America's Best Hot Wings

thepostgame ^ | November 29, 2011 | Ryan Glasspiegel

[JoeProBono]

Buffalo wings are such an ingrained part of American culture that, if you didn't already know, you'd assume that their origin dates back further than to 1964, when Teressa Bellissimo prepared the first batch for a voracious group of her son's friends in the kitchen of Anchor Bar in Buffalo, N.Y.

It's hard to imagine life without such a culinary creation that's so versatile that it can be created in hundreds of styles, served boneless or bone-in, taste great with dozens of dips, and served as either an appetizer or a meal. Wings are now on the menu at virtually every bar that serves food, at pizza chains, and even at upscale restaurants. Just 47 years after being introduced to the world, most Americans have several wing options just a phone call away....

[WhyisaTexasgirlinPA]

Good description - I agree - california pizza is something obammy would order- arugula on pizza just sounds like it should be outlawed.

[who knows what evil?]

arugula on pizza just sounds like it should be outlawed.

That's just wrong...sounds like something that should be served in a gay bar.

[Dr. Sivana]

I have had some great food while living in the northeast but come on, truly you don’t believe people think of New England when claiming where the best cooks in the country live do you?

Okay, since you understand the pizza thing, I know you are just fine. Regarding Yoo-Hoo and Moxie, I was just having fun. No one tries to improve them, it's like remaking a bad movie. Moxie is important because it is so very ancient. Yoo-Hoo was actually hawked by real live (baseball) Yankees. It is skim milk with too much syrup or something in it. The New York Rheingold is also long gone, with the original formula lost. I haven't tried Shiner, but the face of Texan beer is Lone Star. That's a hard problem to shake. By the way, regarding soft drinks, if I were a Texan I'd say "We don't have to improve on anybody's sodas/pops. Dr. Pepper predates all of the ones that any one would want to drink (Moxie is older), and the original bottler still doesn't use corn syrup.

Now you used the term Yankee and Northeast before, and then changed it to New England. NYC is definitely northeast, and no one would argue with the fact that many of "best cooks in the country" are there (including Fritz Brenner). But when we are talking about chili, etc. This is not so much best cook area as it is "something special" that encompasses more than pure cooking prowess. Of course, it is easier to find exceptional seafood in Boston than in El Paso, just as one can get an eye-melting steak more easily in Dallas than in Portland, Maine.

I focus on New England, as it is what I know best. I could also understand not wanting to have a single standout restaurant in NYC representing a region.

Here's the deal with CT. CT is filled with Brits, Poles, Micks and Krauts (I am all four so I can use the nicknames). There are also a lot of Italians. It didn't take long to figure out that the Italians (I have no Italian blood) cooked better than these other groups. Italian cheeses, Italian cold cuts, Italian breads, Italian pasta, pizza derived from Italy but perfected in New Haven, Italian ices, came to dominate the local taste. My German-Irish father required my British-Polish mother to learn how to make a proper lasagna, and it became her signature dish. Friday night was pizza night (or sometimes fried dough night, with sauce, NOT powdered sugar).

Then, we move to Illinois, which had a different thing going on. Just as many Italians, but the dominant Swede population never picked up on the fact that Italians have a vastly superior cuisine (Herring as a staple ain't gonna cut it.), and the Italians got marginalized before they could bring out their best. At least I can go to Chicago for a New Haven pizza.

So, the secret of the northeast is that we are dotted with prominent, empty lovely white 300 year old protestant churches and not so empty prep schools. Underneath that British veneer is an entire ethnic subculture that is exceptional in its cuisine, as long as it stays in its place.

I should also mention that Louie's Lunch is a serious claimant to first hamburger, and CT also is one of the reputed birth places of the grinder/submarine sandwich (all claimants to the sub are in the NE). Subway, of CT is a poor representative of the species, I am afraid.

So, people might not think of New England when they think of great homespun cuisine, but it is probably better than they think. For the most part, people don't think of Texas either, even though New Orleans is not far away.

[WhyisaTexasgirlinPA]

My Father was from Connecticut and I'm a pretty good mix of Eastern European and Scottish/American Mutt anchestry, so I know what you mean about the various groups in the NorthEast.

