Chipotle Orange Wings

In Part Two of our series on Chicken Wings, let me present my version. We went back up to Philly last weekend for a quick trip and had a whirlwind weekend of traveling and lots of fun with friends. By the time Sunday night rolled around, we were both pretty beat and wanted to relax with our wings. I went on a kitchen scavenger hunt to make a yummy wing sauce to compete with Mark. We had a canned chipotle pepper, some orange juice, and a few other miscellaneous pantry items. I find that when I randomly toss things together, it is either amazing, or kinda funky. This was amazing and I really loved these wings. They are spicy and sweet and have a great crunch from the caramelized sugars of the OJ and honey. Unlike the buffalo wings, this sauce bakes into the wing and developes a nice depth of flavor as the wings cook. They are easy to make in a small batch, as we did, or in large quantities for a crowd. This would be a very fun appetizer for your next gathering and I highly recommend them. I loved both versions and couldn't pick a winner, so we went down as tied for Battle Wing.
Chipotle Orange Wings
Ingredients:
12 chicken wings
1 canned chipotle pepper
1/4 cup orange juice
2 garlic cloves
1 Tbs. honey
2 Tbs. ketchup
1 Tbs. vegetable oil
salt and pepper

1. To make the sauce for the wings, combine everything (except the wings!) in a small blender with a healthy pinch of salt and pepper and blend until smooth. You can also chop up the garlic and pepper and then whisk everything together by hand.
2. Rinse and pat the wings dry with a paper towel and put them in a large bowl and toss them with salt and pepper.
3. Reserve about 3 Tbs. of the sauce to the side for later and pour the remaining sauce over the wings and toss until well coated.

4. Line a baking tray with foil and spray the foil with non stick spray. Transfer the wings to the tray and discard the extra sauce that you used to toss them. You don't want to pour all that sauce on top, because then your wings will be cooked through, but soggy instead of crispy.
5. Bake in a pre-heated 425 degree oven for 30 minutes. Remove and brush the reserved sauce over the wings for even more flavor. Return the wings to the oven for another 30 minutes until they are caramelized and delicious.
My smoke detector was going off a bit on this one, so make sure to turn on your vent fan and be prepared. It was worth it.
More carnage!
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