Slumdog wings

Does that look good or what? The recipe below serves 2 for big appetites as an entree, or 4-6 as appetizers. The perspective of the photo is misleading. These wingettes weren't large, quite small actually, but in the pic they look like legs!

I revisited my previous tandoori-style chicken recipe. There were wings left from my birthday party in April. So I modified the whole thing and prepared them as follows. It’s not essential that you brine it, but I nearly always brine chicken before cooking. Note that after brining no salt is added. If you choose not to brine, add 1 tsp table salt to the dry mix.

Slumdog wings

10 chicken wings, tips removed
2 tbsp kosher salt
1 tbsp sugar
2 cups water
1 tbsp garam masala2 tsp ground cumin
½ tsp ground ginger
½ tsp powdered garlic2 tsp chili powder
lime juice

Cut apart the two sections of the chicken wings. Dissolve the salt and sugar in the water. Put the wing pieces and brine mix into a freezer bag. Refrigerate for 1-4 hours.

In a bowl, mix together all the remaining ingredients except the lime. Put this into a shaker bottle (an empty spice container is perfect).

Remove the chicken from the fridge, rinse and dry with paper towels. With a sharp knife, make a slit in the meatiest part of each wing piece.

Sprinkle the chicken liberally with the spice mix on both sides. Place them on a wire rack over a large plate and refrigerate uncovered for 1-3 hours.

Preheat the oven to 250°. Put the wire rack with the chicken on it onto a baking pan with at least 1” sides. Pour 1 cup water into the pan. Cover tightly with foil. Bake for 2 - 2 ½ hours.

Remove from the oven and turn the heat to “broil.” Leave the oven door ajar so that the heating element does not cycle off. Remove the foil from the chicken. Sprinkle with more of the spice mix on the top side. Broil for 3-5 minutes until the chicken starts to get nice and brown. Turn the pieces over, add spice mix again, and broil for another 3-5 minutes until sizzling and browned.

Remove from oven, tent with foil and allow the chicken to rest for 5-10 minutes. Sprinkle with lime juice and serve.

Tandoori chicken

There’s something I just have to share with you. Back on Nov. 5, I posted a recipe for broiled chicken parts. It’s a superb recipe. Several days ago we got our winter copy of “Cooks Illustrated” magazine. They put forth a plan for tandoori-style chicken done in the oven and finished under the broiler. We love Indian food flavors and I decided to try it last night.

Now, I know that this blog is supposed to be about my creativity. However, most of you probably don’t have a subscription to the mag and can only know about this if I share it with you. Let me just say this: the results were phenomenal; so much so that for 2 hours after dinner I reveled in the lingering glow in my mid-section.

Christopher Kimball, editor of the magazine and host of the tv show “America’s Test Kitchen,” constantly reminds us that he doesn’t care for spicy food. With that in mind, I deduced that the spices in this recipe needed boosting. I accomplished it by simply using the amounts called for for 3 pounds of chicken parts even though I was cooking only 2 pounds (4 chicken legs and 4 thighs, bone in and skin on).

Other than that I followed the recipe slavishly. If I ever offer something I think is a must-try, this is it.

Oops, I nearly forgot to tell you about the perfectly cooked basmati rice Peter prepared. It was cooked in some homemade chicken stock and tossed with a bit of butter. I asked Peter over dinner what makes basmati so unique and special. He wasn’t sure. I’ll do some research and get back to you.

Tandoori chicken
2 tbsp vegetable oil
6 medium garlic cloves, minced or pressed
2 tbsp grated ginger
1 tbsp garam masala
2 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp chili powder
1 cup plain yogurt (whole milk or reduced fat)
4 tbsp lime juice (probably 2 limes)
2 tsp salt
2 lbs bone-in, skin-on chicken parts

Heat oil in small skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Add garlic and ginger and cook until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add garam masala, cumin and chili powder; continue to cook until fragrant, 30-60 seconds longer. Transfer half of the mix to a medium bowl; stir in yogurt and 2 tbsp lime juice and set aside.

In large bowl, combine remaining garlic-spice mix, 2 tbsp lime juice, and salt. Using a sharp knife, lightly score skin side of each piece of chicken, making 2 or 3 shallow cuts about 1 inch apart and about 1/8 inch deep; transfer to bowl. Gently massage salt-spice mix into chicken until all pieces are evenly coated; let stand at room temperature 30 minutes.

Adjust oven rack to upper-middle position (about 6 inches from heating element) and heat oven to 325°. Pour yogurt mixture over chicken and toss to coat evenly. Arrange chicken pieces, skin side down, on wire rack over a rimmed baking sheet or broiler pan. Bake chicken until instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of chicken registers 125°.

After removing chicken from oven, turn oven to broil and heat 5 minutes. Be sure to leave the oven door ajar throughout the broiling process to avoid the heating element from cycling off. Turn the chicken pieces over (skin side up now) and broil until chicken is lightly charred in spots and instant-read thermometer registers 165° for breasts and 170° for thighs and legs. Remove from the oven, tent loosely with foil and allow to rest for 5 minutes.

For a free excerpt of my book, “A Year of Food,” in which I opine, report, cook, muse and philosophize about everything that passed my lips for an entire year, write to me at: scrout1944@msn.com.