Sand Ginger Seared Chicken Wings In Oyster Sauce
Rated 5.0 stars by 1 users
Author:
Mandy
This dish always takes me back to my childhood. Every time my mom made it, I could smell it before I even walked into the house—that unmistakable aroma would instantly make my mouth water. It’s a fragrance that’s hard to describe, but impossible to forget.
That signature scent comes from sand ginger (沙姜), also known as Kaempferia galanga. Unlike regular ginger, it isn’t spicy. Instead, it has a bold, peppery aroma with hints of citrus and a subtle camphor-like note, which gives this dish its distinct Cantonese character.
Fresh sand ginger can be hard to find outside of Asia, but dried sand ginger is a wonderful alternative—and often even more fragrant, as the drying process concentrates its aroma.
Purchase Dried Sand Ginger - https://curatedkitchenware.com/products/sand-ginger-150g
Ingredients
- 500g / 1.1 lb of chicken wings
-
1.2g / ½ tsp ground black pepper
- 1.4g / ¼ tsp salt
-
16.6g / 1 Tbsp soy sauce
-
30-45g / 2-3 inches of fresh sand ginger root, smashed and roughly diced (can be replaced with 1 tsp of sand ginger powder)
- 5 shallots, cut into halves
- 5 cloves of garlic, smashed and roughly diced
- 5 scallion, roughly diced, separate the green and white parts
- 13.6g / 1 Tbsp cooking oil to coat the wings
- 27g - 41g / 2-3 tbsp of cooking oil to sear the wings
-
45g / 2.5 tbsp of oyster sauce
-
14g / 1 tbsp of Chinese cooking wine
Directions
Pat the chicken wings dry with paper towels and transfer them to a mixing bowl. Add the salt, white pepper, soy sauce, fresh sand ginger (or sand ginger powder), garlic, white part of the scallion and 1 tbsp of cooking oil.
Mix thoroughly, then massage the wings for about 5 minutes to ensure the seasoning is well absorbed. Cover and marinate in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.
Place the wok over high heat and heat until it begins to smoke. Add a generous amount of oil and swirl to coat the surface, creating a natural nonstick layer.
Take the wings out and add to the wok, but leave those rough aromatics in the bowl. Carefully arrange the wings in a single layer and sear them over medium or medium-low heat, undisturbed, until golden brown. Rotate the wok as needed to ensure even browning on all sides.
Flip all the wings and add the reserved aromatics from the marinade along with the halved shallots. Allow them to cook while you sear the other side of the wings. Rotating the wok as needed to ensure even cooking
Once both sides of the wings are beautifully charred, remove the excess oil (2-3 Tbsp) from the wok to prevent the dish from becoming too greasy. Add the oyster sauce and Chinese cooking wine and mix well.
Add the reserved the green parts of the scallion and toss well.
