There’s a place in NYC I first went to years ago in 1997. It’s in Greenwich Village and called ‘Down the Hatch’. It’s a real NYC college bar institution aka; dark, grungy, ‘dive bar’ style (the sort I love but this place really does attract a college age clientele so I don’t really go there much anymore when in NYC ~ last time I was there 2 years ago, I felt really old *sigh*) but they still produce the most amazing buffalo wings EVER.
Wings might have gotten a tad more ‘gourmet’ since 1997, but I still adore that; sour, vinegary, spicy, sweet flavour that is ~ the classic American buffalo chicken wing. I’ve always wondered what the heck is in the recipe and after a bit of experimentation, this is my take on buffalo chicken sauce, albeit for a whole chicken. Being never one to like blue cheese all that much, I confess I really do like it when paired with buffalo sauce, so I felt it fitting to try out a creamy mash with a little blue cheese thrown in. The key with this dish in keeping the chicken really moist, is to marinade it over night and keep basting it as it’s cooking.
INGREDIENTS
For the chicken marinade:
- 2 cup apple cider vinegar
8 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons Tabasco (or other hot sauce – aka Crystal etc)
2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
½ teaspoon ground cloves
2 teaspoons garlic powder
2 teaspoons smoked paprika
4 teaspoons chipotle sauce
1 long red chilli, finely sliced
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Extra:
- 1 free-range (organic if possible) chicken (enough for 4 people)
2 knobs butter, softened
For the blue cheese mash:
- 6 large floury potatoes, peeled and cut into large chunks
30g good-quality blue cheese
Splash milk
2 knobs butter
1 heaped tablespoon light sour cream
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
METHOD
To prepare the chicken:
- Add all the marinade ingredients into a bowl or jug and whisk together well.
- Loosen skin from chicken breasts using your fingers and smear softened butter all over breast meat under the skin.
- Pierce chicken breasts and legs with a small, sharp knife a few times all over. Place chicken into a roasting tray and cover with marinade. Spoon marinade liberally all over the chicken then turn chicken upside down – aka breast down, cover tray with cling wrap and marinade in fridge overnight.
- Heat oven to 180˚c/350˚f. Roast chicken for 1 – 1.5 hours (depending on size of chicken) until cooked through – test by piercing thigh to see if juices run clear). Whilst chicken is roasting baste it with the sauce often. Once cooked through, remove and allow to rest retaining the cooking juices in the pan.
To make the blue cheese mash:
- Place potatoes in a large pot of salted water, bring to the boil over high heat and cook until soft (about 30 – 40 mins) – be sure that the potatoes are well cooked through as if they have any bite in the centre you’ll never get them really creamy and smooth.
- Drain potatoes and place back into the empty cooking pot, mash with a potatoe masher then pass through a potato ricer or tamil sieve to achieve a very smooth texture. Return the pot to a low heat on the stove top, add the milk, butter, sour cream and whip thoroughly with a whisk or wooden spoon. Crumble in the blue cheese and stir until melted, season to taste with a little salt (keep in mind the blue cheese will be quite salty) and lots of black pepper.
- Serve chicken with some of the sauce from the roasting pan (skim off excess oil) and with the hot potato mash.
