Crispy Fried Wings

These were INCREDIBLE! No kidding! I am no photographer the pic might not look so good but take my word for it. Extremely CRISPY outside and extremely JUICY inside. We had them with a blue cheese dipping sauce. YUMEEEE YUM YUM!

I love using my coffee grinder for grinding up different spices. It's the alchemist in me. I feel like I am making some sort of mysterious magical powder. Crazy I know... I blame the lunatics in my head :-)
Anyway the point for this is that all the spices listed below (except of course the garlic powder) are whole.

(serves 4-6)
(prep time 30 mins + marinating time)
Marinade

Chicken wings about 14 (I snipped the ends off and saved them for chicken stock)
Dried chipotle pepper 1 med sized
Dried red chili 1 large
Cumin seeds 1 tsp
Black peppercorns 1 tsp
Garlic powder 2/3 tsp

Grind the above spices together and rub on the chicken wings.Marinade in the fridge for a couple of hours.
No salt as it draws out the moisture from the meat. Season with salt just before cooking.

Batter

Flour 1 cup
Egg 1 large
Dark Ale or Soda water 1/3 cup
Dried Thyme 1/2 tsp
Paprika 1/2 tsp
Salt

Mix the above ingredients together in a large bowl.
Pour the soda water little by little. You might need more or less depending on how much flour you have.
The batter shouldn't be lumpy and about as thick as warm custard.
Sprinkle some salt over the chicken wings.
Heat oil in a deep sauce pan.
Dip the wings in the batter shake off the extra.
Gently put them in the hot oil.
The oil shouldn't be very hot. Adjust the heat so batter doesn't burn.
(The highest temp on my electric stove top is 8 and I had to adjust the temp between 7 and 6)
The wings need to cook for 8 mins at least.
Take them out and let them cool on a wire rack. Doing this will also allow the extra oil to drip off.
Done!

Dipping sauce

Blue cheese crumbles 2 Tbs
Sour cream 1 Tbs
Mayo 1 Tbs
White wine vinegar 1 tsp
Pepper 1/4 tsp
Salt

Place the blue cheese on the counter for 10 mins so its easier to blend.
Whip all the ingredients together in bowl.
Done!
Dip away my friend dip away......
:-)