United States · Trackside classic

Buffalo wings

Spicy chicken wings with blue cheese dip

Crisp chicken wings tossed in a tangy, buttery cayenne hot sauce, with cool blue cheese dip and celery sticks: America's game day essential.

Buffalo wings

Buffalo wings come from Buffalo, New York, and the best known story sends us to the Anchor Bar in 1964, where Teressa Bellissimo is said to have fried a batch of chicken wings, which were then cheap and often thrown into the stockpot, tossed them in hot sauce and butter and served them with celery and the house blue cheese dressing. Other Buffalo cooks have claimed the idea too, but the combination stuck, and the city now holds an annual festival in its honor.

Wings have since become the snack of American sport, ordered by the bucket for football, basketball and, increasingly, the races at Miami, Austin and Las Vegas. Ours are baked rather than fried, using a little baking powder to dry and blister the skin so it crisps beautifully, which saves you a pot of hot oil on race day. The sauce is two ingredients and the dip takes five minutes.

The wings

Ingredients

Method

  1. If the wings are whole, cut through the joints with the knife or shears to separate the drumette, the flat and the small pointed tip. Discard the tips or freeze them for stock.
  2. Pat the wings very dry with paper towels. In the large bowl, toss them with the baking powder and salt until every piece is evenly and very lightly coated.
  3. Heat the oven to 250°F (120°C) with a rack in the upper middle. Line the baking sheet with foil and set the wire rack on it. Arrange the wings on the rack skin side up, not touching.
  4. Bake at 250°F (120°C) for 30 minutes.
  5. Without removing the wings, raise the oven to 425°F (220°C) and bake 40 to 45 minutes more, turning the pan around halfway.

Buffalo sauce

Ingredients

Method

  1. While the wings finish, warm the hot sauce, butter and vinegar in the small saucepan over low heat, whisking, until the butter melts. Do not let it boil.

Blue cheese dip and crudités

Ingredients

Method

  1. In the medium bowl, stir together the sour cream, mayonnaise, lemon juice and pepper. Fold in the blue cheese, mashing a little of it with the fork and leaving some chunks. Stir in milk a tablespoon at a time. Chill until serving.
  2. Put the celery and carrot sticks in a glass of cold water in the fridge until serving.

Tossing

Ingredients

Method

  1. Tip the hot wings into the large bowl, pour over the warm sauce and toss until every piece is coated.

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