I love chicken wings especially the ‘wingette’ (not the tip part) which have more meat in it.  This recipe brings more enjoyment in eating my favorite chicken wings because of its delicious marinade.  This is a simple marinade recipe that can be prepared several hours or even a day before cooking.

Ingredients for the marinade: 2 tbsp olive oil; 1 shallot finely chopped; 3 garlic cloves 1/2 cup tomato sauce; 1 tbsp dried oregano; few drops of chili sauce; 2 tbsp brown sugar; salt and finely ground black pepper; 12 pieces of chicken wings

Procedure: Preheat the oven to 180C.  Put all the ingredients in a blender and process until smooth.  Marinade the chicken wings for a couple of hours before cooking or even over night.  Oil a baking tray and arrange the chicken wings skin-side down.  Place in the oven and cook for 10-15 minutes.  Turn the wings over and cook for further 10 minutes, or until cooked.

Tip: I first cook the chicken wings for few minutes in a grill pan or barbecue grill.  I love the smoky taste that the grilling process gives to the chicken.  Then, after a couple of minutes, I put the chicken on the tray and straight to the oven.  The grilling also seals the flavor and liquid in the chicken, thus, making it juicy and not dry.

Dip: The used marinade can be made into a topping sauce for this recipe.  Simply put the marinade in a small sauce pan and add 1/3 cup of chicken stock.  Stir continuously in low heat.  Put in a teaspoon of thick cream and stir to blend.  This is a beautiful sauce.  The chicken wings in the photos have sauce in it, less the cream though.  This is because hubby is on diet and I preferred to do that to reduce calorie and fat intake.

If you want a thick dip instead of sauce, a mixture of sour cream, a tablespoon of lemon juice, crumbled feta or any soft cheese, and chives and black pepper make perfect dipping sauce for this.  Bon apetit!

(Ideas for this recipe were derived from ‘The Cooking Book’ by Brigitte Hafner.)