Who's Ready for Some Football?!

When I hear ‘Football’ I automatically think wings, wings and more wings! It’s just something about sitting or standing in front of the television watching the game or screaming at the game and eating wings; it’s the most perfect pair! Football Sunday is an enjoyable day for me – sitting on the couch watching the games all day while dreading the approaching work week but also soaking up the last day of relaxation. 

January not only means the start of a new year and a fresh clean slate, it also means PLAYOFFS!  These past few weekends have been playoff football weekends and I am in heaven!  Playoffs increases my craving for wings even more!  So instead of waiting a longer time than usual then having to wait in an even longer line to buy those yummy wings I decided to make them myself in my very own kitchen. 

The idea came to me when I was at football get together last weekend and the one of the hosts made wings in their kitchen!  I watched pretty much the whole process happen (well the latter part of process) but I was absolutely amazed and the tasted phenomenal! They honestly tasted better than most restaurant wings and I know some great wings places and those homemade wings just about took the cake. So I decided to get creative this weekend and take stab at some homemade wings!

What You’ll Need

·        Pack of fresh (never frozen) chicken wings. *I purchased an economy size package from Costco but you can buy whichever size you will need to fit the occasion.

·        Salt (For flavor only & it is your preference)

·        Pepper (For flavor only & it is your preference)

·        Garlic powder (For flavor only & it is your preference)

·        Vegetable oil (Canola or Olive oil are good too!)

·        A very, very sharp knife

·        Old Bay Seasoning

·        A large, deep pan

·        Locking tongs

·        Buffalo or hot sauce (I did Old Bay and plain, but you can use whatever flavor you prefer on your wings!)

·        Paper towels

·        2 large plates

·        2 large baking sheets (same you would use to bake cookies)

·        Aluminum foil

·        Cutting board

Preparation

Preheat your oven to 370 to 375 degrees (all depends on your oven) then take the chicken out of its package and wash by hand in the sink.

Place chicken wings on the cutting board and for each wings you will need to cut the “tail” of the wing off with the sharp knife then you will need to cut the wing itself in half so that you will then have 2 pieces of chicken. Repeat this until you use all of the chicken.

Line each baking sheet with aluminum foil and place all of the chicken now cut in half chicken wing pieces on the baking sheets. You can spray with cooking oil but I chose not to I figured it would be fine with the moisture from the chicken but it is completely up to you!

Season the cut up chicken wing pieces with salt, pepper and garlic powder. I just sprinkled a very little amount and went down the line on the baking sheet.  Once you have seasoned all of the pieces, take the locked tongs and flip the pieces over to the other side and season the other side.

Place the baking sheets in the oven. I put one the bottom shelf and one on the top shelf but if your own is big enough to put both on baking sheets on one shelf, then go for it! Set timer for 30 minutes. Allow the chicken pieces to cut on one side for 15 minutes then take out and use the locked tongs to turn the pieces over and allow to finish cooking on the other side.

When there is about 5 minutes left, place the large, deep pan on the stove and pour your oil in.  I eye measured it, make sure the amount in the pan will cover the chicken pieces once they are in there. Turn the heat very high up on the burner and let the oil heat up. Be careful the oil will begin to crackle and spatter once it gets hot.

Place 2 plates to the side and heavily line them with paper towels.

Take the chicken out of the oven and immediately place some pieces in the hot pan with the oil. Again be careful it is about to get kind of messy in the kitchen. I eyed and it let the chicken pieces sit in the oil for random amounts of time, not long though. I used the tongs frequently to take one out and see how it looked.

Once the first batch is done, use the locked tongs to place the “fried” chicken pieces on a plate heavily lined with paper towels. I made my first batch plain wings. I think I made about 40 wings, so 20 wings were plain and 20 wings were Old Bay seasoned.

Prepare the remaining batches of chicken pieces by placing them in the hot oil (use the same oil) and place on the heavily paper towel lined plates. Once you are on the Old Bay batch (or a batch where you are using a sauce of your choice), take out the chicken pieces from the pan and place on the plate then immediately sprinkle Old Bay on the wings, this way the seasoning sticks to the wings because they are still piping hot.

I just left the wings on the plate and served them that way. They were a huge hit in my house!  I am so proud of myself for trying a recipe for the first time and it being a success for everyone that indulged in them.

Enjoy your wings :)