South East Asian flavors would be at the top of my list. I love their heat and the sour-salty-sweet fireworks.
However when it comes to wings, I’m a Buffalo purist. Wings are hard to get right. There shouldn’t be too much meat — too dry, not too much skin — too greasy, definitely no breading. Pacific, BBQ flavors are mostly sugar. Extra hot are too salty and even bitter. European do not accommodate for crispy skin.
Around us, many places specialize in wings and carry incredible selections. One offers more than thirty flavors. Another one puts you through a multi step customization for each order: choice of sauce out of fourteen, level of heat out of four, level of doneness out of three, a myriad of dipping sauces. Nothing I have tried so far beats classic Buffalo.
Which makes it interesting to experiment at home.
My initial wing prep is set. Tips go for stock. Two-bone and one-bone pieces are separated, side flaps of fat cut off to be rendered for schmaltz. The skin is slashed lengthwise on two-bones and across on one-bones. Some in our family are skeptical about that last bit but, to me, it seems to make the skin more crisp. I also like to cut off extra pieces of white meat — it would add an extra flavor to my bone broth but become too dry by the time the wings are ready.
My latest flavor experiments are about fish sauce. The one condiment I cannot get enough of.
Last time, I figured out that marinating wings in it makes a huge difference. Huge!
This time, to the fish sauce marinade, I added lime juice, garlic, and Bird’s Eye Chilies. Improvement!
Also this time, I made a fish sauce glaze: equal parts of fish sauce & sugar boiled together to a slightly syrupy consistency and fortified with more garlic, more Bird’s Eyes, more lime juice. That glaze went on wings in multiple layers when they were almost done. Add it too early and the wings will burn. Slathered at the end, the glaze improved color, crispiness, and made the skin sticky. To put this stickiness to a good use, we chopped some roasted peanuts, cilantro, mint, and more Bird’s Eyes. Why not? Some like it hot.
The verdict? Buffalo flavors might have to move over there at the top. A little bit.