Recipe - Grilled Chicken Wings with Shishito Peppers

That’s right. You guessed it: another grilling recipe. I can’t help it; it's the summer time. That means just about everything I eat is fresh and cold, or hot off the grill. Upon a recent visit to my local grocer, I realized I’d made the classic mistake of going to the store immediately after a grueling workout. If you’ve ever done this, you know what it means—you buy literally everything that sounds good, leaving you with a bunch of random items that might not seem like they go together. This is how I ended up purchasing shishito peppers for the first time in my life, without a single clue how to prepare them.
 
Luckily, post-workout brain thought chicken was also a good idea, and, ya know, chicken and peppers seems pretty self-explanatory, right? I wasn’t brave enough to make them right away, so this recipe involves a little marinating.
 
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Recipe inspired by Bon Appétit
 
Grilled Chicken Wings with Shishito Peppers
 
Ingredients: Vinaigrette


Note: You can make the vinaigrette up to 1 week ahead. Just cover and chill, and shake/mix well before using.
 

• 1 large shallot, finely chopped
• 1 cup fresh lime juice
• Kosher salt, freshly ground pepper
• ½ cup toasted sesame oil
• ½ cup vegetable oil
• ¼ cup soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons honey or maple syrup

Ingredients: Chicken


Note: You’ll be marinating the chicken in the vinaigrette for at least an hour or two. Plan accordingly.
 

• 3 lbs chicken wings, flats, and drumettes, whatevs.
• Kosher salt, freshly ground pepper
• A handful (1½ cups?) shishito peppers
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 red jalapeño or Fresno chile, thinly sliced
• 1½ cups fresh herbs (I used thai basil, cilantro, and a touch of orange zest. Note that thai basil is not the same as sweet basil, but you could use that too.)

The Nitty Gritty: Vinaigrette

1. Combine shallot and lime juice in a large jar or medium bowl; season with salt and pepper and let sit 10 minutes.
2. Add sesame oil, vegetable oil, soy sauce, and honey to shallot mixture; cover and shake (or whisk) to combine. Season sesame-lime vinaigrette with salt and pepper.?

The Nitty Gritty: Chicken

1. Spice up the chicken wings with your salt and black pepper, place in a large resealable plastic bag, and add 1 cup of vinaigrette. Seal the bag and turn to coat; chill for at least 2 hours and up to a day. I like to do steps like these the night before I plan to cook and just leave whatever meat marinating overnight.
2. Prepare a grill for medium heat. Grill chicken, turning occasionally, until wings are evenly charred and cooked through, 8–10 minutes if separated, 12–15 minutes if left whole. Transfer to a platter.?
3. Meanwhile, toss the shishito peppers and oil in a medium bowl and season with salt and black pepper.
4. Grill the peppers, turning occasionally, until charred in spots and blistered, about 3 minutes. Transfer to platter with wings.
5. Scatter your sliced jalapeño and herbs over wings and shishito peppers.
6. Drizzle with ¼ cup vinaigrette and serve.

Holy whoa, those peppers were amazing. You can serve this up as-is, alongside a salad or veggie stir fry, or with a plan ol’ bowl of white rice. Also, that vinaigrette is money. Keep the recipe and use it on everything. (You’ll thank me later.)
 
Brought to you by our resident copywriter and culinarian, Justine Kurtz