Ingredients
2 large garlic cloves, mashed or minced
1 teaspoon salt (sea salt works well to help with mashing the garlic)
4 tablespoons soy sauce
3 tablespoons hoisin sauce
5-6 tablespoons mild honey
2 teaspoon Asian sesame oil
¼ cup or Sherry
Pinch of cayenne (or 2!)
3 lb chicken wingettes or chicken wings (see cooks’ note, below) or 8-10 boneless, skinless thighs
1 1/2 tablespoons sesame seeds, lightly toasted
1 scallion (green part only), finely chopped (optional)
Preparation
Put oven rack in upper third of oven and preheat oven to 425°F. Line a large shallow baking pan (17 by 12 inches) with foil and lightly oil foil.
Mince garlic and mash to a paste with salt using a large heavy knife or simply add mined garlic. Transfer garlic paste to a large bowl and stir in sherry, soy sauce, hoisin, honey, oil, and cayenne. Pour 1/3 of mixture into separate bowl or small pitcher. Place remaining mixture into a small boiler - bring to a boil and cook until reduced by 1/3rd. Sauce should be thick. Add chicken to sauce, stirring to coat.
Arrange chicken in 1 layer in baking pan and roast, turning over once, until cooked through, about 35 minutes.
Boil remaining sauce until reduced to a thick syrup (this will be thicker than the cooking sauce was). Transfer chicken to a large serving platter or bowl, pour remaining sauce on top and toss with sesame seeds and scallion.
Cooks’ note: If using chicken wings instead of wingettes, cut off and discard tips from chicken wings with kitchen shears or a large heavy knife, then halve wings at joint.
Weight Watchers Note: 4 points per chicken thigh. Without the Sherry, this is a CORE food recipe! This is great served with steamed, white rice and steamed vegetables.
Makes 4 main-course servings.
