Football season is here and that can only mean one thing, chicken wings. Honestly, next to beer, chicken wings may be the next most integral component in any successful tailgating event. So blow their minds this weekend with this recipe.

Peri-peri or piri-piri hot sauce is made primarily with African bird’s eye chili peppers and is very popular in West and South Africa as well as Portugal. Kind of a great divide in the regions, right? Well the method for making the sauce most likely originated in Portugal and was brought to the African continent via settlers. Who knows but what is important is that it taste great.

The sauce itself is a bit on the hot side of hot sauces with vinegary and mustard overtones. I actually use Nando’s Peri-Peri bottled hot sauce for this recipe and I suggest you try to find it if . You can order it on-line and it can be found in many specialty food markets. But if you can’t find it or want to make your own, I have included a recipe that approximates the taste.

What? Can’t find African bird’s eye chili peppers at your local grocer? Well frankly they are very hard to come by but just substitute Scotch Bonnets, habanero, Serrano or even jalapenos. Just make sure they have matured (turned red) before using.

Peri-peri sauce is also fantastic on fish, pork and beef so save any left-over sauce if you make your own, or buy extra if you get Nando’s version.

INGREDIENTS:

For the peri-peri sauce if you can’t find Nando’s

• 3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh red chili peppers (preferably African bird’s eye chilies)
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 1/4 cup white wine vinegar
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 3/4 cup olive oil (Spanish if possible)
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

For the chicken wings

• 3 lbs chicken drumettes, washed and pat dry
• 1 tablespoon onion powder
• 1 tablespoon garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon kosher salt
• 1/2 tablespoon fresh ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoon olive oil
• juice of 1 lemon

For the wing sauce

• 1/2 stick butter
• 4 oz peri-peri sauce (either Nando’s or from this recipe)
• juice of 1 lemon
• a dash of angostura bitters
• 1 teaspoon soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons honey

PREPARATION:

For the peri-peri sauce

After mincing the garlic, sprinkle it with the salt and using the flat side of a large knife, mash and grind the garlic into a paste. Add the peppers and continue mashing and grinding. Place this mash into a bowl and mix in the mustard. Then slowly whisk in the vinegar then the oil until the sauce is a bit emulsified.

For the chicken wings

Toss the wings with onion powder, garlic powder, salt, pepper, lemon juice and olive oil to coat. Marinate the wings for at least and hour but over night is best. Now you can cook the wings anyway you know best. I grilled these but I am a big fan of frying them crispy. You choose. Check this post for tips on frying.

For the wing sauce

Melt the butter in a small pot, add the remaining ingredients and stir. Transfer wings to a large bowl and toss in the sauce to coat. I would forgo the blue cheese or ranch with these, just squeeze more lemons over them and serve.

Serves 2 – 4

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