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| Slow Cooker Asian Orange Wings |
Yummy and spicy Asian-inspired wings are sure to be a hit at your next party. Serve this appetizer right from your slow cooker!
Wings have become so popular! I’ve always loved them! It was my favorite part of the chicken, even from childhood.
One thing I don’t like about wings is with their increased popularity, came OUTRAGEOUS prices!! I remember the days when it was considered the “orphaned” part of a chicken and sold for 19 cents a pound. No more!!!
I wanted to do something Asian inspired here with a hint of orange chicken flavor. Are these a bit fussy? Well, the answer is definitely, “Yes.” But I think it’s worth it.
If you buy the frozen ready-to-make variety of wings, of course the wing tip removal and disjointing can be eliminated. Just thaw and prepare.
I marinated these overnight in my Aloha Marinade, but it’s not absolutely necessary. You won’t reduce the Aloha Marinade to do this; just make it and pour over the raw wings.
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| Perfect for parties–serve right from the slow cooker! |
I also reduce the orange-soy sauce before I pour it over the wings. Again, not a necessary step, but one I think is worth it because it will look better when you serve it. You seem to accumulate so much liquid with traditional slow cooking and to me, that spoils the aesthetics of a dish. Since this is more or less a “company” treat and not a mid-week family meal, the extra steps are worth it IMO.
Since a crock pot doesn’t brown all too well, I pop the wings under the broiler for a few minutes just to caramelize part of the skin…again, for aesthetics. However, any meat I put in the slow cooker I take the extra step to brown since it does add more flavor! It doesn’t seem like much but it makes a huge difference.
- 4-5 lbs chicken wings*
- Sauce:
- 1 tbs orange zest
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ cup dark brown sugar
- ½ cup frozen orange juice concentrate
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- 1½ cups water
- ¼ tsp red pepper flakes
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- 2-3 drops dark sesame oil
- Optional Marinade:
- 1 recipe Aloha Pineapple Sauce**
- *If you are using whole fresh wings, remove the wing tips (I save them for making stock) and separate wings at joint to get 2 pieces. If using frozen drumettes, just defrost them.
- **I marinate the wings overnight because it produces a superior flavor, IMO. It's not necessary if you want to save time, but I do recommend it. If you do this step, drain marinade and pat the wings dry before beginning to cook.
- I brown my wings before putting them in the crock pot. I just pop them under the broiler for a few minutes.
- Place wings in slow cooker. Turn to HIGH and cook for 3-4 hours.
- While wings are cooking, prepare the sauce by adding all sauce ingredients to a small saucepan. Stir to combine and heat over medium-high heat until mixture boils. Reduce heat and reduce the sauce by 50%. Remove from heat.
- You can add it to the slow cooker and let the wings just cook in the sauce, read my post to see why I don't do this.
- When wings are done, pour off any accumulated liquid from the crock. Pour the reduced sauce over the wings in the slow cooker. Turn cooker to WARM setting and let it sit for 30 minutes.
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| Slow Cooker Asian Orange Wings |
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Yum
These wings look great!
Thanks Bill and I just LOVE LOVE LOVE your blog!!!
Amazing sticky wings! Again, thanks for coming and linking up at The Weekend Social. All posts get pinned in our pinterest board! Please be sure to come back next week starting Thursdays at 9PM EST on culinaryflavors.gr ! I hope to see you there!
This recipe is a bit confusing to follow; with the "you CAN do this" steps seemingly thrown in there. Also, if I marinate the wings in the Aloha marinade, I drain the excess off and put the wings into the crockpot seemingly dry for 3-4 hours? The pineapple from the aloha sauce meshes well with the orange from the second sauce listed to use here?
It implies that you don't have to do that step. If you mean the part about popping them under the broiler, that isn't necessary. I just think they look more appetizing that way. Without it, they'll look boiled. And you can put them "dry" in the crockpot with no ill effects to either the wings nor the appliance.
As to whether the flavors mesh–that's entirely up to individual tastes and if the combo puts you off, then maybe you'd prefer a different marinade/sauce.
Hi
If I’m marinading the wings in the pineapple sauce, once drain and pat dry, do I still put them under the broiler before I put them in the slow cooker or just put them under the broiler after they come out of the slow cooker.
You can do it either way Jackie. I do it before just in case I slightly overcook the wings where they might fall apart.