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WHY WHY why have I never GRILLED chicken wings before this day? There's this little bar, Julios, in DuBois, PA that grills their wings. They take these huge chicken wings (which they call donkey wings), grill them, slather them in whatever delicious sauce you want, and they are DELICIOUS.
So on Sunday, when I saw packs of chicken drumettes with big ol' red "$2 OFF" meat department stickers on them, I knew they were destined to be grilled.
Since I'm still doing the Whole30, my seasonings and sauce had to be clean, but that was super easy! My non-Whole30 husband licked his fingers and asked for more.
I made two different flavors because sometimes, I just don't want straight up buffalo wings! When I did a survey of what I had on hand, I ended up with Garlic Basil and Buffalo Ranch. I had 5 of them for dinner with some fresh garden lettuce and steamed baby red skinned potatoes... perfection.
I learned two important things today: keep your napkins handy... and next time, buy more wings!
Grilled Chicken Wings (Buffalo Ranch & Garlic Basil)
Makes: 20 wings (serves 1-3 people)
Ingredients:
2 packs of 10 chicken drumettes (or wings)
3 cloves garlic, finely minced
2 Tbsp fresh basil, chiffonade (cut into thin ribbons)
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp chipotle chili powder
olive oil
salt & pepper
1/3 cup Frank's Red Hot
2 Tbsp Ranch Dressing (I used my homemade Whole30 approved recipe)
Instructions:
First, you will want to season the wings and let them marinate for as long as you can.
TIP: 12-24 hours will give you the most flavor!
Split the raw wings between two gallon zip lock bags. To one bag, add the minced garlic and fresh basil. Drizzle in a bit of olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Seal the bag and smush the chicken wings around so they are all coated with the seasoning.
To the other bag, add a combination of garlic powder, cayenne pepper, and chipotle chili powder. Drizzle in a bit of olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Again, seal the bag and smush the chicken wings around so they are all coated with seasoning.
Put the wings in the refrigerator to marinate.
When you are ready to cook, pre-heat your grill to low-med. You want to keep it between 300 and 400 degrees.
Remove the wings from the zip lock bags and place on some paper towels. Pat the tops of them to dry them as best you can. You want them to be as dry as possible so they get nice and crispy on the grill!
Saturate a folded up paper towel with olive oil, then use grill tongs to wipe it across the grill grates, greasing the grill.
Cook the chicken wings on the grill for 15-20 minutes, turning every 5 minutes or so and moving them around every so often if your grill cooks unevenly (hotter in the back or on one side, etc.). You want them to get nice and evenly browned, not too burnt in one spot! Chicken wings have a lot of skin, and skin has a lot of fat, so they can cause flare ups while grilling! Be careful.
The wings are done when an instant-read thermometer registers 165 degrees. Remove the wings from the grill and take them inside to finish them off!
TIP: I always use a cookie sheet covered with aluminum foil to carry my food inside, that way I don't dirty more dishes than needed!
For the garlic basil wings, I just topped them off with some fresh basil. For the buffalo wings, I mixed up a quick sauce using Frank's Red Hot and ranch dressing (homemade/Whole30 approved of course). Toss the wings in that sauce, plate them up, and serve!
