Instead of driving 25 minutes to pay $20+gas money for wings, I decided to try doing it at home. I quickly learned that the "chicken wings" you buy in the grocery store are just that...WINGS. Gross.
I can't deal with this. It makes me want to vomit. So, I threw them away (my husband doesn't understand my issue with this), and decided to make BONELESS buffalo wings. Honestly, it was just as good as any wings place (and I'm not just saying that). So, here it goes! We'll start with the french fries.
French fries
Ingredients:
- Russet potatoes (I used 3 for the two of us)
- Canola oil. I buy the BIG container at Walmart for $5. And no, you do not have to have a deep fryer to do this. Just a deep pan
- Salt
- Peel the potatoes. I've heard you can leave the skin on, but I was unsure of the texture.
- Slice each potato like an apple, creating thin wedges.
- Heat the oil over the stove, and make sure it's deep enough so that it covers the potato wedges. I don't have a thermometer, so I just turn it on high and eventually move it to about a 7/10
- Throw the potato wedges into the oil and let 'em cook. Keep in mind that the few potatoes you put in there, the faster it will go. But my man loves his starch, so I was in it for the long haul-I threw them all in at once. It took about 10 minutes to cook. Once they're golden brown on the outside, it's time to take them out. They are ALWAYS darker outside the oil than they look in the oil.
- Put a paper towel on a plate and let them rinse of the excess oil.
- Salt immediately.
Buffalo wings
Ingredients (for 2 people):
- 2 chicken breasts, thawed
- 1/2 cup flour
- Cayenne pepper
- Garlic salt
- Regular pepper
- 1 egg
- Oil (I reuse the oil I made the potato wedges with)
- Wing sauce or barbecue sauce (NOT steak sauce)
- Rinse the chicken in water
- Cut the thawed chicken breasts into the size you want the wings.
- Dip the pieces in to the egg
- Combine flour, cayenne pepper, pepper, and garlic salt
- Dip the "egg-ed" chicken pieces into the batter
- Drop them into the already hot oil
- Let them cook on medium/high heat for about 12 minutes, but it can all depend on your stove, the oil, etc. Once they're golden brown, they're ready.
Buffalo or barbecue?
Barbecue wings |
Buffalo wings |
I chose buffalo, and Tim chose barbecue. Once the chicken is cooked in the oil, drop them into the sauce of your choice and let them roll around. They don't have to sit in there long-just make sure they're thoroughly covered and they're ready to serve.
So that's it, folks! Trust me, it sounds much more complicated than it is. I'd like to credit my husband for taking these amazing pictures with his amazing blackberry. I'm no photographer.
A few notes: The Pioneer Woman, who I love, makes homemade ranch and wing sauce. I wish I were that handy, but unfortunately, I am not. I did, however, serve this with real, authentic celery sticks.