Red Hot: The TRUE Story of Buffalo Wings...

Hey! There are beer and
Hot Wings in this Photo!
YUMMY!

Since it is Football season, I figured that a post on the best football food out there would be in order. Grab a beer because everybody knows that hot wings and beer are the best food and beverage combo on the planet. Its gonna get SPICY in here!

Basically, the owner of the Anchor Bar, in Buffalo, NY invented them. From their website:

 One night back on March 4,1964,Dominic Bellissimo was tending bar at the now famous Anchor Bar Restaurant in Buffalo, NY. Late that evening, a group of Dominic's friends arrived at the bar with ravenous appetites. Dominic asked his mother, Teressa, to prepare something for his friends to eat. 

They looked like chicken wings, a part of the chicken that usually went into the stock pot for soup. Teressa had deep fried the wings and flavored them with a secret sauce. The wings were an instant hit and it didn't take long for people to flock to the bar to experience this new taste sensation. From that evening on, Buffalo Wings became a regular part of the menu at the Anchor Bar. 

The phenomenon created in 1964 by Teressa Bellissimo has spread across the globe. Although many have tried to duplicate Buffalo Wings, the closely guarded secret recipe is what makes Frank & Teressa's the proclaimed "Best Wings in the World."

That "Secret Sauce' was none other than Frank's Original Red Hot. The ORIGINAL hot sauce, made from Cayenne Pepper. Frank's has since come out with many different flavors, and why wouldn't they? But, my favorite is the Original, and the most imitated is the original.

Since hot wings exploded onto the scene in the 80's, several huge chains

Here's an innocent looking Hooters
Girl just because.

have sprung up, such as Hooters, Buffalo Wild Wings, and Wild Wing Cafe. While they have good wings, and plenty of eye candy there in the case of Hooters, I still defer to the old adage of 'If it ain't broke, don't fix it.' Meaning that there is no reason other than pride to use anything other than Frank's. When I was younger, I worked at a restaurant that would mix tomato juice with Texas Pete hot sauce, and add Italian salad dressing, along with Tabasco sauce and black pepper to it, and call it the 'best secret hot wing recipe in the world!' There is a reason that place is no longer in business. Their wings were horrible. 
And these chain pizza restaurants that offer wings? They fry them partially, then yank them out and ship them to their stores who run them through an oven and douse them with a hot sauce that is loaded with extra ingredients so they can claim it as theirs. Keep reading, my friends!

BBQ sauce on wings?

There is no reason to put breading on the wings, no reason to add anything (other than cayenne pepper, or something hotter for extra heat) to the Frank's Red Hot. And, they are not hard to make at all. You simply deep fry them, then pull them out of the oil, and put them in a bucket. Pour the sauce on it, then shake the wings in a circular motion, and serve. You don't want to bake them, and you damn sure don't want to cook them on a grill. And, if you want BBQ chicken, then make BBQ chicken. Don't bother putting BBQ sauce on hot wings. I am a hot wings guru, and I will laugh at you if you do. 

Case in point, I eat hot wings at home all the time. Every time I cook them at a party I throw, or even at a tailgate party, people always ask me what restaurant I got my sauce from because my wings were simply amazing. They can't believe it when I tell them that all I use is Frank's Original Red Hot. I honestly don't understand what is so hard to believe about it. Fry em' then dunk em' in the sauce. You will get wings that are BETTER than what most wing restaurants or sports bars serve. 

Awww hell yeah!

I am a Miami Dolphins fan. Back in 2006, I went to a Dolphins home game vs the Buffalo Bills. I decided to cook hot wings at the tailgate party. I brought a turkey fryer, and about 400 raw wings. Nobody was paying any attention to me until I pulled the first batch from the oil and dumped the Frank's on them. The aroma went everywhere, and the people nearby smelled it, and swooped in. I expected this, which is why I brought 400 wings. That tailgate was amazing. There were Buffalo Bills fans who told me that they were season ticket holders in Buffalo, and they had never seen anyone cook Buffalo Wings at a tailgate in a turkey fryer. They tried them, and were amazed. I asked them if they were going to cook wings this way once they got back home. They said that they were absolutely going to do it. I told them to make sure they told everyone in Buffalo that they got the idea from a Miami Dolphins fan. It was a great time.

Since then, I have cooked wings at every tailgate party I have been to. I've done it in Atlanta, Nashville, Cincinnati, and a couple more times in Miami. The reaction is the same every time. I attract people! But, the bottom line is that hot wings, fried with Frank's Original Red Hot is the PERFECT recipe for hot wings. Period. 

Add beer for perfection! YUM!!!

Don't deviate from it. They got it right at the Anchor Bar in Buffalo, and if it ain't broke, DON'T FIX IT! 

That being said, the chains like Hooters, BWW, WWC, etc do make some good wings, but they fail in comparison to the wings made with the ORIGINAL formula...I've said before, and I will say it again:

FRANK'S ORIGINAL RED HOT with FRIED CHICKEN WINGS!!!

Also, they are the best fried crispy with a little pool of sauce on the plate.

Heed my words. Make some REAL wings, grab a beer, and enjoy!

...and let me know how your party turned out for you.

Signed, William Telltale
Hot Wings Guru