the Older Bolder Life Friday Feast: TAGG (Turmeric Ancho Ginger Garlic) Wings

I’ve shared many times before that around our camp, a great wing recipe – whether it’s grilled or roasted to a golden brown crispiness via a hot oven – almost always scores big with my clan.

Here’s a recipe that comes our way via our friend Chef Libby in Austin; she’s been making her TAGG (Turmeric Ancho Ginger Garlic) wings for years now, and from her expert view, they’re better (and easier to get crispy without risking too much char) roasted in the oven under a watchful eye.

Aficionados of ancestral eating understand well the long list of health benefits of turmeric, which needs black pepper to unleash its full potential; we like turmeric even more because of the taste that it brings to the culinary table.

Libby crafted two genius strokes into this recipe. One, the addition of just a bit of ancho chile powder – anchos bring a deep, fruity flavor to the wing game without a lot of heat; too much ancho darkens the final crust a lot – there’s not enough in this recipe to completely cover the golden goodness of the turmeric.

And two, in part to satisfy her Austin-based audience that’s used to savoring a bit of heat in their food down here in Tex Mex country, she adds just a whiff of cayenne to the rub.

You’ll note there’s an optional teaspoon of sugar listed in the ingredients; when Libby developed this recipe, as a professional chef she defaulted to adding a bit of sweet to the rub mixture (also very classically Southern, not necessarily Texan however), though she (and we) prefer to leave it out.

The spritz of citrus at service brightens the flavors even more; classically you might think of lemon with turmeric, but our years in Texas-land have us reaching for the limes.

4 pounds chicken wings (or wing pieces), trimmed, patted dry

1 tbsp black peppercorns
2 tsp ancho chile powder
2 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp (generous) ground turmeric
Optional: 1/4 to 1/2 tsp cayenne
Optional: 1 tsp sugar

2 tbsp avocado oil
3-4 inches of ginger root, peeled, grated (fine)
4 large garlic cloves, grated (fine)

Lime or lemon wedges for serving

Trim the wings if needed, pat dry, set aside in a large bowl.

Grind the peppercorns, ancho chile powder, salt, turmeric, and optional sugar if using in a spice grinder or with a mortar and pestle. Now sprinkle the run over the wings and toss to coat.

Now combine the grated ginger, grated garlic, and oil, then drizzle over the spiced wings, tossing once again to coat. Cover with wrap or pour into a bag to marinate in the fridge for up to overnight, be sure to scrape out all the spice mixture from the bowl.

When ready to cook, spread the wings on a foil-lined baking sheet, along with any remaining spice paste distributed as evenly as you can, and throw into your trusty oven before turning it on.

Now fire the oven to 425, and bake until the wings are beginning to brown and you see a bit of a turmeric stain on the foil, roughly 30-35 minutes. Turn the wings, and bake another 30-40 minutes until the wing skin is crispy and browned.

Pull the wings, artfully place on a platter along with the citrus wedges of your choice, and go to it.

Enjoy.