Chicken Wings marinated in whiskey BBQ sauce! Manners it is!

Preparations:

Buy your chicken wings from the (artisan) poultry shop, not the supermarket. We’re going for flavor, and that starts with quality ingredients! Go for pure and real! Take the chicken wings out of the fridge well before grilling. They should not be cold when they hit the grill.

After making the homemade barbecue sauce, use it to marinate your chicken wings for 1.5 to 2 hours in the fridge. Keep this in mind when planning your BBQ session. You can also prepare the sauce and marinate the chicken wings earlier.

What to do with your KLAUWE:

Fire up your KLAUWE and bring the temperature to at least 150 degrees Celsius.

For this dish, we’ll be grilling both directly and indirectly, so place the coals on one side of the fire basket. You can also push the coals to one side once they are burning.

When lighting your KLAUWE, you need more oxygen initially, so open the air vents at the front and back completely. (After lighting the fire, close the rear vent completely.) The front vent stays open during lighting and is where you fine-tune the temperature of your KLAUWE.

If the fire needs a heat boost, briefly open the rear vent. Keep the vent in the lid half open. (This depends on how the temperature behaves. More air means more fire, which means a higher temperature, and vice versa. Once the fire is burning, control it with the front vent.)

Leave the lid off the KLAUWE and let the fire do its job.

Moving on to your ingredients:

Finely chop the onion and the red chili (discard the seeds unless you like it very hot). Peel and finely chop or press the garlic cloves.

Back to your KLAUWE:

When the coals are hot and the highest flames have died down, move the fire basket with the lifting hook (and barbecue gloves) to the third level (from the top). We’ll make the barbecue sauce first, so place the coals on one side of the fire basket.

Place the grill grate on the second level (from the top). Put the lid on your KLAUWE. (We’re grilling without a water ring and without a water tray.)

Keep the air vents at the front and back somewhat open. Watch where the temperature goes. The goal is around 150 degrees Celsius. If the temperature exceeds this range, adjust the air vents. Close the rear vent completely. If the temperature continues to rise, close the front vent slightly. Eventually, you can fine-tune the temperature with the front vent. If the temperature is too low, open the front vent more (and possibly the rear vent as well). If the temperature is too high, close the front vent slightly.

Take your time with this. The temperature needs to stabilize. Do this, of course, with a suitable drink in hand.

And then?:

When the temperature is stable, remove the lid from your KLAUWE and place the cast iron pan on the grill grate above the fire (direct grilling).

Add a splash of olive oil (or vegetable oil) to the pan and let it heat up.

Add the onion and garlic and sauté until they are translucent.

Then add the ketchup, water, cumin, mustard, brown sugar, red chili (or Tabasco), whiskey, and Worcestershire sauce.

Let this mixture simmer slowly until you have a beautiful, glossy sauce. This takes about 20 minutes. (If the sauce is boiling too hard, simply move the pan to the indirect side of the grill grate.)

Once the sauce is ready, let it cool. Use the sauce to marinate the chicken wings. Brush the chicken wings with your homemade whiskey barbecue sauce. Use a brush or simply dip them. All the chicken wings should be covered with a thin layer of sauce.

Place the dish with the marinated chicken wings in the fridge. Let them sit for about 1.5 to 2 hours. Meanwhile, you can prepare another dish or continue telling tall tales to your friends.

Don’t forget to soak a good handful of wood chips in water. We prefer half whiskey wood chips and half hickory wood chips. Let them soak.

After the rest:

Once the chicken wings are infused with the whiskey barbecue sauce, it’s time to start grilling them slowly.

The temperature for this phase should be lower, around 100 to 120 degrees Celsius. To reduce the temperature from 150 degrees to 100-120 degrees, simply close a few oxygen vents on your KLAUWE. (How many and how long depends on practice.)

Move the fire basket down to level 5. The grill grate should be on level 2 (from the top).

Place the marinated chicken wings on the grill grate on the side without coals (indirect grilling). This way, your dish cooks slowly without burning the marinade.

Turn the chicken wings regularly. After 5 minutes, add a handful of wood chips directly to the fire. Open the rear air vent for easier access. The wings will now get an even better barbecue flavor.

The final stage:

After 25 minutes, remove the grill grate with the chicken wings from your KLAUWE. Move the fire basket with the lifting hook to level 3. Place the grill grate with the chicken wings back into your KLAUWE at level 2.

We’re going to finish the chicken wings directly over the coals (direct grilling).

Brush the chicken wings with more whiskey barbecue sauce, place them on the grate, and turn them over. The direct heat will caramelize the marinade, adding more flavor and a beautiful color.

When the wings are golden brown on both sides, they are ready to be removed from your KLAUWE and served.

The finishing touch:

Serve the chicken wings as they are, ready to eat with your hands. Be careful not to burn your mouth! Optionally, you can add some cold whiskey barbecue sauce, but we think extra sauces and dressings are unnecessary. Just grab and enjoy.

Bon appétit, and remember: Eat with your KLAUWE and Impress Your Friends!