I had the best Japanese-style chicken wings at the Gonpachi Restaurant in Tokyo. They arrived at the table crackling on a little hibachi grill. Salty, sweet, and aromatic, they were great with chilled sake. To me, this is perfect contemporary Japanese cooking.

　　

Ingredients

makes 6 servings

　　3 tablespoons soy sauce

　　2 tablespoons sake

　　2 tablespoons mirin or honey

　　3 scallions, trimmed and roughly chopped

　　2 garlic cloves, chopped

　　One 1-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and chopped

　　3 pounds chicken wings, wing tips removed, drumettes and wings separated

　　

Step 1

Mix together everything but the chicken wings in a large baking dish. Add the chicken wings and turn to coat, then cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or as long as overnight. Turn the wings occasionally in the marinade.

　　

Step 2

Start a charcoal or wood fire or preheat a gas grill or broiler; the fire should be only moderately hot and the rack about 6 inches from the heat source. If you are going to broil the wings, line your pan with foil.

　　

Step 3

Remove the wings from the marinade and put on the grill or in the broiler. Cook for about 10 minutes on each side, remove from the heat, and serve immediately.

　　

Grilled Chicken Wings, Chinese Style

Step 4

Substitute Shaoxing wine for the sake and oyster sauce for the mirin. Add 2 star anise to the marinade.

　　The Best Recipes in the World by Mark Bittman. © 2005 by Mark Bittman. Published by Broadway Books. All Rights Reserved.MARK BITTMAN is the author of the blockbuster The Best Recipes in the World (Broadway, 2005) and the classic bestseller How to Cook Everything, which has sold more than one million copies. He is also the coauthor, with Jean-Georges Vongerichten, of Simple to Spectacular and Jean-Georges: Cooking at Home with a Four-Star Chef. Mr. Bittman is a prolific writer, makes frequent appearances on radio and television, and is the host of The Best Recipes in the World, a 13-part series on public television. He lives in New York and Connecticut.