Buffalo-Style Chicken Wings

Ingredients:

Wings

• 900 g chicken wings, cut in half at the joints, tips removed
• 2 cups of flour
• 0.5 tsp cayenne pepper
• 0.5 tsp fine salt
• Vegetable oil, for deep-frying
• Special equipment: deep fat thermometer

Butter with hot sauce

• 0.5 cup unsalted butter, melted
• 1/4 cup hot sauce (or to taste)
• 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

Blue cheese dip

• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 0.5 cups low-fat cream (10%)
• 2 tbsp sour cream
• 1 tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1/4 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese, such as Maytag (about 80g)
• Celery sticks, for serving
• Carrot sticks, for serving

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 200°C and line one large or two small rimmed baking sheets with foil.
2. In a large heavy-bottomed saucepan, heat oil over medium heat until it reaches 190°C on a deep-fry thermometer.
3. In a large bowl, combine flour, cayenne pepper, and salt. Dredge three wings at a time in the flour mixture and fry until golden brown, 10-12 minutes. Transfer the wings with a slotted spoon to a paper towel-lined plate. Before frying the next batch, bring the oil in the pan to the desired temperature.
4. Combine butter, hot sauce, and lemon juice in a large bowl. Toss the fried wings in the hot sauce mixture and transfer them to the prepared baking sheet.
5. Bake, turning the wings occasionally, until crispy and most of the sauce has been absorbed, about 35 minutes.
6. Blue cheese dipping sauce:
   
   In a medium bowl, combine the mayonnaise, heavy cream, sour cream, lemon juice, salt, Worcestershire sauce, and 1/4 cup blue cheese until smooth. Gently fold in the remaining 1/4 cup cheeses and season with salt and pepper to taste. Use immediately or refrigerate for up to 3 days. Yield: about 2.5 cups.
7. Transfer the wings to a serving platter and serve with blue cheese dressing, celery sticks, and carrots.