Wings O' Flavor

-KingT's Wing Fling

The location of 3109 N. Halsted has been a royal pain in the rear end to its renters. I cant recall a food joint that has lasted longer than three years in the space it is at behind CVS and next door to a Domino's pizza at the corner of Clark and Halsted. Maybe its because the last few renters were all Mexican taco joints but more likely is the fact that none of them were any good. When I saw the last taco place had closed down I was almost positive we would see another one move in. Little did I know that the Lakeview/Lincoln Park Northside neighborhoods would be getting a new wings only spot, along with regular and sweet potato fries, that seems to have the right idea. Its called Wings O' Flavor and is run by a wonderfully nice couple who spent 8 years living in the Caribbean and have now opened a wing shack of their own in Chicago.


New on the scene and its for real

I've been meaning to get over there since I'd seen they opened about a month or so ago. I finally got over there and I'm glad I did. The interior is pretty plain and its spotless as far as cleanliness and they do have a TV for you to watch while you wait for your wings to be made. If your looking to get in and out, then go get the nasty ass pigeon wings from Domino's next door. The couple who own the joint have the right idea, they do wings and they do them well. In fact they do them to damn near perfection. As of right now they offer the wings in 6-8 different sauces. Obviously they don't risk using store bought cheap stuff and every sauce is made in house and tested before being put on the menu. I had heard that the jerk was the way to go and considering the couple spent all that time on the islands I figured they must have a good recipe for the sauce. I asked if it was really hot and she said "yes" and asked if I wanna switch flavors. I told her no and that it was a good thing since jerk should be hot and not sweet.


Jerked Wings with extra authentic Jerk sauce for dipping

The wings were fried but I don't think they use any batter as you can see in the pictures. From what I could tell they just fry them with the sauce. I thought the jerk was some of the most authentic jerk sauce Ive had in the city or states. Not the hottest ever but it was hot and maybe too hot for some. I really liked that they gave a little extra cup of it for dipping. It's too bad they don't make whole jerk chickens b/c this guy knows his jerk sauce/marinade. Two big thumbs up for the jerked wings, Tons O' flavor. I prefer my wings smaller rather than larger and these wings are pretty big and meaty but still very good. They didn't suffer from being too meaty and thus too chewy. They were just right.


Real Island Flavor and the best wing sauce I've had in the city

I was in a daze when I went in and couldn't decide on a 2nd flavor totally forgetting to make it Buffalo I went with the Thai Sweet Chili. Once again I was pleasantly surprised at how much flavor these packed. I'm not a total anti BW3 guy but there is no reason to be eating their ok wings coated in ok sauce when you got this place that serves up much better product at a much better price. I'm very much looking forward to trying the rest of the flavors including that Buffalo and a Caribbean lemon pepper sauce that was also recommended.


Thai Sweet chile was the perfect compliment to the spicy jerk wings

I am none too happy that this place has been pretty empty when I've been there and driven past it. Shame on anyone who lives in the area, likes wings and hasn't tried them yet. Put in an order for the Bears game this weekend and invite your friends over and spread the word about this new place that packs the punch with wings of flavor. The prices are fair, and they do buckets of wings for all your football party needs. Also available is the special of 15 wings and fries for $9.99 My only complaint was they charge 50 cents for ranch or blue cheese. The couple is really nice and there's free parking in the lot at CVS so this is a great spot to pick up a platter of wings or just enough for you should you live or be by the area. Ill def. be back sooner than later. Check this place out for all your gameday needs in the land of chicken wings.


These wings sure do bling...

