Journal # 7: Buffalo wings satisfies my cravings!

I am an ultimate fan of Shakey's Buffalo wings. It's a bit tangy, spicy and salty. I just love the awesome flavors it has! So, on my venture of recreating that dish, I found a recipe that comes close to the Shakey's wings! 

A week ago, I went to google and searched for "buffalo wings" and this awesome hooter's recipe by Todd Wilbur caught my eye. It had great reviews, although few. It was rated 5 stars. So then I tried the recipe last night and I loved it! It came really close to my favorite at the restaurant! :))

Oh and it's not just awesome, it's extremely easy to make too!

Here are a few (extra) steps that I did to make them more awesome!

Okay, so the first thing I did was thaw the 10 pcs. chicken wings I had in the freezer. When it was completely thawed out (about 4 hours), I washed them with water, removed the dirt and rubbed the wings with salt. This helps remove the icky, slimy stuff on 'em and helps infuse salt on the chicken. Then after rubbing them with wings, wash them with water again. I don't know what this process is called but I call it the salt bath. LOL

So, after the chicken wings are clean. I separated using kitchen scissors (of course, you could also use a knife! LOL) the drummette from the actual wing. From what I've read, A drummette is the section of the wing that is connected to the body of the chicken.
So then, I have 20pcs of chicken to coat and fry.

I dry these wings with a disposable paper towel, make sure to discard these after use, reusing them may cause illness. When they're dry, and make sure to make them stay dry, it's time now to prepare our coating. You could also prepare the coating while thawing, if you're not doing anything else, just to save time. The recipe only calls for 1/2c flour, 1/4tsp. cayenne pepper, 1/4tsp. spanish paprika and 1/4 tsp. salt. Mix them all together and coat the wings with them. This recipe is only for 10 wings, so I doubled the amounts so that it would be enough to coat the wings and drummettes.

It's time now to start cooking! I preheated my oil to about 110C and I deep fried the wings for 6mins and the drummette for 8mins. They turned out to be really crispy. Make sure you don't overcook the chicken, they will dry out!

My only comment on the batter would be to add more salt, 1/4tsp. is too little for my taste. So the next time I would be adding more maybe upto a teaspoon.

Moving on...
The sauce is made up of butter, hot sauce, pepper and garlic powder. I melted the butter and I found out that I didn't have any garlic powder or hot sauce on hand so I substituted these for real garlic about 2 tsps. finely chopped and Chinese Chili sauce. It worked well too! The recipe calls for equal portions of butter to chili sauce but, for me, it ended up too spicy, so I added more butter to find the right balance for my palette. 

I also added dried basil leaves about 1 tsp. for aroma. I put the sauce on a container with a lid and put the cooked chicken on it and shook it like crazy! LOL Then I served it on the table! It was a winner! Everybody loved it! My mom loved it too but was too worried about the fats she might gain coz of it! haha

I love buffalo wings and to save money, I'd just make them on my own since I have this awesome recipe with me! It is definitely a keeper! 

I'm sorry I don't have pictures, I was just too excited to eat them! You'll know what I mean, when you've tried em! HAHA

Try the recipe too, let me know what happens...

That's the Buffalo fried Chicken without the sauce. :) 

Food Explorer: Chicken Wings

I am not a fan of any other chicken part. I love chicken wings so much. Maybe it's because of my frustration dream of flying. I don't know. 

I dedicate this blog to one of my true food loves- it's you Chicken Wings!

Out of the wings experiences that I've had here are the restaurants with some astonishing recipe or style of cooking Chicken Wings.

1.  Shakey's Buffalo Wings

For me, pizza is not the only thing this restaurant is known for. Their Buffalo chicken wings are one of the best that I've tried. It really is something that I crave for most of the time. 

What I love about their chicken wings is the flavor. It's tangy and a bit spicy. One bite from it and you'll surely salivate. It's something you won't regret ordering. It's always better when the chicken is freshly cooked.

Whenever we eat at shakey's, I don't let my parents order without taking some of these wonderful chicken wings. I just can't get over it! I love eating them! 

The only problem is, for me, it's a bit too expensive. The Solo Pack (3pcs whole wings or 6 pcs cut up wings) is around PhP 190. They pay the customers back by high quality chicken wings. 

It's good to eat it on its own or with mojos n' dip. 

2. Manang's Chicken Wings

 

As the restaurant name says they specialize in Chicken delicacies. Well, mostly fried chicken in their "secret" sauce.

Their chicken wings are a bit crispy and flavorful. The sauce comes in 3 flavors: original, mild, and hot & spicy.

The original isn't so bad, it's a bit salty and sweet. The two flavors are actually perfectly balanced in their recipe. Making this one of the most craved food in my life. Mild is just a lighter version of hot and spicy. 

I don't usually like sweet tasting stuff. But this restaurant did something to me, maybe brain washed me or put "gayuma" in my first order of these amazing chicken wings. I keep coming back. Although there still is a satiation point when it comes to this, you can't eat from the restaurant after 3 meals in a week. You'll get sawa or tired from eating it. 

It also is a bit expensive. For PhP 135 you get 2 whole wings + rice + iced tea. I guess it's a good enough bargain.

3. Flaming Wings' Wing Meal

What I love about flaming wings is the variety of dips and sauces they have. You can totally choose what sauce and dip you like for your chicken wings. If I remember correctly the sauces are: Original, Mild and Sweet, Caribbean Jerk, Oriental, Wild, and Barbeque.  The dips are ranch, honey mustard, aioli, bleu cheese, wasabi mayo and I'm not sure if I forgot something.

My favorite combination is Mild and Sweet and Bleu Cheese. They just suit my taste buds perfectly. I love my chicken wings a bit spicy and tangy.

Like the Style in Manang's, flaming wings has deep fried crispy chicken wings. Experiment for yourself and try other variations of the sauces and dips. Who knows, you might get hooked too!

The wing meal is PhP 125, it comes with rice and drinks too. It is a tad cheaper than in manang's. I used to be crazy about their chicken wings but manang's definitely got my attention. 

Have you had a chicken wing experience lately? Tell me about it. Refer your favorite restaurant to me and I'll give it a try! :)