This easy Salted Egg Chicken Wings recipe has juicy and crispy chicken wings coated in a finger-lickin' salted egg butter sauce. It's ready in just 45 minutes and requires only a handful of ingredients!
Can't get enough of Asian wing recipes? Try my Sweet and Sour Chicken Wings and Honey Butter Chicken Wings next!
Finger-lickin' good. That's the mantra that every good chicken wing recipe should follow. My chicken wings are coated in a creamy, salty, rich butter sauce while being ridiculously crackly and crispy. The secret is in the dry coating.
This recipe is so easy to make and only requires a handful of ingredients. Aside from a short resting time, the entire recipe comes together in less than 45 minutes, so it's perfect for a quick weeknight dinner! You'll wish every day was wing night.
Keep reading to learn all my tricks to getting the crispiest salted egg chicken wings.
Jump to:
🐓 What are salted egg yolks?
Salted egg yolks are a popular ingredient in Asian cooking. They're made by curing eggs, typically from ducks, in a salt mixture for at least several weeks and then removing the yolks. The yolks take on a solid and crumbly texture, similar to cheese, with a distinctive salty and savory flavor.
You can make your own salted egg yolks or buy them from an Asian grocery store.
Many famous Chinese dishes use this salty ingredient, such as stir-fried prawns, mooncakes, and molten custard buns. Nowadays, even non-perishable snacks like potato chips, fish skin chips, and crackers are seasoned with them.
🧂 Ingredients
For the chicken:
- Chicken wings - you can use the whole wing, wingettes, or drumettes. Drumsticks will work too. I always recommend people just buy what's on sale at the grocery store.
- Flour and corn starch - a light coating of flour and corn starch adds crispness to the chicken wings. I use this combination for a lot of deep-fried foods like Crispy Enoki Mushrooms and Crispy Onion Rings.
- Baking powder - creates tiny air bubbles on the surface of the wings, which expand and crisp up to create extra crispiness. It also helps the sauce cling to the skin.
For the sauce:
- Salted egg yolks - the main flavoring component. They have a deeply savory and salty flavor, and when mixed with honey and butter? Oh my.
- Butter - gives our sauce a rich, velvety texture. I can't imagine these chicken wings without them.
- Honey - just a little bit to balance the saltiness of the egg yolks.
- Garlic - adds a garlicky flavor profile to the sauce. If you don't have fresh garlic, you can add ½ teaspoon of garlic powder to the dry ingredients instead.
- Salt - to enhance the other flavors
🔪 Instructions
Step 1. Dry coating
Mix all-purpose flour, cornstarch, baking powder, and salt in a large mixing bowl. Add the chicken wings and gently toss to coat. Transfer to a baking sheet, arrange in a single layer, and refrigerate for 20-25 minutes.
📋 Note
While the wings are resting, the salt will draw out moisture from the wings and hydrate the flour coating. You can steam the egg yolks while they're hydrating.
Step 2. Steam egg yolks
Put salted egg yolks in a heat-resistant dish and steam on high heat for 15 minutes. This will cook and soften the yolks, making them easier to work with. Use a fork to mash them until they're fine.
💭 Tip
You can use a food processor to get a finer grind on the salted egg yolks.
Step 3. First fry
Heat 1 inch of oil in a Dutch oven, high-walled pot, or wok to 375℉. Fry 6-8 pieces of chicken at a time until golden brown and crispy, stirring with a spider occasionally so they cook evenly.
Transfer cooked wings to a paper towel-lined baking sheet and allow to rest for 15 minutes.
📋 Note
Wingettes take about 4-6 minutes, while drumettes take closer to 6-8 minutes. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the meat should read 160℉.
Step 4. Second fry
Reheat oil to 400℉ and cook chicken for 1 minute until brown and crispy. Transfer cooked chicken to a paper towel-lined baking sheet to absorb excess oil.
Step 5. Prepare sauce
Add butter to a large nonstick pan over medium-low heat and cook until completely melted. Add salted egg yolks, honey, and garlic, and cook for 2 minutes.
Step 6. Toss wings with sauce
Add crispy chicken wings to the sauce and gently toss to coat. Transfer to a serving dish and serve with wedges of fresh lemon. Enjoy!