Wings O' Flavor
3109 N. Halsted
Chicago, IL 60657
(773) 697-7032

Quesadilla's de tito

--Tailgatin' and how to make mofos start playa hatin' (Recipes)

One of the first thing's I ever made in the kitchen was probably quesadillas, they were one of my favorite foods as a youth and I still love them today. The quesadilla is another one of those foods that is so easy to make that it amazes me how many places put out just ok 'dilla's. I mean how the hell do you fuck up cheese and other fun fillings placed in a tortilla and fried? These will be the first to go at any football/tailgate party you decide to make them for. Just be ready for people to start bothering you to make them again. It would be nice if Emeril ate 1,000 of these and his heart just stopped...BAM! another notch. I keed I keed.

quesadilla's de tito



-2 Package's of chorizo beef/pork cooked down with peppers/onions for about 20 minutes (4 tubes total)
-homemade refried beans (smashed pinto beans with an assortment of peppers, onions, bacon, tex-mex powder) a can from the grocery store will also do.
- a few packages of corn tortilla's
-combo of shredded chihuahua and muenster cheese
-corn/vegtable oil
-Mexican crema


quesadilla's de tito

Take the corn tortillas and make sure they are warm and easily foldable, if not place them in the micro for 30-40 seconds. When tortillas are soft spread a layer of the beans on one and cover with two spoonful's of chorizo mix and a handful of cheese. Top with another tortilla and cook evenly on both sides on a flattop/griddle or in a shallow pan with a little oil until crispy and then cut in four's and serve with Mexican Crema.

BAM...there goes your heart

--Tailgatin' and how to make mofos start playa hatin' (Recipes) Chapter 1

If im doing something, im doing it right. Same goes for food if im creating a dish, its going to catch an eye and taste authentic, nothing I do is normal. Got it? Good. So instead of wasting your time with some lame story about how my nana use to cook these for my family at x-mas...let's get down to business. I consider one of my specialties in the kitchen to be Tex-Mex...im also nice with the knife.

FYI- Tex-Mex is a real cuisine and is one of the least known regional specialties of our nation. Check back here to learn more.

For those rainy days when you dont feel like 'queing. This is a recipe that I created based off of West Texas style enchilada's. In WT they stack them into a casserole, perfect for potluck or super bowl parties.

Super enchilada's: West Texas style

Red Chile Sauce Tex-Mex style



12-15 red chile's, stemmed and seeded.
1/2 onion
4 garlic cloves, chopped.
2 roma tomato's, quartered.
2 roasted jalapeños, halved.
2 TBLS chili powder
1 TBLS Mexican oregano
1 TBLS cumin
2 cups of water or chicken broth and a reserved cup of the chili lliquid.
salt & pepper

Fill a large pot with water and bring to boil. Add the chili's, tomatoes and onion and reduce heat and simmer covered for 20 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool. reserve one cup of the liquid.

Place the cooled peppers/veggies and your 3 cups of liquid in the blender and puree until smooth. Strain and remove as much pulp as possible. You want the sauce to look super smooth like mine in the pic below.


pureed chili sauce

Enchilada's

2 lbs cooked picadillo seasoned with tex-mex rub (chili powder, cumin, jalapeno salt, pepper, garlic powder)
(ground beef cooked w/ chopped onions and jalapeños')
3 packages of fresh made corn tortillas, warmed.
2 lb's shredded cheese of choice (Tex-Mex or Chihuahua)
cup of chopped onions
egg's

Directions

Ladle the bottom of the casserole pan with some sauce and then layer the bottom with tortillas. Ladle a little more sauce and use a basting brush to layer it evenly leaving no part of the tortilla uncovered. Ladle half of the picadillo on top and then layer half of the cheese on top of the beef. Repeat again making as many layers as you want. Make sure the top is covered with tortillas and then bake thru at 450. Remove from heat and layer the top with cheese and cook until cheese is fully melted and remove from oven.


half way thru the stacking process

Cut out in squares and top each piece with a fried egg and chopped onions and serve with beans, rice and sour cream.


Super Enchilada's: West Texas Style (stacked with a fried egg on top)

T's 2008 Bear's prediction: 6-10 (sorry but I'm only being real)

Stay Tuned for more food and lewd sports views from that dude.