Slow Cooker Chicken Wings

In a 5-quart slow cooker, stir together 2 cups of the pineapple juice (reserving the rest for alter) along with the coconut aminos, garlic, ginger, sesame oil and sea salt until well combined.

In a separate small bowl, whisk together the tapioca flour and the remaining 1/4 cup of pineapple juice until smooth. Stir into the slow cooker with the other sauce ingredients.

Place the wings down onto a paper towel and place another paper towel on top. Pat the wings until they are as dry as possible.

Place the wings onto a large plate or cutting board. In a small bowl, mix together the 5 spice and red pepper flakes. Sprinkle half the mixture on the wings evenly, and rub it into each wing. Flip the wings and repeat on the other side with the remaining spices.

Add the chicken wings into the slow cooker with the sauce and cook on high for 2-3 hours (you want the chicken to no longer be pink inside.)

Once cooker, line a large baking sheet with parchment paper and place the wings on it in one, flat layer. Turn your oven on to high broil and place the oven rack in the 3rd from the top position.

Before you begin to broil the wings, pour the sauce from the slow cooker into a large pot and bring to a boil over high heat. Once boiling, boil 3 minutes and stir constantly. Then, reduce the heat to medium and simmer, stirring frequently, until the sauce reduces by half (about 15 minutes) Once reduced, remove from the heat to cool and slightly thicken more.

While the sauce simmer, it’s time to broil the wings. Using a basting brush, generously rub some of the simmering sauce over all the wings. Place into the oven and broil for 5 minutes. Remove from the oven, generously baste again, and broil an additional 4–5 minutes until browned and sticky.

Flip the wings over, generously baste and repeat the process again, making sure to baste half way through cooking time again.

Once the wings are nice and sticky, garnish with chopped cilantro, green onion, sesame seeds and devour with the reduced sauce for dipping!

Note: This recipe does make a fair amount of sauce, and you most likely won’t use it all. However, I think chicken wings need lots of sauce, so it’s better to err on the side of having a little too much than not enough!