Kung Pao Chicken Wings in three easy steps—season, bake, and sauce!
Whether you’re looking for wowser party food ideas, an easy dinner, or a totally crave-able wing recipe, you just landed in the right spot.
Deep golden browned chicken skin needs little help to be delicious, so we keep it super simple on the seasoning. Flaked kosher salt, freshly ground black pepper, and smoked paprika is all it takes.
While the wings are baking you’ll have plenty of time to make the Kung Pao sauce and maybe even prep a veggie tray (just so you can eat the whole meal with your fingers). Then, once the wings are crisp, you’ll coat them with sauce and peanuts to serve.
Crisp chicken wings, savory-spicy Kung Pao sauce, and roasted peanuts in three easy steps—season, bake, and sauce.
Why oven-bake instead of frying?
Baking wings instead of frying saves time and there’s no added oil needed for the wings to turn out crispy. Frying must be done in batches, which takes more time and is certainly messier. When oven-baking, there’s no fried oil smell hanging in the air, and clean-up is as easy as sliding the parchment paper off the pan.
Of course, you can use an air fryer, which is simply convection baking, but most air fryers are too small to cook all the wings at the same time. However, if you are making half this recipe and only cooking for 1 or 2 people, the air fryer will save a few minutes of cooking time.
TIP: For the crispiest results, make sure chicken wings are dry (using paper towels to remove surface moisture) and use only dry seasoning before baking. This ensures the moisture on the skin can evaporate and crisp the skin in less time.
What makes our Kung Pao Sauce so Special?
We side-step traditional Kung Pao sauce you may be used to with a little south-of-the-border infusion. Generally, Kung Pao Chicken is a spicy dish, so we bring the heat with chipotle chiles in adobo sauce instead of dried red chilies.
Chipotle peppers in adobo add a unique, deep, dark complexity and mouth-watering smoky spice to anything they touch. In a recipe like Kung Pao, this smoky spice enhances the soy-garlic-ginger base without overpowering the sauce. In essence, the spice isn’t just spice, it adds to the overall flavor of the dish.
Be warned, a little goes a long way, so you won’t need much to spice it up. The nice thing is you can easily adjust the spice level in the recipe by slowly adding the amount that suits you.
TIP: Don’t worry about not using the whole can, chipotle chiles freeze well so you can easily store them for other recipes.
Just 3 Easy Steps—Season, Bake, and Sauce
- Prep and bake the wings
- Mix the sauce
- Finish the baked wings with the sauce and top with peanuts
Whole Wings or Party Wings?
Whole chicken wings include the wing tips and take a little more prep work to cut them into the familiar separated wingettes and drumettes known as party wings.
The advantage to buying whole wings versus party wings is the lower price per pound and the breast portion attached to the wing. Party wings are trimmed to create a cleaner segment so the drumette turns out slightly smaller.
If you want to learn more about how to cut whole wings into segments to make party wings, check out those details in our Thai Chili Sesame Wing recipe.
Try it on Drumsticks too!
Chicken wings can be pricy at upwards of four dollars per pound, so if you want a meatier meal for less, try this same Kung Pao sauce on drumsticks. Kids tend to have an easier time handling drumsticks rather than wings so sometimes a tray of each is the real ticket.
NOTE: Drumsticks take longer to cook than wings and should be cooked to 175°F internal temperature—checked with an instant-read thermometer.
Recipe TIPS & Variations
- For the crispiest results, make sure chicken wings are dry (using paper towels to remove surface moisture) and only use dry seasoning before baking. This ensures the moisture on the skin can evaporate and crisp the skin in less time.
- The Kung Pao Sauce recipe yields enough for the wings and extra to pass at the table.
- Substitute chicken drumsticks for the wings for a heartier meal.
- Substitute cashews or pistachios for peanuts.
- Substitute dry white wine or apple cider vinegar for the dry sherry.
- Convection bake will allow for more even browning and less turning during the baking process, but either baking method works fine.
- Reheat leftover wings in an air fryer or bake in the oven at 350°F for 5-6 minutes for best results.
- The sauce can also be made ahead and refrigerated for up to 1 week.
Kung Pao Chicken Wings
Ingredients
- 12 whole chicken wings or 24 party wings (wings & drumette separated)
- 2 teaspoons Kosher salt
- 2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
- 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
- 1/3 cup roasted peanuts finely chopped for garnish
- Sliced lime wedges (optional) for garnish
WING SAUCE:
- 1/3 cup chicken stock
- 1/3 cup honey
- 1/3 cup soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon chilies in adobo sauce removed from adobo sauce and chopped (start with 1 tablespoon, add more for spicier sauce)
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic
- 2 teaspoons dry sherry
- 2 teaspoons sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1/2 cup chopped green onions reserve some of the scallions for garnish
Instructions
- Heat convection oven to 400°F or regular bake to 425°F.
PREP WINGS:
- For whole wings, cut into pieces at the joints to divide into three natural segments—drumette, wingette, and tips. Use the drumettes and wingettes for this recipe; save and store the tips in the freezer for making stock. TIP: For the crispiest results, make sure chicken wings are dry (using paper towels to remove surface moisture) and use only dry seasoning before baking. This ensures the moisture on the skin can evaporate and crisp the skin in less time.
- SEASON AND BAKE WINGS:
- Spread chicken wing pieces out on a parchment-lined baking sheet being sure to leave space between each piece and not overcrowd the pan. Season with salt, pepper, and paprika on both sides.
- Bake for about 20 minutes and flip wings over to brown on other side. Continue to bake 20-30 more minutes, or until wings are well browned on both sides (this will depend on size of wings and oven).
FOR THE SAUCE:
- In a saucepan, combine the sauce ingredients (except the cornstarch and onion) and mix well over med-low heat; simmer for 5 minutes to meld flavors. Taste and adjust any flavors (honey for sweetness, rice vinegar for tang, or soy sauce for salt, chilis for spice), as desired.
- Mix the cornstarch with 2 tablespoons of water and stir into the sauce. Simmer on low about 5 minutes until the sauce is thick enough to coat a spoon. Add the green onions and remove from heat.
FINISH THE WINGS:
- Once the wings are finished in the oven, using a pair of tongs, dip each wing in the sauce to coat, then generously sprinkle or roll in the peanuts and BROIL 2-3 minutes. Serve with additional sauce and lime wedges (optional) at the table.
Notes
-
- For the crispiest results, make sure chicken wings are dry and use only dry seasoning before baking. This ensures the moisture on the skin can evaporate and crisp the skin in less time.
- The Kung Pao Sauce recipe makes enough for the wings and extra to pass at the table.
-
- Substitute chicken drumsticks for the wings for a heartier meal.
-
- Substitute cashews or pistachios for peanuts.
-
- Substitute more of the rice vinegar for the dry sherry.
-
- Convection bake will allow for more even browning and less turning during the baking process, but either baking method works fine.
-
- Reheat leftover wings in an air fryer or bake in the oven at 350°F for 5-6 minutes for best results.
-
- The sauce can be made ahead and refrigerated for up to 1 week.
sidesist says
I made this for dinner and it was the best Kung Pao chicken I have ever had, better than our favorite restaurant where we get it. Thanks so much for sharing, it was absolutely delicious and simple!!!
Judy Purcell says
Hi Sidesist, I’m so glad you enjoyed it as much as we do!