No-Fry CRISPY Buffalo Chicken Wings

For all of you die-hard hot wings lovers, you don’t have to settle for $1/wing to get the juicy, crispy, spicy indulgence you desire.

Matt’s guilty pleasure is chicken wings. As someone who grew up in Upstate New York, he is a purist when it comes to the preparation of Buffalo Wings. Even when we were vegetarian he sought out every bar in Philadelphia that offered “chick’n wings”. (Truthfully, some of them were pretty damn good.) Then when we started eating meat again, we made a commitment to eating only organic meats. That actually made it even harder for him to find a worthy indulgence, as it’s easier to find vegetarian foods than organic ones in restaurants.

So we resorted to buying the organic wings ourselves from the grocery store and trying to really “nail it”. We went through many recipes and methods from baking, flouring, and parboiling before baking. He even bought a deep fryer (Don’t do it if you can’t do it outside. Your whole house will smell like a fryer for a week). The parboiling actually does a superb job, but it’s an extra step and an extra dirty pot.

The real secret? Drying the hell out of your wings overnight before baking them. This method really holds true for any meat if you want it to be extra juicy. The science behind it says that an excess moisture on your meat will effectively “steam” your food in the oven, making it mushy, not crispy.

So plan ahead. Buy your wings at least a day before cooking. Remove from packaging, get your roll of paper towels and start patting them down until the paper towels come up dry (If you’re in a pinch and want to make your wings NOW, this step alone will certainly bring you closer to crispy than not doing it at all!) Place your wings on a baking sheet and put them in the fridge, uncovered, overnight.

Also, a broiler pan is a bonus since air will circulate underneath the wings and the juices will drip to the pan below.

The next day when you’re ready to cook, follow this recipe courtesy the ORIGINAL makers of Buffalo Hot Wings: The Anchor Bar.

Recipe For 12 Wings

1 tsb Olive Oil
1/4 – 1/2 tsp Sea Salt
1/4 cup flour
3 tbs butter
2 tsp Apple Cider Vinegar
1/8 – 1/2 tsp Cayenne (how HOT do you like it?)
1/8 tsp Garlic
2 – 3 tbs Frank’s Hot Sauce

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat your oven to 450”F.

2. Bring the wings to room temperature for at least 20 minutes.

3. Toss the wings to coat in the salt and oil in a large bowl. Sprinkle with flour until coated and place them skin side down on the broiling rack an inch apart.

5. Bake the wings in the preheated oven for 20 minutes and flip them over. Bake them an additional 20 minutes until crispy golden brown all over.

6. While the wings are cooking, make your Buffalo Sauce.

7. In a saucepan, combine butter, vinegar, cayenne, garlic powder, and hot sauce. Simmer over medium heat, and then remove from heat.

8. Toss your cooked wings in a bowl with your hot sauce and serve up this hot deliciousness!

If you attempt this recipe and find it as easy and delicious as we did, please drop us a note on our Facebook page!