Sweet tropical heat is what makes the West Indies-style wings at San Jose’s District bar and restaurant so popular. After the wings emerge from the fryer, chef Bob Cina tosses them in a complex spice rub accented with orange zest, and serves them with a creamy mango-habañero sauce on the side. But at home, he gets a similar result without any frying. Here’s how:
District Spiced Chicken Wings with Spicy Mango-Tamarind Dipping Sauce
Serves 10 to 15 as an appetizer
Note: The dipping sauce recipe below makes restaurant-sized quantities. Feel free to cut the recipe down to size.
Brine:
¼ cup distilled white vinegar
1 cup water
2 bay leaves
1 teaspoon dried chile flakes
6 black peppercorns
½ cup salt
1 tablespoon sugar
6 pounds chicken wings
1 bunch scallions, green part only, finely sliced
Wing spice mix:
½ teaspoon ground star anise
½ teaspoon ground allspice
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon ancho chile powder
1 teaspoon red chile powder
1 teaspoon ground ginger
2 teaspoons fresh orange zest
3 tablespoons brown sugar
3 tablespoons sea salt
Directions:
- In a saucepan, bring the brine ingredients — the vinegar, water, herbs, spices, salt and 1 tablespoon sugar — to a simmer. Simmer for 5 minutes, until sugar and salt dissolve.
- In a container large enough to hold the wings and brine, add 3 cups cold water and 3 cups ice cubes. Add the vinegar mixture to the iced water and let sit until completely cool. Add wings, making sure they’re submerged and let brine in refrigerator for 18 to 24 hours.
- Remove wings from brine and pat dry with paper towels.
- Heat oven to 300 degrees. Place a rack inside a rimmed sheet pan.
- In a mixing bowl, combine all the spice mix ingredients with a large spoon, grinding everything together to incorporate the oils from the orange zest into the rest. Remove 1 tablespoon of the wing spice to use for making the dipping sauce (see recipe below). Make the dipping sauce, as well.
- Place wings on the prepared sheet pan and bake for 15 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool to room temperature. Turn oven up to 425 degrees.
- Toss the cooled wings in the wing spice mixture, making sure they’re coated generously. Return to the rack in the sheet pan and bake for 15 to 18 minutes more. (If you prefer fried wings, you can fry them after the first round of baking and cooling, but wait until after they’re fried to toss them in the wing spice.)
- To serve, toss wings with sliced scallions and more salt if desired. Serve with spicy mango tamarind dipping sauce.
Spicy Tamarind-Mango Yogurt Dipping Sauce
2 tablespoons oil
1 tablespoon garlic, sliced
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, minced
2 tablespoons white onion or the white parts of scallions, diced
1 to 3 habañero peppers, seeded and sliced
1 tablespoon reserved Wing Spice
8 ounces brown sugar
½ cup dark or spiced rum
½ cup rice vinegar
½ cup orange juice (no pulp)
1 tablespoon sea salt
4 ounces tamarind paste
4 ounces frozen mango chunks
1 to 2 cups Greek yogurt
Directions:
- Heat a medium-size sauce pot over medium-high heat. Add oil and cook garlic, ginger, onion and habañero until softened and just lightly browned. Stir in spice mix and sugar and cook for 2 minutes. Add rum, vinegar and orange juice. Bring to a boil and let liquid reduce by half. Add salt, tamarind paste and mango and bring back to a simmer for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and cool slightly.
- Puree sauce in a blender, being careful to avoid hot splatters. Cool sauce to room temperature, then combine equal parts sauce and Greek yogurt.
— Courtesy executive chef Bob Cina, District restaurant, San Jose and San Francisco
