This dish was inspired by buffalo wings but uses Portuguese piri-piri, a chili sauce that is available in larger supermarkets or online, and Cabrales, an artisanal blue cheese from Asturias, Spain. Fresh fennel wedges replace celery sticks.
Piri-Piri chicken drumsticks with blue cheese sauce
Recipe notes
- Advanced Preparation 4 to 8 hours to marinate the drumsticks
- Yield: Makes 4 to 6 servings
- Method: Indirect roasting
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons smoked paprika
- 2 teaspoons coarse salt (kosher or sea)
- 1 <>/<> teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 <>/<> teaspoons dried mustard
- 1 <>/<> teaspoons ground fennel seeds
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 12 fleshy chicken thighs
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Vegetable oil to grease the grill
- 4 tablespoons (<>/<> stick) butter
- 1 garlic clove, peeled and chopped
- 1/2 cup Portuguese piri-piri sauce, preferably Nando’s, or your favorite hot sauce
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 2 teaspoons honey or more to taste
- 1 large fennel bulb, preferably with feathery leaves still attached, to serve
- Blue cheese sauce
Recipe steps
Step 1: Combine paprika, salt, cumin, mustard, fennel seed and black pepper in a small bowl. Lightly cover the drumsticks with olive oil and place them in a large zippered plastic bag. Sprinkle the spice mixture over the drumsticks, turning with your hands to cover them evenly. Refrigerate for 4 to 8 hours.
Step 2: When ready to cook, place the grill for indirect roasting and heat over medium-high heat. Brush or scrape the grill grill and lubricate it thoroughly. Place the drumsticks, rounded side up, on the rack. Roast until well cooked, about 45 minutes, turning with tweezers as needed. To check cooking, insert the probe of an instant-read thermometer into the thickest part of the toothpick, parallel to the bone (but without touching it). The temperature should be 170 degrees.
Step 3: Meanwhile, make the frosting: Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Add the garlic and cook for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the piri-piri sauce, lemon juice and honey and simmer. Stay warm.
Step 4: Trim the fennel bulb, reserving the stems. Cut the bulb in half lengthwise. Bonel, then cut the fennel lengthwise into <>/<>-inch pieces. Finely chop some of the feather leaves for the blue cheese sauce and garnish.
Step 5: When the drumsticks are almost ready, brush them on all sides with the frosting. (Beat the frosting again if necessary.) Continue roasting for another 5 to 10 minutes.
Step 6: Place the drumsticks on a tray with the fennel and chopped fennel leaves. Serve with the blue cheese sauce.
Gastronomic family: Chicken