Blanching Chicken Wings?

[Faust87]

I have a question about blanching chicken wings.

I am about to start a job working at a restaurant where we will be serving chicken wings... I have never worked with raw chicken wings before for restaurant use, in the past they have all been precooked and frozen.

My question is how do you properly prepare raw chicken wings in a restaurant? How long do you blanch them for? and how do you store them afterwards...and for how long?

Thanks to all who help

 

[Andy M.]

You never blanch chicken. Wings or otherwise. Once you begin the cooking process, you must cook them completely. Partially cooking meats (blanching) creates a prime growth medium for bacteria.

 

[Faust87]

So how does a restaurant prepare their wings and get them out in a timely fashion?

 

[bigdaddy3k]

Steam, then fry.

Bring your steamer up to a boil. Put your wings in a steamer basket and then turn the heat down to medium and steam for about 10 minutes.

This cooks them nicely and removes a lot of excess fat too! Blanching/boiling just pull to much flavor out of the wing and make them overly soggy (water and hot fat! EEK).

 

[Andy M.]

So how does a restaurant prepare their wings and get them out in a timely fashion?

They are fully cooked then just popped into the fryer to crisp them up before service.

 

[LPBeier]

Is this a new restaurant you will be working in? Otherwise if they are established, they will have specific procedures for cooking the wings already.

We have a restaurant down the street from us appropriately named "Wings". Sundays they have 39 cent wings all day and put out hundreds of plates of them. I know the chef there and went in to help one Sunday. As Andy says, they prep all the wings they think they will need ahead of time, then drop them back in the oil for 2-3 minutes to heat and crisp and then add seasonings and/or sauces for the 28 flavours they offer.

 

[TATTRAT]

wings, even from frozen, won't take more than 9min in a fryer to be done.

 

[BBQ Mikey]

Theyre best when theyre fried until cooked, stored in the cooler (approx 43 degrees) and refried until crispy to serve. They take about 8 minutes to pre-cook. And 5 to re-cook. I like em moderately crispy.

 

[Faust87]

Yes, this is a new restaurant I'm working at... I was going over the menu and realized that I had never done wings from raw, I don't want to make any mistakes when it comes to chicken.

So from what I gather, the general consensus is to fry until cooked, refrigerate, re-fry until hot.

 

[Wyogal]

Are you the executive chef? If not, then like LP said, they (executive chef) will already have a procedure, even if it is a new restaurant. Interesting that they are using fresh (not frozen) chicken wings, kind of unusual for a commercial kitchen, unless that is their focus, fresh, never frozen. Personally, I would rather have IQF wings on hand, less contamination issues in the processing/storage issue.

 

[Faust87]

I will be the head cook at this bar,... I hate saying chef as I have never had any schooling. At all the other establishments I've cooked at its always been already cooked IQF wings from providers such as Sysco. If IQF wings are the way to go, I'll go that route,... I just want a good chicken wing, either fresh or IQF... I'd prefer IQF to reduce the hassle and prep work.
Thanks again for all the information you all have shared... any more will still be appreciated :P

 

[rmartin]

I'm really glad this was posted. I'm, as of today, in EXCACTLY the same situation. I was just hired as a kitchen manager (I have no schooling, but have worked directly under a really good chef for the past few years).

This saved me from asking the very same question.

 

[mexican mama]

Ive heard that from a cook friend of mine that when you freeze the chicken or meat overnight then deep fry them directly that you;d have a crispy chicken or pork....is this true???

 

[Andy M.]

Many places cook wings from frozen. By the time the interior of a frozen wing is thawed and heated through, the skin will be crispy.

 

[Faust87]

The route I ended up going was getting 6-8 size IQF wings. They come 40lbs to a case... I pull a box, and start cooking them from frozen, as for the ones that don't sell in a couple of days, I blanch them about half way through, and refrigerate for 2 more days... I've never been left with any after this point. However if I was they'd probably get skinned, boned and turned into soup