Hot Wings: A Game Day Favorite
Hot Wings are all the rage now, especially during football season. On game days, Hot Wings—also known as Buffalo Wings—are sold by the millions. They are a favorite snack at sports bars and taverns, and the hotter, the better. Sports events and smoking hot chicken wings seem to go hand-in-hand.
Hot Wings came on the scene in the early 1980s and took the country by storm. Basic Hot Wings consist of chicken wings, deep-fried (usually unbreaded), and soaked in a special sauce made of vinegar, cayenne pepper sauce, and hot butter. They’re typically served with celery sticks and either blue cheese or ranch dipping sauce. Since that first plate, there have been many variations on this theme, including the use of the first portion of the wings, known as ‘drummies’, chicken nuggets, popcorn chicken, shrimp, and even pizza. Sometimes the chicken is grilled instead of fried, and all combinations of hot sauces are used, rendering the finished product anywhere from ultra-mild to borderline toxic.
There are many stories about how Hot Wings were created, most of which involve the Anchor Bar in Buffalo, NY, and the Bellissimo family, who own the bar. Depending on which family member you ask, the wings were created by accident, a mistaken order, or as a gift to patrons.
One story is that Theresa Bellissimo created them as a quick snack for her son, Dominic, who arrived for a visit late one night, accompanied by several of his college friends. According to Dominic, another story is that one Friday, the bar was packed with Catholic patrons who could not eat meat until after midnight. The Bellissimos wanted to do something nice for them, so at midnight, Theresa made Hot Wings for all the guests, and they were an instant hit. The third story is that Frank, Theresa’s husband, had ordered a case of chicken backs and necks to make their spaghetti sauce (huh? That’s a new one on me), but a case of chicken wings was delivered instead. It was never explained why the wings couldn’t be used for the sauce, but Frank asked Theresa to figure out a way to use them, and the result was Hot Wings. All of the stories have one thing in common—Theresa gets the credit for developing the recipe.
There is a fourth story involving a different restaurant, John Young’s Wings and Things, also in Buffalo. Mr. Young claims that his original version, called Wings in Mamba Sauce, was a specialty of his restaurant in the mid-1960s.
However they got here, smoking hot chicken wings are here to stay. Not only are they a mainstay at bars during ball games, but they are also the main course at several championship competitive eating contests. A few restaurants have become famous by virtue of their hot wings, such as Hooters and Duffs.
Hot wings can be easily prepared at home. Below are three recipes: one mild, one hot, and one dangerous.
Classic Hot Wings
4 pounds of chicken wings
½ cup McIlhenny’s, Louisiana, Bullseye, or Texas Pete Hot Sauce
¼ cup melted butter or margarine
1 tbsp Apple Cider or Malt vinegar
Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions:
- In a deep fryer, heat oil to at least 360°F.
- In a large mixing bowl, add hot sauce, butter, salt, pepper, and vinegar, and mix well.
- Rinse chicken wings under cold water and pat them dry. Allow them to drain thoroughly.
- Place chicken wings in the fryer basket and lower it into the hot oil slowly. Fry until the wings are golden-brown and crispy. Allow them to drain well.
- Place wings in a mixing bowl while still hot, and use a spoon to stir them around in the sauce until they are well-coated.
- Arrange wings on a serving platter, and garnish with celery sticks and either ranch or blue cheese dressing.
Hooter’s Famous Hot Wings
10 chicken wings, thawed
½ cup flour
¼ cup butter
¼ cup Louisiana Hot Sauce
¼:
- Combine flour, salt, cayenne pepper, and paprika in a mixing bowl, and mix well.
- Drop wings into the flour mixture and coat each wing well.
- Refrigerate the wings for 60-90 minutes. This makes the breading stick well to the wings and creates a great crust.
- While the wings are chilling, heat oil in a deep fryer to 375°F. Ensure you have enough oil to completely cover the wings.
- Place wings in a frying basket and lower them into the hot oil. Fry until golden-brown.
- Once the wings are done, allow them to drain well.
- While the wings are draining, melt butter in a saucepan, then add hot sauce, garlic powder, and black pepper. Mix well.
- Transfer the hot sauce mixture to a large mixing bowl.
- When the wings are drained well, drop them into the mixing bowl and coat them evenly with the sauce.
- Arrange wings on a serving platter, preferably on a bed of lettuce, and garnish with celery sticks and Blue Cheese Dressing.
Klingon Qaq Batlh Hot Wings
My personal recipe, and the first time I’ve ever shared it with anyone! My favorite hot wing recipe.
Warning: These wings are almost toxic! If you’re not a hot sauce freak, use another recipe. Infinity Pepper Sauce is the absolute hottest sauce in the world and is slightly less intense on the Scoville scale than police pepper spray.
24 chicken wings, thawed, rinsed, and patted dry
1 cup flour
½ stick of butter, melted
½ cup McIlhenny’s Tabasco Sauce
1 tbsp Infinity Chili Sauce
1 tbsp Apple Cider vinegar
½ teaspoon each of garlic powder, black pepper, salt, chili powder, and cumin
Oil for deep frying
Instructions:
Heat oil in a deep fryer to 375°F.
In a large mixing bowl, add flour, garlic powder, black pepper, salt, chili powder, and cumin. Mix well.
Dredge wings in the flour mixture, coating them well. Let them sit for a few minutes, then dredge again.
Place coated wings in the fryer basket and gently lower them into the hot oil. Cover and fry until they are a deep golden-brown. When the wings are done, allow them to drain in the basket.
While the wings are draining, in a large mixing bowl, combine vinegar, Tabasco, melted butter, and Infinity Chili Sauce. Mix well.
Drop the wings into the hot sauce mixture and coat them thoroughly.
Arrange the wings on a bed of lettuce on a large platter. Place a small dish of ranch dressing in the center of the platter with the wings arranged around it. Place several celery sticks in the ranch dressing, with the ends sticking out.
Serve with plenty of Romulan Ale…
Qaq Batlh is Klingon for “Day of Honor,” a ritual in which Klingon warriors endure ritual torture to cleanse their spirits.
