Cooking Class with Chef Ivan Flowers Lesson 27- Chicken Wings

This week I wanted to cover something many people go out to eat, as well as order in, the almighty chicken wing. In this class, I will teach you the technique of cooking a succulent and crispy chicken wing. Also, I will give you ideas on how to sauce them.

Let’s get cooking!

First, let’s talk about the chicken wings themselves. I like to do a mix of drumettes and mid-section pieces. The mid-section is the wing with the drumette and the flipper removed. You should be able to easily find both types in your local market. Also, one of the most important parts of making deliciously coated chicken wings is that they go into the sauce while they are hot. So, make your sauces (recipes will follow) BEFORE you start frying your wings. Another trick is putting the sauce in the bottom of a large stainless steel bowl, adding the hot wings and then tossing to coat.

With that in mind, let’s start making our wings. This recipe will feed eight to ten people. For the chicken wings you will need: five pounds wings (1/2 drumette & ½ mid-section), extra large sauce pan, three tablespoons Kosher salt, two tablespoons sugar, two cups of Tabasco (or your fave hot sauce), six cups flour, one gallon Canola oil, slotted spoon or spider, large stainless steel bowls.

The first step is boiling the wings.

Why? Essentially we are creating a hot brine and this will result in plump, juicy meat. So, in a large sauce pan combine two gallons of water, three tablespoons Kosher salt, two tablespoons sugar and ½ cup hot sauce. Bring it to a boil.

Once boiling, add in all your chicken wings. Once water returns to a boil, continue cooking the wings for five minutes. Drain and dry thoroughly. This is a crucial step for two reasons. First, water and oil don’t mix, so you don’t want a wet wing going into hot oil, it will splatter horribly. Second, if the wing is wet, the breading won’t stick and will clump, resulting in an uneven coating.

Once the wings are dry, set aside. Put six cups of flour in a large bowl. We will not be adding any salt or seasonings to the breading flour because we will be saucing these wings. So, if we added salt, etc. to the breading, the wings could be overly salty or too heavily seasoned once we added the sauce. Toss the wings in the flour so they are LIGHTLY coated. Make sure to shake off any excess flour. We want a light crisp coating, not a batter. Once all your wings are dusted in flour, heat one gallon of canola oil in a large sauce pan over medium-high heat. Using a thermometer, heat the oil to 350 degrees, gently drop in wings.

Now, you want to fry the wings in small batches because if you don’t, the temperature of the oil will go down and that will mean greasy chicken wings. Cook the wings for three to four minutes until they are golden brown. Remove with a slotted spoon or spider and place immediately in the bowl with sauce and toss to coat. Why don’t we drain them to remove excess oil? Because that little bit of oil mixes with the sauce and creates a fabulous richness.

Now that you know how to cook a perfect chicken wing, you are going to want to sauce them. Each of the following sauce recipes will coat two ½ pounds of chicken wings, so feel free to double or cut down, depending on your preferences. All sauces simply need to be mixed well in a large bowl and then they are ready for the wings.

The first sauce is sweet and spicy, for this you will need: ½ cup sweet chili, four tablespoons Sriracha, juice of two lemons, juice of two limes, one cup chopped cilantro, one teaspoon garlic puree (equal parts of garlic & canola oil blended together), salt and pepper. Combine all ingredients, except for the salt and pepper. After mixing, salt and pepper to taste.

The second sauce is a Thai peanut, for this you will need: one cup creamy peanut butter, three teaspoons sesame oil, two teaspoons hoisin sauce, juice of two limes and ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes.

The third sauce is a play on the traditional hot wings sauce, for this you will need: ½ cup Tabasco, ½ stick unsalted butter (melted), two tablespoons tomato paste and juice of one orange.

The fourth sauce is a spicy apricot, for this you will need: one cup apricot jam, one tablespoon garlic puree, one cup chopped cilantro, ½ cup pineapple juice, two teaspoons ground coriander and one tablespoon smoked paprika.

The fifth and final sauce is one from my family, Bubba’s Noosh sauce, for this you will need: ½ cup brown sugar, two tablespoons smoked paprika, two tablespoons granulated garlic, one teaspoon ground coriander, one tablespoon ground curry, one tablespoon cumin, 1/3 cup white balsamic vinegar, juice of two oranges and salt and pepper to taste. This is more of a wet rub that coats the chicken. I love it!

Now you know how to cook a perfect chicken wing and sauce it! Use your imagination, try out new combinations and create a signature sauce of your own. As with any technique or recipe, the most important component is the cook’s heart. The heart is what creates delicious flavor.

Chef Ivan Flowers brings 25 years of fine cuisine experience to Top of The Market, San Diego. Prior to becoming Executive Chef at Top of The Market, Chef Flowers owned Fournos restaurant in Sedona, Arizona, named a top 25 restaurant in Arizona. He was also Executive Chef at L’Auberge de Sedona, the AAA Four-Diamond, Four Star award winning restaurant. Flowers has created extraordinary cuisine for some of the finest restaurants in Arizona, including T. Cooks at Scottsdale's Royal Palms Resort and the Phoenician's Mary Elaine's and Different Pointe of View.

Follow Chef Flowers on Twitter and Facebook