Wings are another one of those foods that toggles for first place on my food favorites list. The crispy skin and tender meat around the bone… Hang on a second.

Before the vegetarians leave the page, I want to tell you something. At the bottom you’ll see my suggestions for making this into an amazing vegetarian ‘wing’ style dish that will leave you wanting more, accompanied by an awesome story of how I made this popular dish vegetarian friendly for a few very close friends.

For the meat lovers though:

So what makes these wings so exciting? Different? Astronomically more delicious than others? I mean, besides the fact that I made them, of course, it’s all about the sauces.

I decided to make this one:

Thai peanut. Such an amazing condiment at Thai restaurants and I devised this sauce recipe through trial and error for a noodle dish I make on occasion or for dipping. I thought it might be a bit too much to coat wings in it, but a quick Google search showed I’m not the only person to think of this one.

I also made this old favorite, and no it isn’t Buffalo-style (though I do love that sauce):

Not so dissimilar from the Thai peanut sauce ingredients above, but this is my family’s barbecue sauce. The story goes that my grandfather (my dad’s dad) would make this sauce or some variation of it. My father got the recipe and added some things, making it his own.

Now I’ve done the same. I’ve been sworn to secrecy on many occasions but since my variation is a bit different from the original, I think it’ll be okay. Some of the parts that stand out are the bright and aromatic fresh ginger root and the deep, rich, robust (yeah, it says it right on the bottle there) molasses.

And yes, that’s ketchup hiding behind the onion powder, don’t judge (or do, but tomato and vinegar make it a solid base for a barbecue sauce).

Now, let’s talk about the wings:

I made this easy baking platform to maximize crisping in the oven.

• Baking sheet
• Foil
• Wire Cooling Rack
  
  

Usually I would grill them. I know they’re great deep fried but I try to avoid deep fried foods where I can. I think grilling the wings brings an insane flavor profile to the typical sauces we see them tossed in.

It’s not that I didn’t grill them because it’s cold (my record grilling temp is -18°F because steak), my poor grill is in a deplorable state of disrepair. I might opt for charcoal on my next grill anyways.

So take your sweet, improvised cooking surface and arrange your wings. Having them up off the pan keeps them from getting too saturated on the bottom.

Above you can see the wings I flipped part way through. The edges and other side are crispy and the rest got nice and golden brown as they finished up. They also came out incredibly tender and juicy.

After giving half the wings a bath in each sauce, the only thing left to do was eat them.

The Thai peanut wings:I dressed them up with some sweet chili sauce and fresh basil from my plant in the window.

The barbecue wings:As tasty as anticipated. Sweet, rich, zesty and tangy.

So as promised, if the vegetarians are still reading or skipped past the meat, here is your promised consolation prize:

About… 13 years ago now, I used to host midnight cookouts. A bunch of friends would come over and we’d drink and cook a bunch of food on the grill well into the early morning hours. I’d been cooking wings for a long time, but I really wanted to find a way to make wings something my vegetarian friends could enjoy alongside the rest of us.

So, broccoli.

I know, it sounds weird.

But here was my rationale at the time: Broccoli florets look like green chicken drum sticks. I hadn’t even considered the taste on it, just the visual similarities. I went ahead and coated some cut up broccoli in buffalo sauce and my barbecue sauce. I put them on the grill and let them get a slight char before throwing them in more sauce. They became such a hit even my carnivorous friends would eat them up.

The take away: Get some broccoli, make these sauces and give it a go. And encourage your meat-eating friends to open their minds to it.

Either way, I serve this dish up with a fruity IPA, carrots, celery, fries and some ranch dressing. Make it your own, choose a side you prefer and your dipping sauce of choice.

And as always, enjoy!

Recipe:

Wings:
– 5lbs chicken wings (I used frozen because I couldn’t find fresh)
– oil or cooking spray
– salt & pepper to taste

NOTE: If using broccoli, I would use about 3-5 larger crowns, cut up into big florets.

Thai Peanut Sauce:
– 1 cup peanut butter
– 3 Tbsp. hot water
– 2 Tbsp. honey
– 2 cloves of garlic, minced
– 1 Tbsp. vegetable oil
– 1 Tbsp. soy sauce
– 1 Tbsp. ginger, grated fresh
– 2 tsp. sesame oil
– 1 tsp. lime juice

BBQ Sauce:
– 2 cups ketchup
– 1/4 cup honey
– 1 Tbsp. molasses
– 1 Tbsp. soy sauce
– 2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
– 2 tsp. ginger, grated fresh
– 1/2 tsp. onion powder
– 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
– black pepper to taste

Directions:

Preheat oven or grill to 375°F. Place foil on baking sheet reflective-side up, then place wire rack on top (I used two pans set up like this). Arrange wings on racks, coat with cooking spray (alternately, you can toss the wings in oil before placing them on the pan) and season wings with salt and pepper. Bake for 25 minutes. Flip wings. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown.

For the peanut sauce, place peanut butter in a microwave safe bowl. Heat on high for 30 seconds to 1 minute, until peanut butter is loose. Add remaining ingredients and mix thoroughly. Set aside.

For the BBQ sauce, mix all ingredients in a bowl. Set aside.

In a large bowl, mix half the wings with the peanut sauce until coated. In another large bowl, mix half the wings with the BBQ sauce until coated.

Plate with a side of fries, celery and carrots or something else you enjoy with wings. Keep your favorite dipping sauce handy.

Cheers!