Preserved Lemon Chicken Wings

Remember WAY back when we made preserved lemons, and I said a recipe would be coming soon? Well here we are four months later. I finally have something to show! It took a few different versions to get something really delicious to write about.

Initially I made a roast chicken with these preserved lemons, but it was just ok. It didn’t have the super intense rich lemon flavor. It felt like the lemons had been wasted on it. Next I tried making chicken wings and marinating them first. If you want a nice strong lemon flavor, marinating is key. But the first time I didn’t use enough lemons, so again- weak lemon flavor. I wanted them to be super lemony. I tried wings again and finally got what I was looking for. A salty, lemony pop!

The tricks are, marinate and use 1 whole lemon per pound of chicken. If you have enough lemons and a container large enough, I would do a whole roasting chicken this way too. Marinate for 24 hours, agitating every once in awhile to make sure the whole thing is seasoned. Then grill, roast, or saute.

If you have never made chicken wings, I’ve added some tips for cutting them. Wings typically arrive whole and need to be cut into wingettes and drumettes (not familiar with chicken wing terms? Check this out). Wing tips are removed and either discarded or frozen for use in chicken stock.

PRESERVED LEMON CHICKEN

per pound of chicken

1 preserved lemon, chopped

2 tbsp thyme leaves

1 clove garlic, smashed 2 tbsp olive oil

4 pounds of wings. Keep in mind you can lose as much as 1 pound in discarded wing tips.

To prep the wings you will be cutting at the joints. This requires a sharp knife and a little practice. It isn’t difficult, but if you haven’t done this it can be a little gross or just physically difficult to cut. If you have a hard time cutting through the joint, move the knife a smidge to either side and try again.

Drumette to the left, wingette in the middle, wing tip on the right.

Once all the wings are chopped and prepped, put them in a gallon bag, or a large container.

All I use for these wings is thyme, garlic, olive oil and the preserved lemons. For ~3 lbs of wings we will use 3 preserved lemons.

Remove any seeds in the lemons and dice them. If you use up your lemons, pour all the lemon preserving liquid into your marinade. If you still have some left, leave enough to keep them from going dry.

Smash or press the garlic.

Remove woody stems from the thyme, you only want the leaves. This is an easy way.

Toss the chopped lemons, garlic and thyme in a bowl. 

Add olive oil and any lemon preserving juice you have.

Add mixture to bag. Most of it will sink to the back/bottom, so be sure to flip often.

The first time I made this we grilled them. It was the best way as the grill added a nice smoky char to the lemon flavor. Second time I made them in the oven. Here is the rack setup I used. I highly recommend lining the bottom of the sheet with foil. I baked these at 400°F for 20 minutes, then flipped them and baked another 25 minutes. 45 minutes total.

It’s a little sad to toss this marinade afterwards. Luckily the lemons are easy and fairly cheap to make again!

These work for dinner or a party appetizer.