Baked Lemon Black Pepper Chicken Wings

Lemon pepper wings are subtle but have a really great flavor. These chicken wings are baked rather than fried. They’re first marinated in a spice mixture made from black pepper, garlic, onion, mustard and cayenne for a good flavor base. Then the wings are baked and served tossed in a lemon butter sauce and finished with grated Pecorino Romano cheese.

Baked Lemon Black Pepper Chicken Wings

Key Ingredients in This Recipe

• Chicken wings – You can serve a lot of people cheaply with chicken wings. They are such an inexpensive cut of meat. While there isn’t much meat on chicken wings, the flavor of the skin more than makes up for the small amount of meat! I recommend planning about 4 wings per person as an appetizer and doubling it as an entrée.
• Spices – The wings are marinated in a mixture of freshly ground black pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, mustard and cayenne.
• Lemon zest – The lemon zest is the grated outer skin from the lemon. Use a zester or microplane to remove the zest. If you don’t have a zester use a paring knife or vegetable peeler to remove the rind and finely chop it.
• Pecorino Romano – Pecorino Romano is a hard, salty Italian cheese made from sheep’s milk. While I like the flavor of the combination of both cheeses in this recipe, it can easily be made with one or another.

How to Make Baked Lemon Pepper Wings

For the wings:

1. Mix the spices. In a small bowl stir together the kosher, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, mustard powder and cayenne.
2. Mix the wings with the spices. Add the wings, oil and lemon juice to a large mixing bowl, tossing with your hands to coat evenly. Next, add the spices, tossing to coat once again.
3. Marinate. Cover and refrigerate for at least an hour and up to overnight.
4. Bake the wings. Heat oven to 400ºF. First place a wire rack inside a baking sheet. Next, arrange the wings in an even single layer and bake until cooked through, about 35 minutes.
5. Broil the wings. Heat the oven to broil high and broil until golden brown and crispy, about 3 minutes on each side.

For serving:

1. Make the lemon pepper sauce. Melt the butter in a small bowl and stir in half the lemon zest, lemon juice and pepper. Add the wings to a large bowl and toss with the sauce.
2. Assemble and serve. Arrange on a large platter and sprinkle with the cheese and lemon zest. Serve immediately.

Tips and Tricks for This Recipe

• Since the wings are baked they are easy to make for a crowd, large batches at a time.
• They are tossed in lemon butter which negates any need for additional dipping sauces.

Other Recipes to Try

If you enjoy this recipe, I recommend checking out some of these:

• Baked Fiery Sichuan Peppercorn Chicken Wings with Avocado Ranch
• Pineapple Teriyaki Chicken Wings
• Sweet Chili Wings
• Fried Chicken and Waffle Wings with Bourbon Maple Syrup
• Classic Buffalo Wings with Homemade Buttermilk Blue Cheese Sauce

Baked Lemon Black Pepper Wings

Print Pin

Prep Time 1 hr

Cook Time 35 mins

Serves 4

US Customary – Metric

Ingredients:

For the wings:

• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• ½ teaspoon mustard powder
• ¼ teaspoon cayenne powder
• 3 pounds chicken wings, drumettes and wingettes separated, wing tips discarded
• 3 tablespoons canola oil
• 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

For serving:

• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2 teaspoons lemon zest, divided
• 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
• ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons grated pecorino Romano

Instructions:

For the wings:

• In a small bowl stir together the kosher, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, mustard powder and cayenne.
• Add the wings, oil and lemon juice to a large mixing bowl, tossing with your hands to coat evenly. Add the spices, tossing to coat once again.
• Cover and refrigerate for at least an hour and up to overnight.
• Heat oven to 400ºF (200ºC). Place a wire rack inside a baking sheet. Arrange the wings in an even single layer and bake until cooked through, about 35 minutes.
• Heat the oven to broil high and broil until golden brown and crispy, about 3 minutes on each side.

For serving:

• Melt the butter in a small bowl and stir in half the lemon zest, lemon juice and pepper. Add the wings to a large bowl and toss with the sauce.
• Arrange on a large platter and sprinkle with the cheese and lemon zest. Serve immediately.

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