Grilled Basque Wings are great to gnaw on while you’re diligently grilling the main course and sipping a cold one, as my Basque friend Juan Riesco often demonstrated to me. The level of heat is up to you—the Tabasco is your fuel.
The tiny Tabasco Sauce bottles numbering from one to four, which appear at the top of each recipe, are intended only as guides to the level of piquancy in the dish. Tabasco Sauce actually rounds out and enhances other flavors, contributing complexity and high notes where other pepper sauces only add heat. Even a recipe with a “four-bottle” rating won’t blow you away, so if you like food very spicy, add more Tabasco Sauce to your own taste. Remember, the perceived degree of heat in food is very subjective; what is hot to one person may be mild to another. If you want to make Tabasco Sauce by yourself, here is its recipe.
Recipe By Chriss Schlesinger
Serves 4 to 6 as an appetizer
Ingredients
- 3 Large Garlic Cloves, Chopped
- 8 Tablespoons Lemon Juice (About 2 Lemons)
- 2 Tablespoons Virgin Olive Oil
- 5 To 15 Dashes of Tabasco Sauce, Depending on Your Taste
- 3 Tablespoons Chopped Fresh Herbs (Whatever You’ve Got: Basil, Parsley, Sage, Thyme, Oregano, Or Rosemary)
- 20 Chicken Wings (You Can Usually Get A Pack Of Wings at The Market Very Cheap)
- Salt and Freshly Cracked Black Pepper to Taste
How to make Grilled Basque Wings
- In a large serving bowl, mix together all the ingredients except the chicken wings.
- You will notice that the wing has two joints. Cut through both joints, separating the wing into three pieces (see the diagram). The wing tip is not usable here, so either toss it out or freeze it and throw it into your next stock, a purpose for which it is excellent.
- Salt and pepper the wing pieces to taste and whip them onto a medium-hot grill. Turn them occasionally until golden brown, about 5 minutes. To see if they’re done, take a big one off the grill and bite into it.
- When the wings are cooked through, add them to the bowl with the dressing and mix to thoroughly cover.
- Chef Tip: When separating chicken wings, at first you will probably want to use a cleaver. With a little practice, however, you will easily find the weak spot in the joint every time and can graduate to using a sharp knife.
- The Grilled Basque Wings are ready to eat, Set them on a platter, open a cold beer, and enjoy yourself.
Serving Suggestions: These are excellent “tapas”-style appetizers. Serve them at a large cocktail party along with some other Mediterranean- inspired appetizers such as Grilled Figs with Prosciutto and Provolone and Grilled Steamed Littlenecks Johnson.
