Beer Food: Peach, IPA and Habanero Hot Wings

Hi Homebrewers,

Its time for another beer food recipe. This one is a perfect accompaniment with a few beers while watching the cricket, tennis or any other sports this summer. These wings are fantastic – crisp outside, moist inside and delicious all over. This recipe comes straight out of a fantastic book, Cooking with Beer by Mark Dredge.

To make these wings, you’ll need to start a day in advance. To keep the wings delicious and moist inside, you’ll need to brine them for 12-24 hours. You can skip this step but the results won’t be as tasty.

For the Chicken Wings

1 kg Chicken Wings
330 ml IPA – Mayweather IPA is perfect
3 tbsp sugar
3 tbsp salt
3 garlic cloves
1 tbsp dried chilli flakes
1 tbsp smoked paprika
12 black peppercorns

1 tsp each of salt and sugar
1 tbsp each of black pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, chilli powder and smoked paprika.

For the Hot Sauce

6-8 peaches, stones and halved
2-4 habanero chillis, chopped
1 onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves, chopped
2 tbsp olive oil
4 tbsp sugar
Zest and Juice of one orange
230 ml apple cider vinegar
125 ml IPA
Salt and pepper, to taste

For the Blue Cheese Dip

100 g (1/2 cup) cream cheese
100 g (1/2 cup) full fat natural yohgurt
100 g blue cheese, crumbled
50 ml Stout
Cider vinegar, to taste

To make the Beer Hot Wings

1. Begin a day in advance to make the brine. In a large sealable container mix the beer and an equal amount of cold water. Add the sugar and salt and stir until dissolved, then add the garlic, chilli flakes, smoked paprika, peppercorns. Meanwhile, cut the chicken wings into three segments at each of the joints. Give the chicken a good wash. Add the chicken to the brine, put the lid on and place in the refrigerator for 12-24 hours.
2. Remove the wings from the brine and pat dry with paper towel. Place the wings on to a drying rack and allow to air dry somewhere cool for a half hour. Meanwhile, if you like baked wings (the healthy option), preheat the oven to 220°C/400°F, otherwise, heat your deep frier to 180°C/350°F. Coat the wings in the spices, and if frying, add a little flour. Bake for 30 minutes or until crisp and golden on the outside and cooked through on the inside. Tip into a large bowl and coat with the hot sauce. Serve with the blue cheese sauce and a side of celery sticks.

To Make the Hot Sauce

1. the sauce can be made days or weeks in advance, with the flavour improving over time. To begin, preheat the oven to 200If you like baked wings (the healthy option), preheat the oven to 220°C/400°F. Place the peaches, onions, garlic and habaneros on a baking tray and drizzle with oil, tossing to coat them. Bake for 20 minutes.
2. Transfer the peaches to a large saucepan. Add the remaining ingredients, apart from the beer, and season with salt and pepper. Simmer for 20 minutes. Remove from the heat and allow to cool. Add everything into a blender, along with the beer, and blitz until smooth. Taste and season as needed, adding more chilli if you want to dial up the heat. Return the sauce to the heat and bring to just below boiling. Transfer to sterilised jars and can in a water bath.

To Make the Blue Cheese Sauce

1. In a blender or food processor, add the ingredients for the blue cheese dip and pulse until smooth. Season with salt, pepper and cider vinegar, to taste. Put into a bowl to serve. If required, the dip can be made a few days in advance.