Buffalo Wings with Blue Cheese Risotto
Spicy, sweet, and super crispy lemon pepper buffalo chicken wings, served on top of creamy and tangy blue cheese risotto!
The inspiration for this recipe
It’s interesting to me how risotto makes its own sauce as it cooks, so the idea of using it as a sauce itself has always been in the back of my mind. When I thought of the blue cheese / buffalo sauce combo I knew it was the best place to test out my risotto sauce idea. And of course I loaded up the risotto with crunchy carrot and celery to play with the overall wing experience.
Make the wings
I have been doing this method for wings for a while now. Let them dry out in the fridge overnight with just salt and baking powder, then lightly coat with some flour, cornstarch, and powdered sugar. Spray with oil then air fry until crispy.
Start the blue cheese risotto
Onion and butter in the pan, then the rice and some garlic.
Carrot and celery, and then some vermouth to deglaze, and start adding the stock. I usually just grab whatever wine I have opened for the risotto deglaze step and you can do the same. The carrot and celery go in much later than the onion so they retain some texture in the final dish. I thought they were perfect but you could add them sooner if you want them softer, or later if you want them crunchy crunchy.
Finish the blue cheese risotto
When the risotto is almost tender, switch from stock to cream. Then when it is fully tender, remove from heat and mix in the cheese.
Serve the buffalo wings with blue cheese risotto
When the wings come out of the fryer, toss them in the sauce. My sauce is butter, Louisiana style hot sauce, lemon juice, cracked pepper, lemon pepper seasoning, honey and mustard. A little bit of everything!
I like to serve the risotto and then put the sauced wings on top, with plenty of extra sauce! You can dip the wings into the risotto, and as you eat, the buffalo sauce mixes into the risotto more and more. Incredible combination of flavors and textures!
Twists on buffalo wings with blue cheese risotto
No I want to make a ranch risotto haha. HMM!?!?! what would I put on it?
For more tips on making great risotto check out this page.
for more delicious risotto ideas, check out my meatball risotto wraps, this tasty scallop risotto inspired by a gin and tonic, or my personal favorite, chili risotto!
Buffalo Wings with Blue Cheese Risotto
Equipment
- air fryer
Ingredients
Wings
- 20 wing segments
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 2 tablespoons corn starch
- 1 tablespoon flour
- 1 tablespoon powdered sugar
- high heat cooking spray like avocado or peanut
Wing Sauce
- 1/4 cup melted butter
- 1/4 cup Louisiana style hot sauce
- juice of 1 lemon
- 1/2 teaspoon cracked black pepper
- 1 teaspoon lemon pepper seasoning
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1 tablespoon mustard
Risotto
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 1 medium onion diced
- 1 cup arborio rice
- 5 cloves garlic minced
- 1 cup diced carrot
- 1 cup diced celery
- 2 tablespoons dry vermouth
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 1 cup cream
- 5 ounces blue cheese or gorgonzola
Instructions
The night before wings
- Dry the wings and add to a bowl. Mix the salt and baking powder together, and sprinkle over the wings. Toss and sprinkle to coat evenly.
- Line the wings on a wire rack over a plate or pan and put into the fridge overnight uncovered to dry out fully.
Wing sauce
- Mix all the wing sauce ingredients in a pan. Bring to a simmer and reduce heat to low. Simmer for 15 minutes to thicken slightly.
Day-of wings
- Mix the corn starch, flour, and powdered sugar in a bowl with a pinch of salt. hold a mesh strainer over the wings and add the powder mix. Shake to evenly coat with a super light dusting of the powder mix. Flip and repeat.
- Preheat an air fryer to 450. Or you could do a convection oven on 500.
- Spray the wings with the oil to fully coat. Add to the air fryer and cook for 25 minutes. I like to cook them skin side up first, then after 10 minutes, skin side down, and then a final 5 with the skin up again.
Risotto
- Add the butter to a large pan over medium high heat. Add in the onions and cook 10 minutes. Add in the rice and cook another 5 minutes, stirring often. Stir in the garlic.
- Add in the carrot and celery and stir to combine. Cook 2 minutes.
- Deglaze the pan with the vermouth and stir. Start adding the broth, about a cup at a time.
- Cook the risotto slowly, adding about 1 cup of broth occasionally, and then the cream, until fully cooked. If the risotto isn't cooked yet, you can add some water in place of broth until it finally finishes.
- Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the cheese. Break up the cheese as you stir. You want the risotto to be saucy so the wings can be dipped in it! You can add more water, milk, cream, or broth as needed.
Serve
- Add risotto to each persons plate, and top with 6 wings. Sprinkle some lemon pepper and serve!