One of my favorite things to do in the kitchen is to recreate things I’ve eaten at restaurants and just loved. If you’ve been to Mission Chinese and had their Chongqing Chicken Wings, you know that it is one of those dishes you will never ever forget. (And if you’ve never been– next time you visit NYC or San Francisco, put it on your to-do list.) They are deep-fried to perfection then coated with a spice combination that will blow your mind and leave your mouth wanting more and more and MORE! The star of the show is the Schezuan peppercorns in the spice mixture, which gives your tongue a bizarre yet incredible tingling sensation.
During football season, my husband asks for wings pretty much every single Sunday, so when I went to Mission Chinese and had these wings, I knew I had to get to the bottom of how to make these and how to make them Whole30 compliant. I always bake my wings until they are a deep golden color and extra crispy, so no deep-frying here! Then, I tossed it in an incredible spice combination (sans sugar) and boy, oh boy. You will think you’re eating the real deal! Trust me!
If you love spice and flavor bombs, then these Whole30/Paleo Mission Chinese Chongqing Chicken Wings are absolutely going to be your new favorite recipe ever. Do it! Your nose will be running and mouth-tingling in the best way!


- 3 lbs. split chicken wings
- 3 tbsp. olive oil
- salt and pepper
- 1/2 cup dried whole red chiles
- 1 tbsp. coconut aminos
- 1.5 tsp. sichuan peppercorns
- 1 tbsp. kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp. cumin
- 1/2 tsp. cardamom
- 1/2 tsp. ground cloves
- 1 star anise pod
- 2 tsp. fennel seed
- 2 tsp. cayenne powder
- 1/2 cup cilantro, loosely chopped
- 1/4 cup sliced scallions
- a few wedges of lime
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- In a spice grinder, coffee grinder or small food processor-- combine all of the "spice mixture" ingredients and blend/grind until it is all turned into a powder. Set aside.
- Combine the chicken wings and 2 tbsp. olive oil in a large bowl. Toss to coat evenly. Now season with salt and pepper.
- Arrange chicken wings (do not overcrowd) on 1-2 large baking sheets on top of a wire rack. Bake in oven at 400 until golden brown and crisp, about 35-45 minutes.
- Remove from oven and transfer to a large bowl.
- Heat a skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 tbsp. olive oil and the dried chiles. Toss with the coconut aminos and just saute for about 3-4 minutes, or slightly softened.
- Pour the chiles into the bowl with the wings. Now, add 2 tbsp. of the spice mixture and toss to coat evenly. Taste and continue to add the spice mixture until it reaches the amount of flavor and heat you desire. It is SUPPOSED to be spicy, I did about 3/4 of the spice mixture, just fyi.
- Garnish with cilantro, scallions, and lime.
- Serve and enjoy!
13 Comments
SMahl
December 28, 2022 at 1:35 amThe best way to eat wings. We’ve been making these for years. Pro tip: while the amount of peppercorns will last forever, their flavor will not. Be sure to replace every few years.
Alex
December 28, 2022 at 1:00 pmSo true!!! Thanks for sharing the tip! Gotta have that fresh peppercorn tingle.
sydneyt
July 16, 2021 at 7:11 pmI made these and they were way too salty! We couldn’t eat them! Is there possibly a typo and it should be 1 TSP of salt instead of 1 TBSP? The smells and flavor seemed unreal-good so we were very sad that they had to go to waste. Followed the recipe to a tee…
Isabel
April 8, 2021 at 8:45 pmHi! i want to make these wings over the weekend, the recipe calls for 1.5 tsp sichuan peppercorn, but the video calls for 1.5 tablespoons… please let me know which one is correct. thanks
Alex
April 11, 2021 at 10:43 pmit’s teaspoons! sorry for the confusion.
Wil
January 27, 2021 at 4:34 amSo so delicious!
Robyn
October 16, 2017 at 5:00 pmAny suggestions for dipping sauce? Or do these scrumptious things need it?
Alex
October 16, 2017 at 6:52 pmThey definitely don’t need any dipping sauce!! They are fabulous as is!
Barb
September 26, 2017 at 2:54 amLooks delicious! What spice would you cut back on to to make it s bit less spicy?
Alex
September 26, 2017 at 12:33 pmDefinitely lower the amount of cayenne. You could also do just 1 tbsp. of the szechuan peppercorns, but really the cayenne is the spicy component!
Whitney
September 26, 2017 at 12:27 amGreat! You are awesome, so inspiring… ❤️
Malu
September 25, 2017 at 7:30 pmI will try for sure! I have a suggestion, I would love to see small videos here (tastemade style) from your recipes. thanks ! Malu
Alex
September 25, 2017 at 10:23 pmI would love to get to that level one day when I can afford the equipment to do it properly. It’s the next step! Thanks!