I couldn’t produce a list of finger foot or sharing food for a New Year’s Eve party without including a Nigerian recipe now, could I. So here’s a classic suya dish adapted to be made with chicken wings… ideal for sharing!
Prep time: 15 minutes/Cook time: 45 minutes/Serves: 8 (+marinating)
Ingredients:
For the Suya Spice Blend:
3 uda pods, de-seeded and outer bark discarded
100g peanuts, toasted and coarsely ground
½ tsp chilli powder
½ tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp dried onion
For the Suya Wings:
1 kg Chicken wings 2.2lb
4 tablespoons suya spice, divided
Sea Salt to taste
2 tsp chicken bouillon powder (or powder chicken bouillon cubes)
3 tbsp vegetable oil or peanut oil
Method:
Begin with the suya spice blend: Using a pestle and mortar, grind all the ingredients for the suya spice mix until you have a fine powder. The leftover spice can be kept in a jar to use later.
Prepare the chicken wings: cut it into drumettes and winglets and pat dry with a kitchen towel and transfer to a bowl.
To the chicken wings, add salt, chicken bouillon powder, 2 tablespoons suya spice and mix into the wings until well combined. Cover the bowl with clingfilm and leave to marinate in a cool place for at least 30 minutes. The longer you marinate the chicken, the tastier it becomes, so feel free to marinate for up to 24 hours in the fridge.
Whilst the wings are marinating, to a small bowl, add the remaining suya spice and vegetable oil and mix to combine.
Preheat your grill or oven at 180C/360F and prepare the baking tray, line it with an aluminium foil and place a baking rack on it.
Arrange the chicken wings on the baking rack, given them enough room so they cook evenly and gets enough air circulation in the oven.
Brush the chicken with the marinade made earlier and grill/broil or bake in the oven for 15 minutes. Take it out of the oven and flip then rub more of the marinade, return into the oven and continue cooking for another 15 minutes. For a final time, bring it out of the oven, flip and rub the remaining marinade and grill for another 15 minutes.
Bring the chicken wings out of the oven and transfer to a bowl, sprinkle more suya spice and serve to accompany your other dishes. Alternatively serve with a simple salad of sliced onions, tomatoes and any salad greens of your choice.
