Buffalo chicken wings with blue cheese dressing
Buffalo wings work because of the way the aspects of the dish play off each other: crunchy fried wings, incendiary sauce, crisp celery and the almost incongruous sophisticated depth of the blue cheese. The published recipes for the original wings called for fried wings slathered with a happily toxic combination of Frank’s RedHot sauce (an old saloon staple), vinegar and butter. You can adjust the heat of the sauce by increasing — or decreasing — the proportion of hot sauce to melted butter. Make your own dressing with homemade mayonnaise, a farmstead or other high-quality blue cheese (Maytag blue is a classic), buttermilk and garlic, and combine them into something that can hold its own against a bowlful of wings.
From the story: Skip the crudites, let’s eat!
Classic mayonnaise
Whisk together the egg yolks, vinegar and mustard in a medium bowl until pale in color. Add the oil drop by drop, whisking constantly, until the mixture begins to thicken.
Continue whisking in the oil more steadily now, until all the oil is incorporated. Important note: If the mixture begins to break, you can add a few drops of water to bring it back together. Season with salt to taste. Store in the refrigerator until ready to use; keeps for two days. Makes 3 1/3 cups.
Food processor method: Combine the egg yolks, vinegar and mustard in the bowl of a food processor. Process for 30 seconds, then very slowly drizzle the oil a few drops at a time. After pouring in half a cup, drizzle the remaining oil in a thin stream. Season with salt to taste.
Blue cheese dressing
In a bowl, combine the mayonnaise, blue cheese, sour cream, garlic, Worcestershire sauce, lemon juice, vinegar, buttermilk, salt and pepper. Refrigerate until ready to use. Makes 1 1/2 cups.
Wings and assembly
Heat the oil in a deep, heavy (5- to 6-quart) pot until it reaches 375 degrees. Fry the wings, in batches, until golden, about 10 minutes. Drain on paper towels.
Meanwhile, melt the butter in a small saucepan, add the vinegar and hot sauce and stir until blended.
When all the wings are cooked, place the wings in a large bowl, pour the sauce over and toss to coat. Serve warm, with the blue cheese dressing and celery sticks.
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