Baked chicken wings

This is easy to prepare. Summarised recipe: marinate, chill, add onion, wrap, bake for 40 minutes. 

In fact there can be many variations depending on the marinade and vegetables used. 

First, wash the chicken wings. Use about 6 wings or 10 mid-joint wings. Then marinate. For the marinade, I use a combination of several sauces, so as to achieve a richer taste. Examples of my favourite sauces include: oyster sauce, soy sauce, fish sauce, chilli sauce, tomato ketchup. The amount of each sauce varies from half teaspoon to one tablespoon. Sometimes I add pepper, salt, sugar too. For a more "western" feel, add some dried basil leaves.

After coating the wings with marinade, chill them in the fridge for about an hour. When ready to cook, preheat oven to 180 deg Celsius. Dice an onion. You can also cut some carrots. Line a big piece of aluminium foil on a suitable plate. Layer the bottom with onion, carrots and a little water or broth. Place chicken wings on top. Pour in any excess marinade sauce as well. Wrap loosely so that there's only a tiny opening.

Bake for 40 minutes until it's done. To further brown the skin, uncover and bake at 190 degree Celsius for another 5 minutes. 

The above is only a general guideline. You can adjust almost every step. Experiment and discover your own preference. 

By the way I also wrapped some sweet potatoes with aluminium foil and threw them into a tray at the bottom, baked together with the chicken wings. This is my favourite two-in-one cooking, where I can produce two dishes within the same time frame and oven.

Real food. Simple steps. Easy preparation, easy clean up. Healthy home-cooked meal. Limited only by creativity and the courage to try :)

Grill chicken

Other than soups & steamed dishes, I find that using an oven to bake or grill is one of the easiest cooking methods. There is also a certain distinct flavour different from steaming the same recipe.

For this recipe I used 3 deboned chicken drumstick. Marinate with pinch of salt and pepper for about 20 minutes. If you prefer a healthier chicken that's raised without growth hormones, antibiotics etc, try Sakura chicken from Kee Song Brothers. My kids love it too. You can literally taste the difference. The meat is tastier and contains less fat. Currently it's available at major NTUC supermarkets and some wet markets in Singapore. Make sure there's a pink ring on the chicken's leg which is a mark of authenticity.

Back to preparation. Preheat oven on high (grill). Meanwhile prepare other ingredients. Wash and slice fresh button mushrooms, dice a tomato, dice an onion. Line a suitable dish with aluminium foil. Spread out the above diced ingredients onto the dish. Place the marinated chicken pieces on top. Spread them out in the dish as flat as possible, skin side up. Add a tablespoon each of soy sauce and chicken broth.

Grill on high for 25 minutes. To prevent splatter or to have a moist dish, place a 'roof' on top using aluminium foil.

This dish takes minimal preparation time and is good for a simple complete meal by adding rice.

Enjoy :-)