3 chicken wing sauce recipes from chef Rick Lewis

Grace Meat + Three's Rick Lewis showed SauceTV how to take Super Bowl chicken wings to the next level with three sauces: Buffalo, Alabama white sauce and General Wang sauce. 

Alabama White Sauce
Courtesy of Grace Meat + Three’s Rick Lewis
1 quart (enough for 5 lbs. wings)

3 cups mayonnaise
½ cup apple cider vinegar
4 tsp. hot sauce
4 tsp. lemon juice
4 tsp. whole-grain mustard
2 Tbsp. honey
2 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. cayenne
1 tsp. fresh-grated horseradish
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
5 lbs. smoked chicken wings

• In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, vinegar, hot sauce, lemon juice and mustard until combined. Add the honey, garlic powder, cayenne, horseradish, salt and pepper and whisk until thoroughly combined.

• Place the sauce in a squeeze bottle and dress the smoked wings or serve on the side for dipping.

General Wang Sauce
Courtesy of Grace Meat + Three’s Rick Lewis
1 quart (enough for 5 lbs. wings)

1 Tbsp. cornstartch
1 Tbsp. water
1 cup soy sauce
3 Tbsp. sesame oil
2 Tbsp. minced garlic
¼. tsp. Aleppo pepper or crushed red pepper flake
¾ cup rice wine vinegar
¾ cup white wine vinegar
1½ cup brown sugar
6 Tbsp. ground ginger
5 lbs. cooked chicken wings

• In a small bowl, make a slurry by whisking together the cornstarch and water. Set aside.

• In a sauce pot, bring the soy sauce to a boil over high heat. Whisk in the slurry and stir until the soy sauce begins to thicken. Remove the soy sauce to another bowl and set aside.

• Wipe out the sauce pot and return it to the stove over medium-high heat. Add the sesame oil. When warm, saute the garlic and pepper flakes until just toasted, about 1 minute.

• Add the white wine vinegar and rice wine vinegar and stir to deglaze.

• Add the thickened soy sauce and bring to a simmer, then reduce the heat to low.

• Whisk in the brown sugar and ginger.

• To serve, drizzle the sauce over the cooked wings and toss to coat. Serve extra sauce on top or on the side.

Buffalo Sauce
Courtesy of Grace Meat + Three’s Rick Lewis
1 quart (enough for 5 lbs. wings)

3 sticks (24 Tbsp.) butter, divided
¼ tsp. minced garlic
4 cups Crystal hot sauce
1 Tbsp. whole-grain mustard
5 lbs. cooked chicken wings

• In a medium sauce pot, melt 1 tablespoon butter over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and saute 1 to 2 minutes.

• Add the hot sauce and bring to a simmer. Whisk in the mustard.

• Remove from heat and mount in the butter by adding 2 tablespoons at a time, stirring between each addition until the butter and hot sauce emulsify before adding more butter.

• Place the sauce in a large sauce pot and bring to a simmer over medium heat.

• To serve, drizzle the sauce over the cooked wings and toss to coat. Serve extra sauce on top or on the side. 

Catherine Klene is managing editor, digital at Sauce Magazine.