Hey, Karen!

[Jenise]

A long while ago you posted a recipe for roast chicken marinated in Tabasco sauce. Shortly afterward I ordered some chicken wings in a chic Asian fusion restaurant and unmistakably, because you had put the idea in my head, I recognized the telltale taste of Tabasco, a flavor I've never been crazy about (I don't keep it on hand). In fact, I'm just not one to sprinkle manufactured sauces on food--if I want that kind of flavor in the food, I tend to put it in with scratch ingredients. But I loved that explosion of sharp hot peppery vinegary tang on the chicken, and if it all comes in one little bottle, why not?

I've been playing with the concept ever since, each time increasing the amount of Tabasco and tending toward wings vs. whole chicken marinades. I didn't want to just taste a hint of Tabasco, I wanted to heat it up almost to the point of wincing. Well, yesterday I had a dozen good Rosie Range Hen wings, and this time I didn't hold back--I just dumped the whole bottle in (to the ziploc bag I used for marinating), along with a little buttermilk for thickening. I then oven-roasted them. Major yum!

Thanks for idea, wouldn't have gotten there without you.

Love that flavor. If I have the buttermilk on hand, I will always marinate my cut up chicken in it and a generous dose of Tabasco. After marinating all day, I drain and prepare whatever recipe I am doing. Usually oven frying, or grilling with a bbq sauce finish. Major yum!
I'm happy to have been your inspiration.

Jenise,

Use Frank's Lousiana Hot Sauce instead of Tabasco, and deep-fry instead of oven-roasting, and you've got the original Buffalo Wings. I like your oven-roasting idea better. Paul Prudhomme sells a Tabasco-style hot sauce that I'm fond of. It gets much of its heat and flavor from habaneros, and it doesn't have the oak cast to it that Tabasco does--more pure chile flavor. Try it out if you get a chance.

-Paul W.