💭 Top Tips
- Use a thermometer to monitor the temperature of the chicken wings in the fryer. Pull them out at 160℉ to ensure the juiciest chicken.
- Cook wingettes and drumettes in separate batches as drumettes take longer to cook.
- Use a food processor to get the salted egg yolks finer.
- Ensure the butter sauce is cooked on low heat for the suggested time. If you cook for it too long, the butterfat will separate, and the sauce won't be creamy.
👨🏻🍳 Variations
- Spicy - Add ½ teaspoon of cayenne pepper to the dry ingredients or one Thai red chili pepper (minced) to the butter sauce.
- Curry leaves - Add 1-2 sprigs of curry leaves to the butter sauce to add a pungent taste and subtle nutty aroma. Irvin's, a famous brand of fish skin chips, uses curry leaves in their salted egg snacks.
- Sweet and salty - If you like it sweeter, increase the amount of honey to 2 tablespoons.
🥡 Storage & Leftovers
Storing: Store salted egg chicken wings in an air-tight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Reheating: Reheat leftovers by baking for 10-12 minutes at 375℉ on the middle rack. Or, if you have an air fryer, you can pop them in at 350℉ for 3-5 minutes.
📖 Recipe FAQs
Salted egg yolks have a salty and rich umami flavor. Aside from being salty, they taste like regular egg yolks but have much more depth.
What's the difference between regular egg yolks and salted egg yolks?
The main difference between regular and salted egg yolks is that the latter are soaked in a salt mixture for at least a few weeks. This process changes the egg yolks' texture, flavor, and color.
Yes! Just make sure you fry them a tad longer. Ensure the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 160℉ in the thickest part of the meat.
🍽 Looking for more game day snacks?
Did you enjoy this recipe? Please leave a 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 rating in the recipe card below and consider leaving a comment. I'd love to hear your feedback!
📋 Recipe
Salted Egg Chicken Wings
Equipment
- 1 deep fryer, dutch oven, wok, or high-walled pot
- 1 food processor (optional)
Ingredients
- 2 lbs chicken wings
- neutral oil (for frying)
Dry coating
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ cup corn starch
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon coarse kosher salt (use half the amount if you're using table salt)
Sauce
- 5 salted egg yolks
- 3 tablespoon butter
- 1 teaspoon honey (or sugar)
- 1 clove garlic (minced)
- ¼ teaspoon coarse kosher salt (use half the amount if you're using table salt)
Garnish
- 2 lemon wedges for serving
Instructions
- Dry coating: Mix all-purpose flour, cornstarch, baking powder, and salt in a large mixing bowl. Add chicken wings and gently toss to coat. Transfer to a baking sheet, arrange in a single layer, and refrigerate for 20-25 minutes.
- Steam egg yolks: Put yolks in a heat-resistant dish and steam on high heat for 15 minutes. Use a fork to mash them until they're fine. Or use a food processor to get an even finer grind.
- First fry: Heat 1 inch of oil in a dutch oven, high-walled pot, or wok to 375℉. Fry 6-8 pieces of chicken at a time until golden brown and crispy, stirring with a spider occasionally so they cook evenly. Wingettes take about 4-6 minutes, while drumettes take closer to 6-8 minutes. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the meat should read 160℉. Transfer cooked wings to a paper towel-lined baking sheet and allow to rest for 15 minutes.
- Second fry: Reheat oil to 400℉ and cook chicken for 1 minute until brown and crispy. Transfer the fried chicken to a paper towel-lined baking sheet to absorb excess oil.
- Prepare sauce: Add butter to a large nonstick pan over medium-low heat and cook until completely melted. Add salted egg yolks, honey, and garlic, and cook for 2 minutes.
- Toss wings with sauce: Add chicken wings to the sauce and gently toss to coat. Transfer to a serving dish and serve with wedges of fresh lemon. Enjoy!
Notes
- Use a thermometer to monitor the temperature of the chicken wings in the fryer. Pull them out at 160℉ to ensure the juiciest chicken.
- Cook wingettes and drumettes in separate batches as drumettes take longer to cook.
- Use a food processor to get the yolks finer.
- Ensure the butter sauce is cooked on low heat for the suggested time. If you cook for it too long, the butterfat will separate, and the sauce won't be creamy.
Leave a Reply