Sriracha-Spiked Chicken Wings with Blue Cheese Dip and Celery Sticks

[luckytrim]

Sriracha-Spiked Chicken Wings with Blue Cheese Dip and Celery Sticks
• Makes 6 to 8 servings

• 1/2 cup Sriracha Hot Chili Sauce*
• 1/4 cup hot red pepper sauce, such as Emeril's Kick It Up Red pepper sauce or Crystal hot sauce
• 8 ounces [sticks]unsalted butter, melted
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon Tabasco Sauce
• 8 ounces blue cheese, at room temperature
• 4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
• Vegetable oil, for frying
• 4 pounds chicken wings, rinsed and patted dry with paper towels
• 8 ribs of celery, wiped clean and cut on the bias into dipping-sized batons
Combine the Sriracha sauce, hot red pepper sauce, melted butter, 1 tablespoon of the lemon juice, and the Tabasco in a medium bowl and whisk to combine. Set aside. Combine the blue cheese, cream cheese, and remaining 1 tablespoon lemon juice in a food processor and blend until smooth. Transfer to a decorative bowl for serving and set aside. [The blue cheese dip can be made 24 hours in advance and kept, covered, in the refrigerator. Let come to room temperature before serving.]
Heat enough oil to come halfway up the sides of a large saucepan or deep fryer to 350 F. Add the chicken wings in batches and fry, turning, until golden brown and they float in the oil, 6 to 8 minutes. Drain well on paper towels and transfer to a large serving dish.
Pour the sriracha mixture over the hot wings and let sit for 5 minutes. Serve hot.

*This Asian hot chili sauce is made from dried chilies that are ground into a paste with garlic, sugar, and other ingredients. It is available in Asian markets and some supermarkets, and can be found through online specialty food grocers

[buckytom]

looks good luckyt. i've never combined hot sauce and sriracha before, and i usually just add powdered cayenne or thai bird chilli flakes to the butter and sauce to kick up the heat. i'll have to try the lemon juice and tobasco additions next time. thanks.

also, the last time i made wings, i put them under the broiler, turning them every 4 or 5 minutes until they were crisp. they sort of fried in their own fat from the skin. if you like wings on the dry/well done side, or are on a low fat diet but still want to eat wings, that's. is the way to go.

[luckytrim]

got that idea from emeril........


thanks for the tip- i like my wings under the broiler as well; but i'm a wet-winger, so i prepare my sauce on the stove-top, and when it's done, throw in a batch of wings just to get 'em started, then under the broiler!

you need a whole roll of paper towels when you eat my wings.......

[buckytom]

yumm, that's the way to do it. i've tried baking them, but they don't acheive that crispiness that you get from deep frying or broiling.

i wash and pat dry my wings, half get dusted with cayenne, half with just black pepper, and they are put under the broiler. the sauce is made stovetop like you said, and when the wings are done, they are tossed in the sauce.

[Billdolfski]

Sriracha is delicious, and this recipe looks quite good. Pretty eager to see the mixture of Sriracha/hot sauce and see how it works out.