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Lemon Fennel Grilled Wings
Serves 4 as an appetizer
Ingredients
Garlicky Pepperoncini Dipping sauce
- ½ cup sour cream
- ¼ cup buttermilk
- 5 pepperoncini de-stemmed and finely chopped
- 2 Tbsp pepperoncini juice (from the jar)
- 1 small clove of garlic finely grated
- Lots of freshly cracked black pepper
- Kosher salt to taste
Wings
- 1 Tbsp black peppercorns
- 1 tsp fennel seeds
- 2 tsp kosher salt*
- 1 tsp espelette pepper optional, or smoked paprika
- 2 lemons zested
- 3 pounds chicken wings a combination of flats and drumettes
- Olive oil
- A large handful of fresh parsley leaves
- ¼ of a red onion thinly sliced and rinsed under cold water
- Fresh lemon juice
Instructions
- Begin by preparing the sauce. Add sour cream, buttermilk, pepperoncini, pepperoncini juice, garlic, black pepper and salt to a small bowl. Mix to combine and place in the fridge until ready to serve.
- Next prepare the wings. Preheat your grill over medium-low heat. Add peppercorns and fennel seeds to a mortar and pestle or spice grinder and grind to a coarse powder. Transfer to a small bowl. Stir in salt and espelette.
- Remove 2 teaspoons of the spice mix and add to a separate small bowl. Mix in lemon zest. Set aside for later.
- Add chicken wings to a large bowl and drizzle with a touch of olive oil. Season with the remaining spice mix (the one without the lemon zest!). Toss to combine.
- Place chicken wings, skin side down, on the preheated grill over direct medium-low heat. Cover the grill and let the chicken cook for 10-12 minutes, uncovering occasionally to make sure nothing is burning or flaring up. If the chicken wings seem stuck to the grill, it just means they aren't ready to flip yet! Just leave them be and they will release on their own. Adjust heat as needed if the wings are either charring too quickly or not enough.
- Once golden, crisp, and charred, flip the wings and cook for about another 10 minutes until the wings are cooked through, golden, and charred all over.
- Place cooked wings in a clean large bowl. Add the reserved spice mix (the one with the lemon zest) and toss to coat.
- Add parsley and onion to a small bowl. Toss with a touch of fresh lemon juice and olive oil.
- Place wings on a serving plate and top with the parsley salad. Serve alongside the garlic pepperoncini dipping sauce.
Video
Notes
*This measurement is for diamond crystal kosher salt! Substituting with other salts will not produce the same result.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
My partner and I LOVED these! I have never seen a flavor combo like this before and it was so good. Will definitely add to our rotation.
I tried this recipe last night! However, I baked in the oven, I don’t have a grill. My husband and I really enjoyed it! The dipping sauce was my favorite. It was so refreshing!! The spice mix was novel and I liked that it was used two ways in the recipe. I will definitely make this again!