Stuffed Turkey Wings
By Bryan RoofPublished on December 13, 2018
Time
3 hours
Yield
Serves 4
Ingredients
Spice Mix
1¾ teaspoons paprika 1 teaspoon granulated garlic ¾ teaspoon salt ¾ teaspoons pepper ½ teaspoon onion powder ½ teaspoon celery salt ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepperTurkey
4 (12- to 16-ounce) whole turkey wings, cut at joints into flats and drumettes, wingtips discarded12 garlic cloves, peeled (8 halved lengthwise, 4 smashed)¼ cup vegetable oil ¼ cup all-purpose flour 1 cup finely chopped green bell pepper 1 cup finely chopped onion ¼ cup finely chopped celery 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme 3 cups chicken broth Salt and pepperBefore You Begin
Serve with rice.
Instructions
- For the spice mix: Combine all ingredients in bowl. Measure out 1½ teaspoons spice mix and set aside.
- For the turkey: Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 300 degrees. Make one 1-inch-long incision, about ½ inch deep, on either side of each drumette bone and one 2-inch-long incision, about ½ inch deep, between bones on underside of each flat. Sprinkle wings inside and out with remaining 4 teaspoons spice mix. Stuff 1 piece halved garlic into each pocket of each drumette and 2 pieces into pocket of each flat.
- Heat oil in Dutch oven over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add wings and cook until browned on both sides, about 10 minutes. Transfer wings to plate. Reduce heat to medium and add flour to fat left in pot. Cook, stirring often, until roux is caramel-colored, about 3 minutes.
- Add bell pepper, onion, celery, thyme, smashed garlic, and reserved spice mix and cook, stirring occasionally and scraping up any browned bits, until vegetables are just beginning to soften, about 5 minutes.
- Stir in broth and bring to simmer. Nestle wings into broth mixture. Cover, transfer pot to oven, and cook for 1 hour. Remove pot from oven and flip wings. Cover, return pot to oven, and continue to cook until tender, about 45 minutes longer.
- Transfer wings to clean plate. Bring gravy to boil over high heat and cook until slightly thickened, about 7 minutes. Off heat, season with salt and pepper to taste. Return wings to pot and gently turn to coat with gravy. Serve.
Time
3 hoursYield
Serves 4Ingredients
Spice Mix
Turkey
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
Spice Mix
Turkey
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
Spice Mix
Turkey
Test Kitchen Techniques
Why This Recipe Works
After downing a plate of stuffed turkey wings at Laura’s II in Lafayette, Louisiana (read about our visit here), we knew we had to bring this idea back to the test kitchen. The massive turkey wings—meaty, beautifully browned, and braised to tenderness—came with a scoop of rice and a generous helping of deeply flavorful Cajun-style gravy. As for the “stuffing” part, these wingswere slit open and stuffed with cloves of garlic and a powerful mix of spices. To re-create that secret spice mix recipe, we tinkered our way to a mixture of paprika, cayenne, granulated garlic, onion powder, celery salt, and salt and pepper. After making slits in the drumette and flat portions of the separated wings, we rubbed them inside and out with the spice mix and stuffed halved garlic cloves inside. Browning the wings gave them beautiful color, created flavorful fond in the pot, and tempered the cayenne’s raw heat. From there we added a bit of flour to the fat let in the pot to make a caramel-colored roux and then softened a mix of onion, bell pepper, celery (aka the “Cajun holy trinity”), and aromatics in the roux. After a nice even braise in the oven, the wings were fall-off-the-bone tender and draped in an almost impossibly complex and delicious gravy.
Before You Begin
Serve with rice.
Instructions
- For the spice mix: Combine all ingredients in bowl. Measure out 1½ teaspoons spice mix and set aside.
- For the turkey: Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 300 degrees. Make one 1-inch-long incision, about ½ inch deep, on either side of each drumette bone and one 2-inch-long incision, about ½ inch deep, between bones on underside of each flat. Sprinkle wings inside and out with remaining 4 teaspoons spice mix. Stuff 1 piece halved garlic into each pocket of each drumette and 2 pieces into pocket of each flat.
- Heat oil in Dutch oven over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add wings and cook until browned on both sides, about 10 minutes. Transfer wings to plate. Reduce heat to medium and add flour to fat left in pot. Cook, stirring often, until roux is caramel-colored, about 3 minutes.
- Add bell pepper, onion, celery, thyme, smashed garlic, and reserved spice mix and cook, stirring occasionally and scraping up any browned bits, until vegetables are just beginning to soften, about 5 minutes.
- Stir in broth and bring to simmer. Nestle wings into broth mixture. Cover, transfer pot to oven, and cook for 1 hour. Remove pot from oven and flip wings. Cover, return pot to oven, and continue to cook until tender, about 45 minutes longer.
- Transfer wings to clean plate. Bring gravy to boil over high heat and cook until slightly thickened, about 7 minutes. Off heat, season with salt and pepper to taste. Return wings to pot and gently turn to coat with gravy. Serve.
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