Perfect for game day, these Sweet and Spicy Wings are coated with a finger-licking good sweet and spicy sauce.
While organizing at home I came across a stack of recipes I hadn’t yet shared. I expect to post a few of them this week — I’m already starting to forget the little details about some of these dishes!
One sleepless night I turned on the TV and landed on Throwdown with Bobby Flay. That episode focused on a Buffalo wing challenge, and though I don’t remember who won, I left the show craving wings. Until a few years ago I rarely ate meat on the bone — it used to bother me — but now I appreciate how much extra flavor bone-in cuts deliver.
There’s a local diner that makes the best wings I’ve ever tasted. Their secret is the sauce: sweeter than it is hot, but with a satisfying kick. The restaurant calls it “Amazing Sauce,” and it’s used across their menu. My favorite there is the “Sticky Fingers” — basically boneless tenders fried and soaked in that sauce. When my wing craving hit, I set out to recreate that flavor. My version didn’t match theirs exactly, but it turned out very tasty and worth sharing. A few weeks later my husband was still talking about how much he liked these wings, so I’ll be making them again soon.
I also made a homemade blue cheese dressing to serve alongside. I don’t always make dressing from scratch — there’s a store brand I like — but I had some blue cheese that needed using. The dressing tasted great the night we ate the wings, though it didn’t keep well and had to be discarded after a couple of days. The recipe suggests refrigerating the dressing for 24 hours before serving, but I preferred its texture on the day I made it. I used low-fat ingredients, which may have shortened its shelf life; I recommend making only what you’ll use that day.
Sweet and Spicy Wings
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Ingredients
Sauce:
- 1/3 cup brown sugar
- 1/3 cup Worcestershire sauce
- 1/4 cup ketchup
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 2 teaspoons hot sauce (like Tabasco)
- 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
Wings:
- oil for frying
- chicken wings (use the amount you need)
For Serving:
- Blue Cheese Dressing
Instructions
For the Sauce:
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Combine the brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce, ketchup, honey, hot sauce and apple cider vinegar in a small pot. Heat over medium, stirring frequently, until the sugar dissolves and the sauce thickens slightly. Remove from the heat and set aside.
For the Wings:
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Heat oil in a deep fryer or large heavy pot to frying temperature. Fry the wings in batches, taking care not to overcrowd the fryer so the oil temperature remains steady. Fry until the wings are golden brown and cooked through, about 10–15 minutes depending on size.
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Place the hot wings in a large bowl, pour the prepared sauce over them, cover, and shake or toss until well coated. Serve immediately with blue cheese dressing and celery sticks.