For this edition of #GoJunkFood, the Twitterverse decided that we would take on Hot Wings. And what goes better with friends getting together to watch a game on TV than wings, people? With an orange juice base, freshly ground chipotle chile powder, and Washington State buckwheat honey, I put together a sweet, hot, and sticky concoction that’s a fusion of Southeast, Southwest, and Northwest that’ll get the party started in your mouth!

Chipotle Orange Hot Wings

For the Sauce:

4 Tbs. butter or margarine (I used Smart Balance Light spread)
3 tsp. minced garlic (about 3 large cloves)
1/4 tsp. kosher salt
4 tsp. chipotle chili powder
2 cups orange juice
3 Tbs. honey

In a medium saucepan, melt the butter or margarine over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and salt and cook until the garlic appears to soften a bit (about 3-4 minutes). Add the chipotle chili powder and cook for a few seconds, then add the orange juice. Mix well and bring to a boil.

Reduce the heat to medium and, stirring occasionally, simmer till the sauce reduces to nearly half. This should take about 15-20 minutes.

Add the honey and simmer for an additional 5 minutes.

For the Chicken:

1-1/2 lbs. skinless, boneless chicken breasts
1 cup rice flour
1 tsp. kosher salt
1 tsp. chipotle chile powder

1/2 cup peanut or canola oil for frying

Cut the chicken into 1-inch wide pieces, crossways. Place all the dry ingredients into a one gallon-sized zip-top bag and mix well. Toss the chicken pieces in the dredge, zip the bag closed, and toss until completely coated.

Heat the oil in a large frying pan. With a pair of long tongs, take the chicken pieces out of the bag, one by one, shake off the excess flour, and drop into the hot oil. Don’t crowd the pan – you will probably have to do this step in two batches.

Fry the chicken until lightly golden on both sides. This should take about 5 minutes per side – maybe even a little less. It cooks pretty quickly – since there’s no skin or bones here, you don’t want the meat to dry out. If you’re using real wings, cook a little longer. Lay the fried chicken pieces on a paper towel-lined plate until they’re all cooked.

To Assemble:

Put the cooked chicken in a large bowl, pour the sauce over, and toss till every piece is completely coated. Serve with the traditional celery sticks and blue cheese or ranch dressing on the side for dipping.

*Notes:

This version is “boneless wings”, in that I couldn’t locate any kosher chicken wings (What’re you doing with all those wings, Empire? I used to be able to find bags of wings in my grocer’s freezer!). I cut up boneless, skinless chicken cutlets, so I guess they’re just a tad healthier, and they definitely fry up a lot faster than traditional wings. But whether you use wings or go boneless, the sauce is definitely the key.

Depending on your heat tolerance, this sauce is not painful-burn-your-mouth hot. I was going for a balance of heat and sweet, and really wanted the flavor of the chipotle to shine. If you want to go hotter, add more chili powder, but taste it first.

I used buckwheat honey here because its dark, smoky flavor enhances the smoky chipotle beautifully. If you don’t have buckwheat honey, try to use a darker variety available where you live. If I had wanted to accent the orange juice more, I would have used a lighter orange blossom honey. What can I say – I’ve become a honey freak lately, and I just love the flavor variations between the different types. Experiment! See what’s available in your area and try it all!

Speaking of trying it all, here are the rest of the #GoJunkFood bloggers – see what they’ve cooked up for you, too!

Chris at Blog Well Done
Elle at Elle’s New England Kitchen
Paula at The Dragon’s Kitchen
Heather at He Cooks, She Cooks
Judy at No Fear Entertaining

What’s next? Who knows – but it’ll be tasty!