What is Moxie? You mentioned it but is it a soft drink or something more like yoohoo? I have never heard of it before. And I am laughing at you thinking Lone Star beer is the face of Texas. It is considered very low cost swill here - something you would find bums on the street drinking, not even considered in the cheaper beer variety - more like a joke beer. Coors or Budweiser is higher on the food chain than Lone Star here. lol Shiner is good - locally brewed and quickly spreading into other States - if you have a chance try it. I love trying regional beers.

And you hit on another thing done well in that area - grinders/subs - whatever one wants to call them - very well done up in the Jersey/PA area too

[WhyisaTexasgirlinPA]

Keep in mind that Texas is so huge it has regional specialties - Central Texas has a lot of german/czech influence and makes great sausage and koloches (meat or fruit filled pastry for breakfast, sort of like a donut) - North and west Texas have great bbq but I haven’t really found any I like in Houston - small mexican joints can be found everywhere though -

[cornfedcowboy]

Never heard of Crystal. Will give it a try.

[cornfedcowboy]

One of the best wings I have ever had is at Jethro’s in Des Moines,Ia. Their secret?............they smoke the wings a little before they fry them. Not really a traditional buffalo wing but still amazing.

[Dr. Sivana]

And I am laughing at you thinking Lone Star beer is the face of Texas. It is considered very low cost swill here - something you would find bums on the street drinking, not even considered in the cheaper beer variety - more like a joke beer.

I called it the "Face of Texas" because if you ask someone in Illinois, Virginia or Connecticut ... NAME A TEXAS BEER, 8 out of 10 name Lone Star. One will say Pearl, and one will say something else that may or may not be a Texan beer.

Lone Star has made its way to many other states. I have seen Shiner, too, but didn't know it was Texan. Actually I like Peroni, tastes kind of like Heineken used to. And of course it goes great with an Italian sausage and pepper grinder with sauce and parmesan ... mmm.

Lone Star also had some famous commercials with a beer swilling armadillo.



Moxie was originally marketed (like Coke) as a health elixir. They even had a serious looking bloke on the packaging recommending it with a sinister finger of the "Uncle Sam Wants You" variety. In CT, it is found mostly in the east. It is sort of like Licorice soda and Sarsparilla squared. They have played with the sugar content over the years, and took out some of the medicinal stuff that was probably of marginal value anyway. In its time it was a very big deal, and proud of its strong flavor. The word "moxie" comes from the drink... NOT the other way around.

It is now popping up in an "energy drink" formulation, as all the other legacy third tiers sodas seem to be.

For instance, when Jolt came out in 1985, with that wonderful slogan: "All the Sugar, Twice the Caffeine" they were way ahead of their time. Ten years ahead on the caffeine boon, and more than 20 on the corn syrup backlash. There was one problem. It tasted like swill. Eventually they too went to corn syrup, and then into avant garde fruit flavors to compete with the Snapples and Clearly Canadian drinks dominating the market. It was such a great idea, great packaging, nice product placement in Jurassic Park, but just awful soda.

[Dr. Sivana]

Just so you know what you are looking for:

[thecodont]

I’m enjoying some Moxie right now!

[WhyisaTexasgirlinPA]

I asked my husband if he had ever heard of Moxie and basically he explained it and said it tasted horrible! lol Your word, "swill", is a great description according to him.

I'm sure some who have never been to Texas think of "Lone Star Beer" but it is just funny to us because that and Pearl are really cheap and nasty and I don't know anyone who actually drinks it.

[COBOL2Java]

None of those locations are near me, so I'll stick with Cluck-U...

Tried their "911" wings once. Could only finish one. Paid for it the next day...

[COBOL2Java]

Crystal is my absolute favorite. I buy it by the 32 oz size...

...and the reason I do that is because the 1 gallon's not available in my store!

[txhurl]

read again later bump

[aruanan]

Well, I got up at 4AM to start my chicken wing recipe above for after church meal. It took about 3 hours just to get things ready for the oven and I forgot the brown sugar!!! We’ll see. I guess I’ll have to let it bake for an hour and a half and then take it along and finish baking it at church. Merry Christmas.