Drunk in Rub: Whiskey-brined Smoked Chicken Wings
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Note: This recipe was part of a Beyonce-themed dinner party – see the entire menu here.
The punny name came before the recipe for this Beyonce-themed “We Like to Party” first course. Drunk in Rub was the 2nd menu item I thought of, then reversed engineered a recipe based on the name. I knew it needed liquor, and I knew it needed a rub. I decided to add whiskey to my regular brine recipe, because I had it on hand. You can experiment with other types of alcohol, but the whiskey-lemon combination worked out well. For the rub, I knew I wanted a crunchy element. While I was wandering around the Korean market (yay, Zion!), I passed by honey powder, which I had never seen before and had no idea how it was used. So, naturally, I bought it. It was exactly the little bit of crunchy sweetness I wanted to add to these wings. If you can’t find honey powder, you can try a coarse turbinado sugar. The key is that it should be a coarse sweet thing, not fine like regular granulated sugar.
Wiiiiings!!
You’ll need sea salt, whiskey, chicken wings, brown sugar, lemons, garlic and black pepper.
Combine the ingredients for the brine in either a couple of large gallon-sized resealable bags, or in a container large enough to fit the chicken + an additional 8 cups of water.
Using a stovetop smoker, smoke over medium-low heat using apple wood cips (or your favorite light fruit wood) for one hour.
After smoking, let rest at room temp for about an hour. You can also keep these chilled for up to 3 days. Yay for do-ahead dinner party food!
Deep fry at 450F for 8-10 minutes, until golden and crispy. Drain on paper towels and immediately season with Slap Ya Mama and dehydrated honey powder.
Photo by Mikee Catacutan
Serve immediately!
Photo by Chantal Pasag
- 1 cup whiskey
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup coarse sea salt
- 2 tbsp whole black peppercorns
- 6 garlic cloves, crushed
- 2 lemons, 1/4" slices
- 30-40 wings (all flats)
- 2 tbsp apple wood chips
- peanut oil
- Slap Ya Mama Cajun Seasoning Hot Blend
- dehydrated honey powder(can substitute coarse turbinado sugar)
- Combine brown sugar, sea salt and whiskey in a large container large enough to contain all of the chicken and 8 cups of water. Alternately, you can split the ingredients evenly between two large gallon resealable bags (which is what I prefer). Add in 1 cup of hot water to dissolve the sea salt and brown sugar. Once dissolved, add in peppercorns, crushed garlic, lemon slices and chicken wings. Add 8 cups of cold water. Refrigerate and let brine for at least one hour, and up to 6. Any longer than 6 hours and your wings may get too salty from the brine.
- Rinse chicken and discard brine. Pat chicken dry with paper towels. Using a stovetop smoker (if you're feeling DIY'ish, you can make your own stovetop smoker! Directions here.)
- Smoke over medium-low heat using apple wood chips (or your favorite light fruit wood) for 1 hour. Let rest and cool to room temperature at least one hour, or keep refrigerated up to 3 days.
- Heat about 3" of peanut oil in a large pot or a deep fryer to 450F. Fry at until skin is golden and crispy, about 8-10 minutes.
- Place on paper towels to drain and immediately season with a light sprinkle of Slap Ya Mama (or your favorite spicy seasoning blend) and honey powder (or a coarse sugar, like turbinado). Enjoy immediately!
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