will have leaked out.
Take out the big pieces.
After another 30 seconds,
we’ll remove the drumettes.
The oil is everywhere, son.
Sorry!
Are there any more?
Six pieces total.
Oh no, I can't find them!
Where'd they go?
Here it is.
Okay.
One more.
Where did it go?
I'm turning the heat off.
Yes!
Turning the heat off.
Then we’ll turn off the stove
and take out the wings also.
All done, see?
"What do you do with the leftover oil?"
Use it to cook!
Does he filter it, or what does he do?
Strain out any debris.
Now we’ll replace our pot with a wok
and put all the pieces together in a stir-fry.
High heat?
That's not necessary.
Medium heat?
Yes, that's good.
2 spoonfuls of oil.
We’ll add 2 tbsp of the oil we just used to the wok.
Garlic.
Should I swirl the oil?
No need!
We’ll add the garlic.
Shallots.
Then the shallots.
Those green onions.
Just half.
Keep the rest for final garnish.
Chilis.
Chilis? Okay.
We’ll also add half of the green onions and chilis
How long do we stir-fry for?
Until fragrant?
Yes, until they're aromatic.
When everything is fragrant
or after about 30-40 seconds,
we can add the sweet peppers.
Add those in too.
How long do we stir-fry these for?
These are very quick.
Just stir-fry them a bit.
After stir-frying for another 30-40 seconds,
we can add all of our chicken.
All of it?
Yes, all of it.
These too.
Flip everything from the very bottom
with your spatula.
Yeah, good!
Flip it.
Is this okay?
It's good!
Okay.
"How do you get it extra crispy?"
When you're coating the chicken,
if you have a heavier coat of flour,
the crust will be thicker and extra crispy,
and stay crispy longer.
No matter how crispy you cook it, you want to eat it quickly,
if it sits out longer than 10 minutes, it won't be crispy anymore.
The inside is juicy, right?
It'll slowly get the crust wet and not crispy.
Patty from Patreon asked,
"Do you have any suggestions on how to keep it crispy
when bringing it to a potluck?"
After frying them,
cover them with foil and poke holes into the foil.
Don't cover them tightly,
or there'll be condensation inside.
Poke holes for ventilation so the steam can escape.
If the steam can leave, it won't be as humid inside.
If the container is not humid, the wings can stay crispy.
Maybe, if you arrive at the party,
and you want to make them crispier,
can you put them in the air fryer?
That's what I do for leftover fried chicken,
I just air fry it for a few minutes at 400°F (204°C).
Once the chicken and aromatics are all mixed,
or after about 30 seconds,
we’ll turn the heat to low and add our seasoning.
Low heat?
Slowly?
Don't dump it all in at once!
I'm not.
Sprinkle a bit on, keep stir-frying.
Stir-fry it more first.
Add a bit.
Yeah, good, good!
Okay!
You wouldn't use black pepper, right?
I used white pepper today,
but you can use black pepper if you like.
If you like black pepper, go for it.
White pepper looks nicer.
We usually use white pepper.
When you’re adding the seasoning,
make sure to continue stirring the chicken
with the spatula from the bottom
as you add a bit of seasoning at a time,
which is something my dad does better here.
I also wanted to make a special shoutout to thank all of our
wonderful Patreon supporters for helping bring this video to life.
If you enjoy our videos and are interested in supporting us directly,
head on over to patreon.com/madewithlau to learn more!
When the seasoning is evenly coated,
we can turn off the heat and plate.
Heat off?
Sure.
Whoo!
Now let’s see how my family grades me.
All right!
So.
Dad's is on the left.
We'll eat Dad's first.
That's the 100 out of 100.
Eat Daddy's first, right?
So good.
We always have this at parties.
You can't go wrong with this at a party.
Okay, we're going to taste mine.
Good job, Randy!
About the same!
Yeah!
Really good!
Okay, now you're going to grade me.
Okay, out of 100?
Out of 100.
Randy's grade, in 3... 2... 1!
Kat gave me 95!
Mom gave me 99!
Dad gave me 95!
Hong Doy, say 99!
99!
Wow!
Yay!
When you were making it, it wasn't as beautiful.
Not as consistent, all the way around crunchy.
But it tasted great.
I give you 99, that means
including points for effort.
Dad's wings taste more evenly flavored.
Your taste a little more spotty.
Daddy’s crispy outer layer
almost covers the whole thing,
but you have some empty spots.
Thanks, Mom!
You deserve it!
You did a good job.
Everyone cooks it like this.
If you follow my instructions,
you can't really go wrong, right?
Salt & Pepper Chicken Wings!
I hope you all enjoy it!
Look over there.
Basketball.
Basketball!
Basketball!!
YouTube thinks you’ll like this recipe next.
Let's see if they're right.