Recipe of the Week: Buffalo Wings with Bleu Cheese Dip

You’ll actually have to go to Buffalo, New York for chicken wings that rival these, but nowhere have I been able to find bleu cheese dip that can match this recipe. Simply combine all ingredients into a small glass bowl and refrigerate at least one hour before serving the wings.

BUFFALO WINGS WITH BLEU CHEESE DIP

6 lbs. fresh or frozen chicken wings, plain and skin on
12 oz. bottle Frank's Red Hot sauce
1 stick unsalted butter

Dip:
1 cup sour cream
½ cup Kraft brand mayonnaise
1 cup gorgonzola cheese
1 tsp. garlic powder
½ tsp. onion powder
½ tsp. celery seed
¼ tsp. paprika
¼ tsp. ground black pepper, more to taste
½ tsp. red wine vinegar
½ tsp. Worcestershire sauce
Salt to taste

Hint: For best results, deep fry fresh wings at 350˚F for 12 minutes or frozen wings at 375˚F for 12 minutes, or until skins are golden brown and wings are fully cooked. If you prefer not to deep fry, bake wings in oven at 425˚F for 45 minutes to an hour on well-oiled cookie sheet, flipping wings after 25 minutes.

Bring a large saucepan to low heat and melt butter. Add hot sauce and whisk vigorously until sauce becomes very smooth. Remove from heat and allow sauce to cool to the point where it begins to thicken a bit (do not refrigerate). When wings are done, add manageable portions to a large mixing bowl and pour sauce over top. Toss to coat.

Serve on a platter with a bowl of bleu cheese dip and fresh celery.

Note: If frying wings, prepare hot sauce well in advance because you'll need to give it time to cool before the wings are done (if sauce is too hot, it will drip right off the wings). If you decide to bake the wings, it will be fine to prepare the sauce right after you pop them in the oven.

Serves 6-8

Comments

[Wolf]

Bake the wings, Trevor??? BAKE?!? Two words that NEVER, EVER go together in the English language are "bake" and "wings"!! (You do earn bonus points for specifying Frank's RedHot though.) You'd better post a recipe for homemade kimmelweck rolls or something to make things right with the universe.

I'm kinda anxious to try that bleu cheese dip recipe though. I've always just bought the jar of Marie's dressing at the supermarket.

[trevor]

I know, I know. You notice I said for best results you deep fry, but there are inevitably those who will refuse to do it.

And given that I'm a man of the people...

Seriously, you must give this bleu cheese try. I admit I can't hang with the best wing 'makers', but even at the best Buffalo wing joints the bleu cheese is just pitiful - compared to this recipe at least - especially if you like nice big chunks of gorgonzola.

(Tip: If you want, add some Frank's to the dip too.)

[Red]

Oh boy, Trevor. You're treading on some very thin ice there...but all is forgiven with your rational explanation of why you had to include instructions for baking (shudder...) the wings. Some people are just to healthy for their palate's good.

BTW, I'm giving the recipe for the Bleu Cheese to my wife tomorrow...we never get enough from the pizza joint for everyone, so this is just the thing.

[trevor]

Red, I'm looking forward to hearing what you think of the bleu cheese dip. And in the spirit of down-home cooking, I must note that you can obviously leave the measuring spoons in the drawer and go with your gut.

This dip is thick and practically reverses the proportion of sour cream to mayo that you'll find in most bleu cheese recipes, but I can't stand runny bleu cheese. If I could just stick my wings into a canister of gorgonzola without the cheese falling off, I would.

[Red]

Trvor, my gut has lost all sense of proportion, so I don't trust it. :)