Mom's Recipes - Sunday Fellowship Chicken Wings

My mom could do anything. That’s not an exaggeration - just facts. I wish I had spent more time with her learning to cook because I never saw her use a recipe, and she never wrote any recipes down. She cooked intuitively, seasoning liberally and filling the house with delicious aromas. One of my passion projects is to recreate the dishes she cooked, so that I can share them with my family, and I’m starting with her chicken wings.

Years ago, there was a restaurant in Warner Robins called Hunan Lion. It was a Chinese buffet that served these fried chicken wings that were crunchy, flavorful, and sauce-less. My mom and I both loved them, so when the restaurant closed, my mom recreated them. They were hit in our house and eventually our church as she brought them to almost every church fellowship or potluck. She’d set some aside at home when she made them for church because there were never any leftover to take home.

I've tried asking my mom if she remembers how to cook them, but since her brain surgery, any mention of food just makes her want to eat, so I had to use my memory. The only things I remember is that the batter she used was wet because she would need me to turn on the water to wash her hands, and that she used oyster sauce. Also, I’m pretty sure my mom put salt, pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder in everything, so I used that as a base.

I made a batch for Cory's birthday since my brother was coming, and I wanted him to try them to see if he thought they tasted like mom's. Cory tried the wings for the first time after hearing so much about them, and I had to quickly put them away before he om nom nom nommed them all. My dad and brother think I got the taste down, but like my mom, I also didn’t measure the seasonings, so if you want to try these for yourself, you will need to use your best judgment. Honestly, I think that’s what mom did too. She seasoned by heart.

Ingredients:
Chicken Wings - I used frozen and thawed them out, but fresh will work too (pretty sure.)
Salt
Pepper
Garlic Powder
Onion Powder
Ground Ginger - like a tiny bit. I used a couple shakes of it.
Soy Sauce
Oyster Sauce
Maggi Seasoning - See pictured below - you can find it in most Asian markets. Only a few dashes of this because a little goes a long way. It’s also great on plain rice to give it some flavor.
Flour

Instructions:
1. Heat your choice of oil to 375 in a deep fryer.
2. Pat chicken wings with a paper towel to remove excess moisture, and lay flat on a pan.
3. Sprinkle liberally with salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder until seasoned to your taste.
4. Move wings to a bowl and add oyster sauce, soy sauce, Maggi seasoning, and enough flour to coat all the pieces of chicken. I used my hands to mix everything together.
5. Being careful not to overcrowd the fryer, transfer wings into fryer basket.
6. Fry for about 5-8 minutes until fully cooked and dark golden brown.
7. In one layer, transfer wings onto paper towels to absorb excess moisture.
8. Enjoy!

If you have leftovers, the best way to reheat them is in the toaster oven or regular oven at 375 until cooked through. Most of the time, there aren’t any left for the next day. If you try the recipe, let me know what you think!