Vinegar Is Vital On Buffalo Wings

For me, it’s not a Buffalo wing if it doesn’t make you squint—and that’s a ringing endorsement. A formula for crispy, coated, compulsive chicken wings simply can’t exist without vinegar. Any signature fiery red hot sauce inherently has a good amount of acidity in it to cut through the heat, but also the fat, either of the meat or the after a few knobs of butter tossed into the mix to coat the wings as they baste.

The first time I ever truly experienced this occurrence was at Gooski’s, an exemplary dive bar in Pittsburgh, PA (where smoking was still allowed and one of the other patrons happened to be bleeding that night, but I digress) and have forever measured all wings against those since. They were tangy, tasty, and I could only eat them with one-eye open, their smoldering heat rising in vinegary steam.

Of course, for the sake of this article and authenticity, I had to look towards the source: Buffalo, its progenitor. James Roberts, my northern New York ringer, was formerly the chef at the Southern-inspired restaurant Toutant in downtown Buffalo, and knows his wings. What makes him an extra special expert as to what makes a good Buffalo sauce, is he was born-and-raised in Louisiana, home to Crystal Hot Sauce. Now, here's some controversy, in a region where Franks RedHot may reign supreme, with its thicker, more garlicky approach — what may constitute the canon of a traditional wing to a true Buffalonian, has to still have the bright burst of vinegar.

We got into a bit of a back and forth about where the best, most Buffaloaded wings are. Roberts’s hierarchy of Buffalo’s finest wings goes as such: “Nine-Eleven Tavern is OG #1 … Adolf's Old First Ward Tavern is a close second and new reigning champ in my book,” Roberts told me, stressing its assertive use of vinegar. He continued to list off a bunch more: Bar-Bill in East Aurora, Elmo’s in Amherst, Beltline Brewery and Kelly Korners. As for New York City contenders, I countered with Dan & John’s, Mudville and Blondie’s. (I’ve got to make it to Candlelight Wings in Westchester, but it’s high on my list.) The common thread throughout, a pronounced Buffalo sauce with an undeniable acidulous nature.

Everyone has a personal favorite Buffalo wing. I love these video reviews by Elazar Sontag from Bon Appetit, and I’m sure you have your thoughts too, which we’d love to know — send in and/or post your comments on best Buffalo wings @vinegarprofessor. One wing I’ve yet to try is Lori Jayne, which many have told me is a candidate for New York’s new wing. Sam Braverman, chef/owner of Lori Jayne, which started in Brooklyn and now has an outpost in Union Square’s Time Out Market, is similarly a fan of Crystal hot sauce for its ability to give his wings a  pronounced vinegariness. “It’s vinegar forward and has a slight sweetness that balances the tang [of the vinegar] versus the very one note vibe of Tabasco.” Braverman dry brines wings in salt and a house spice mix before frying them at a low temperature to gently cook them through. They get a quick rest and are then chilled in the refrigerator until needed. “When you order wings in the restaurant, they are dropped in a very hot fryer for two to three minutes to heat through and crisp thoroughly.” Only then are they tossed in the Buffalo sauce and cultured butter and a chicken bouillon powder.As if this isn’t enough, Braverman also serves what he calls “Buffalo 2.0,” which is the above plus blue cheese, grana padano cheese, garlic, parsley and lemon juice. “All the things you want to dip/schmear a wing in,” he says.

I asked Alvin "Pepper" Baumer III, the third-generation president and CEO of Crystal Hot Sauce, what the secret to his sauce is. “The better the vinegar,” boasted Baumer, “the more pronounced the taste of the peppers will be — that first ‘bite’ you taste/feel is the vinegar; it sets the palate for the heat that’s about to follow”. Crystal is based on a 120-grain white-distilled vinegar from a company called Louisiana Specialty products.“We’ve been buying from the same supplier for 35+ years!” he says. Beyond the vinegar, Crystal’s ingredients are simple: aged red cayenne peppers, and salt … that’s it. They also have an Extra Hot Wing Sauce if you’re interested, embellished with more heat and spices. But if it were up to me, I’d try Baumer’s smoked buffalo wings recipe where you’ll see for yourself: vinegar is vital for Buffalo wings.