Eye for a Recipe

Who doesn’t love chicken wings? We do, but don’t like the mess and calories that go along with deep frying them. So I was happy to try this recipe from Mark Bittman, which cooks the wings either under a broiler or on the grill (I used the broiler). Toss the wings in a little oil, broil for 10-15 minutes on each side, toss with hot sauce and then return to the broiler or grill to make them brown and crispy.

Avoiding Additives and Preservatives

Frank’s Red Hot sauce is additive free. Make sure your butter contains only cream. I used white vinegar.

Mark Bittman's Minimalist Buffalo Chicken Wings

Ingredients:

3 pounds (1.36 kg) of chicken wings

Neutral oil (like canola)

Salt & pepper

1/3 cup (75 ml) relatively mild hot sauce, like Frank’s Red Hot

4 tablespoons (60 ml) melted butter

1 tablespoon (15 ml) sherry vinegar or white vinegar

1 tablespoon (15 ml) minced garlic

Blue cheese dressing and celery sticks for serving (optional)

Preparation:

Pat the wings dry very well with paper towels (this will help them crisp) and, if the wings are whole, cut them into 3 sections, saving the wing tips for stock. Toss the wings with a little neutral oil to keep them from sticking, salt them lightly, and spread them on a baking sheet, leaving at least an inch of space between each wing.

Heat the broiler with a rack 4 to 6 inches from the flame. (Alternately, heat a charcoal or gas grill; the fire should be moderately hot and the rack 4 to 6 inches from the heat. Leave one side of the grill cooler for indirect cooking.)

Broil in the oven on a sheet pan until the wings are evenly well-browned and crisp, flipping them midway through. This should take 20 to 25 minutes overall, but will depend on the strength of your broiler, so peek often! (If using the grill, put the wings on the cool side of the grill. Cover the grill and cook, checking and turning once or twice, until most of the fat has been rendered and the wings are evenly well-browned and crisp, 15 to 20 minutes.)

While the wings cook, in a large bowl, combine the hot sauce, melted butter, vinegar, garlic, and salt and pepper to taste (you won’t need much).

When the wings are browned and crisp, add them to the bowl with the sauce, and toss to coat. Return the wings to the pan, leaving excess sauce in the bowl, and broil for a few minutes until sizzling and nicely browned on both sides, flipping once. (Or put the wings on the hot part of the grill and cook, uncovered, turning as necessary.)

Serve hot with the extra sauce on the side or, for extra spicy, saucy wings, toss back in the sauce before serving. Blue cheese dressing and celery sticks on the side are a good idea. Serves 4-6.

From Mark Bittman

You can make these tangy chicken wings from Lucy Waverman on either a gas grill or a charcoal barbecue, but the latter infuses them with delicious smoky flavour. These couldn’t be simpler to make; just combine hot sauce, cider vinegar and melted butter, toss the wings with oil salt and pepper, and grill them, basting every few minutes with some sauce. Cook’s note: keep the basting sauce separate from the serving sauce to avoid contamination from the raw chicken. You may also want to take it easy when salting the wings, as most hot sauces are very salty.

Avoiding Additives and Preservatives

There are lots of great hot sauces out there, and many don’t have artificial ingredients. Two classics – Frank’s Hot Sauce and Tabasco original hot sauce – are both additive-free. Look for butter that does not contain colour.

Grilling these wings over charcoal infuses them with smoky flavour

Ingredients:

Dunking sauce

½ cup (125 ml) hot sauce

¼ cup (60 ml) cider vinegar

¼ cup (60 ml) melted butter

Wings

2 lb (1 kg) chicken wings, separated, wing tip discarded

2 tbsp (30 ml) vegetable oil

Salt and freshly ground pepper

Preparation:

Preheat grill to medium high. If using a charcoal grill, sprinkle some soaked wood chips on the coals; I used pecan wood chips.

Combine hot sauce, vinegar and melted butter. Remove ¼ cup for basting and reserve the rest.

Toss wings with oil and season with salt and pepper. Place wings on grill, and grill for 3 minutes on each side. Baste with sauce and turn over again. Repeat turning and basting with sauce every 3 minutes or until chicken wings are cooked through, about 12 minutes to 15 minutes total, depending on the size of the wings. You can throw the wings into the remaining sauce or serve separately for dipping. Serves 4.

From Lucy Waverman

We love chicken wings and this recipe from the LCBO is a new favourite. Toss the wings in dried basil, olive oil, lemon juice, garlic powder, salt and pepper and then coat them with a mixture of Parmesan cheese, panko bread crumbs and lemon zest. Bake them for 30-40 minutes and serve. They are savoury, crunchy and addictive! Cook’s note – be sure to zest the lemon before squeezing it.

Avoiding Additives and Preservatives

Use freshly squeezed lemon juice. Check the ingredients for the dried spices to be sure they don’t contain colour or anti-caking agents. Look for panko and Parmesan with no artificial ingredients. I use President’s Choice Parmesan and ShaSha brand breadcrumbs, which are similar to panko in texture but are made from spelt.

Toss the wings with basil, oil, lemon juice, garlic powder, salt and pepper

Toss with panko and Parmesan and place on baking sheet

Pesto chicken wings

Ingredients:

2 tbsp (30 ml) dried basil leaves

2 tbsp (30 ml) olive oil

2 tbsp (30 ml) lemon juice

2 tsp (10 ml) garlic powder

½ tsp (2 ml) salt

½ tsp (2 ml) pepper

2 lbs (1 kg) chicken winglets and drumettes

½ cup (125 ml) finely grated Parmesan cheese

1/3 cup (80 ml) panko bread crumbs

2 tsp (10 ml) lemon zest

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or non-stick foil.

In a large bowl, whisk together basil, olive oil, lemon juice, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Add wings and toss well.

In a second large bowl, stir together Parmesan, bread crumbs and lemon zest. Toss wings in Parmesan mixture to coat well.

Spread wings out on baking sheet and sprinkle with any remaining Parmesan mixture. Roast, turning once, until golden brown and crisp, 30 to 40 minutes. Serves 2-4.

From the LCBO What’s For Dinner publication