Old Bay Crispy Wings

Mention Old Bay and anyone will know what part of the country you call home. The big game day is over, but Old Bay Crispy Wings can be had anytime your heart desires! To be honest, I’ve made wings plenty of times, but I saw a recipe for crispy wings on my Cooks Illustrated app and it spawned my curiosity to the method used. There was a secret ingredient used that resulted in that crispy effect, but there is science behind it! That in itself is pretty cool.What is the secret ingredient, you ask? Baking powder! I’ll try to paraphrase the science described by Cooks Illustrated. Baking powder is made up of an acid and an alkali and acts as a salt. The moisture is drawn to the surface of the skin by the salt, where it evaporates. In their recipe for Oven-Fried Chicken Wings, they added table salt along with the baking powder which helps this effect. Proteins within the skin are broken down with the help of the acid. The browning process is accelerated by the alkali which allows the skin to crisp at a faster rate.  Got all that? Since the Old Bay seasoning contains salt, I did not add the table salt recommended in their recipe.

The process is quite simple, actually. In a gallon-sized Ziploc bag, mix the Old Bay and baking powder. Dry the chicken wing pieces with paper towels and place in the plastic bag. Securely seal and toss to thoroughly coat.

Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil and place the wire rack on top. Spray the rack with non-stick spray or brush oil (olive/avocado) to coat. Arrange chicken wings on rack so they don’t touch and place in a 250 F preheated oven on a lower middle rack for 30 minutes.

After the first 30 minutes, increase heat to 425 F and relocate pan to the top middle rack. ( I took the wings out of the oven to take a picture of what they looked like at this point. You can compare them to the finished product shown below.) After 20 minutes, rotate the pan 180 degrees.

After rotating the pan, set timer for 15-20 minutes to finish. The wings should be golden and crispy with an internal temperature of 165 degrees, minimum. Remove from the oven and let them rest for about 5 minutes.

Remove these Old Bay Crispy Wings to a bowl or platter to toss with your desired hot sauce or allow individuals to sauce them up as they wish. My choice was the Limited Edition Old Bay Hot Sauce. Obtaining this was a matter of being aware of its release date and continuing to stalk their page all morning awaiting for them change their “coming soon” announcement. At 11 A.M., it happened and the rush was on with the site crashing while making multiple attempts to place my order. After a futile battle, I was able to finalize my purchase. The sauce was gone in less than an hour’s time. Thank goodness I’m retired. Truth be known, I made sure my working family members had a bottle to call their own. One was shipped to my son in Colorado for a little reminder of home.  Fortunately, it will be available in stores soon once they revamp their supply.Taste tests conducted in the house have given it rave reviews.