Buffalo Chicken Wing…Hummus?

From the mind of Bob Heazlit

In our hometown of Cleveland, the local newspaper ran a survey asking for the best Super Bowl takeout in town.  In retrospect the results shouldn’t have surprised me, but, they kinda did. The top 5 vote getters were all wings!  I suspected maybe a local pizza chain’s perfect pie would make the list, or a secret recipe chili, but noooo, the top takeout is that tangy leftover chicken creation from our Lake Erie neighbor: The Buffalo Wing.

I love wings.  I also love getting all mad scientist in the kitchen to come up with dishes that have some health benefits, while not feeling like you’re sacrificing flavor, or the recreation of stuffing your face on Super Bowl Sunday.

I now present to you a creation of my own design:

Buffalo Chicken Wing Hummus

I did my best to get beyond the idea of tossing some hot sauce on it and proclaiming its “Buffalo-ness” or its “Chicken-ness”.  I felt to really have a chance at being okay passing on the wings, it had to have what makes a Buffalo Wing a Buffalo Wing: Chicken, Heat, and Crunch.

It starts with Chicken Chickpeas?  Yes.  Dry Chickpeas + Chicken Stock soak = Chicken Chickpeas.  This is an overnight project, so this recipe will take a little advance planning.  But once you have tender chicken-infused garbanzos, the rest happens quickly.

Start with 1 ½ cups of dry chickpeas. Rinse with water and drain. Put the now squeaky clean beans in a large pot along with 4 cups of chicken stock and bring to a boil.  Once boiling, cover the pot, remove it from the burner, and allow it to fully cool then place it in the fridge overnight.  

Now, go binge watch some Fuller House on Netflix for the next 8 hours while those beans soak up that all that chicken goodness.  Or go to sleep. Whichever.

PRO TIP:  If you have an InstaPot or other pressure cooker and you need beans like NOW.  Same bean to broth ratio.  Manual.  High Pressure.  55 minutes.  Natural Release.  GO!  Once that cycle is over, allow the beans to cool in the broth then place in the fridge to get cold.  That reduces bean time to about 5 episodes of Fuller House.

Now, once those beans are tender they are ready to become Buffalo Chicken Wing Hummus!

Here’s what else you’ll need.

• A blender or food processor
• ¼ cup lime juice
• ½ cup tahini
• 4 tbsp EVOO (that’s extra virgin olive oil)
• ⅓ cup of your favorite hot or wing sauce (or more if you really want it HOT!)

A NOTE ON THE SAUCE:  If you choose wing sauce, there are some on the market that contain added fats, oils, or a butter-like substance which will add calories and fat that you really don’t need to aid the deliciousness of this recipe.   Plain ‘ol hot sauce is just fine.  Franks, Tabasco, Louisiana, this I leave up to you!  I will admit that, for the recipe in the picture i used Franks Red Hot Buffalo Wing Sauce.  Its that classic hot wing flavor but 0 calories per tbsp and no added fats or sugars.

• 4 cloves of garlic
• 2 tsp cumin
• Salt and pepper to taste
• French fried onions
• Crumbled bleu cheese
• Celery hearts

First into the blender is the tahini and the lime juice.  Blend on high until you have a creamy thick paste.  Next drain the beans.  But save the stock and set aside.  Add the beans, a ¼ cup of the stock,  and all other ingredients to the blender except the french fried onions, bleu cheese and celery.  As you blend, if you find the consistency of the hummus too thick, continue to add stock back in an ounce at a time until you get to your personal desired creaminess.  Blend on the highest of the highs. Blend, blend, blend.  Don’t be shy about it, the longer you blend the creamier the hummus becomes.  Occasionally stop the blender and scrape down the sides.  This is a good time to taste for salt pepper and hot sauce levels. A little too subtle for you, keep pouring on the hot sauce.

I usually end up using about ½ cup of hot sauce total. ⅓ cup is a good place to start.  You can always add hot sauce, once its in though, it’s in.  I would warn you not to get too crazy.   You’ll really be happy that you didn’t drown out the chicken notes with hot sauce.  You can always add more to the surface of the hummus later.

 Now, once you’ve achieved your desired levels of heat and creamy, spoon the hummus into a serving dish.  Sprinkle the entire surface with a layer of fried onions. Think of it as the crispy outer skin of the wing. Now, make a little mound of bleu cheese crumbles in an aesthetically pleasing part of your bowl, unless you’re 100%  sure all your company is in love with the idea of stinky cheese.  If so go crazy!  If not, having the bleu cheese in a designated zone allows your guests to dip around it.  Finally, drizzle some hot sauce over the whole thing and serve with cut celery.  Now Enjoy!  And I do mean Enjoy.  It’s a great way to keep from over indulging on the real wings, and perhaps even keep you from diving head first into the bathtub of Buffalo Chicken Cheese Dip.

Whoever you’re rooting for, i’m pretty sure you’ll find this recipe a winner this Sunday.  Me?  I don’t have a Dawg in the fight.  I’m a Browns fan….I’ve never had a dawg in the fight.

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