Cheater Hot Wings

Hot wings in the classic Buffalo style are good.They're messy to make with all the frying and butter based sauce. And messy to eat as well. So I usually take the easy way out with hot wings and start with prepared and fully cooked hot wings. Then I augment it with some extra flavor and smoke. If you don't have a smoker, they're also good grilled. Beyond the flavor boost, the cooking renders out some fat, improves the texture of the skin and turns the messy sauce into a nice glaze.

This is what Costco in my area carries and it works well.

Set up your smoker or start heating your grill. Even the broiler improves the wings if you don't have a grill.

Lay them out on the rack. Season with a Cajun seasoning. There's a lot of good ones commercially available, but I usually make my own blend without salt. This lets me build the Cajun flavors with out the dish getting too salty. I'll give my Cajun blend at the end of this post.

In summer weather, I smoke the wings for a total of 2 hours. Turn them at the halfway point and season the other side with more Cajun seasoning. If you're using a grill or broiler, watch them for picking up grill marks, darker color and drier appearance.

But this time, it was 40 degrees outside so they were cooking slower. They needed 90 minutes on a side to cook to the proper texture.

 

While the wings finish up, prepare a barbecue ranch dipping sauce. This is very simple too, just equal parts Ranch dressing and barbecue sauce of your choice. I used about 1/4 cup of each. In this case,  I'm using Stubb's Smokey Mesquite barbecue sauce though I often use Stubb's Spicy barbecue sauce.

  

Stir to mix.

 

So in winter weather, at the end of three hours, they were nicely smokey and ready for eating. 

Server the wings with the sauce and enjoy.

 

Salt Free Cajun Seasoning

I'm a fan of the guajillo pepper so I use it here. It's not traditional and if you prefer cayenne, which is traditional, then use 1/4 teaspoon of that instead. Adjust up or down to match your heat preference.

• 1 tablespoon paprika
• 2 teaspoons garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon groundwhite pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon ground guajillo pepper 

Mix the ingredients and store in a spice jar with your other spices. 

Other fun additions are some ground mustard, a little ground bay leaf, dried basil. Many good variations are possible.