Tea-Grilled Wings with Hot Green Dipping Sauce

As of tonight I am finally caught up on my cooking blog.  Yesterday was filled with appointments.  We were going to eat at Mo Cara in Lebanon the site of these appointments, but everyone was busy so we came home and ate at a local restaurant called The Wild Hare.  From the outside, you would not give it a second glance and the inside is rustic, to be kind, but the food is wonderful.  I read about them in a farm to table article in the paper.  I have attached a site if you would like to read about them.  (http://thewildharenashville.com)  Our meal was delicious and according to our waiter everything on the menu comes from the owner’s farm.  I had fig pizza and it did Todd English of Olives proud.  Jim had a special that was a fillet, crab cake and lobster/bacon mashed potatoes.  He was making up for having to eat vegetarian.  They have a full bar and you can order wine by the glass.  Jim ended his meal with flourless chocolate Torte.  It was the largest serving of this classic cake I have ever seen served and he ate it all.  Jim started with a Tomato stack with watermelon salsa.  It was delicious.  I had an equally good salad of tomatoes and cucumbers; maybe a little to many onions, but I used some of his purple basil to mix in with the onions and it was perfect. 

Tonight’s dinner comes from a new cookbook called Culinary Tea.  My friend Carole recently sent this to me as a thank you for my friendship and support this past year.  I am not sure why I get a present for having the time of my life participating in festivities leading up to her daughter Erin's wedding.  I feel privileged to have been a part of one of the most amazing bridal showers ever thrown.  I had a grand time planning and attending all the festivities.  I would do it again in a heartbeat.

Warning, for best results start this meal 3 days ahead.  

Ingredients for the Chicken Wings: 

5 T loose-leaf black tea leaves, divided

1 ½ C boiling water

½ C soy sauce

5T toasted sesame oil

3 T Asian fish sauce

6 garlic cloves, finely chopped

3 T Sriracha sauce

Freshly ground black pepper

18 chicken wings

Ingredients for the Hot Green Dipping Sauce:

2 C fresh basil leaves

¾ C cilantro leaves

2-4 jalapeno peppers, deveined and seeded

1/3 C rice wine vinegar

½ C EVOO

Fine sea salt to taste

Freshly ground black pepper to taste

Directions for the Wings:

1.      Place 3 T of the tea in a glass measuring cup.  Add the boiling water and steep, covered, for 6 minutes.  Strain and set aside to cool.  Discard the tea leaves.

2.      In a spice grinder finely grind the remaining 2 T of tea leaves.  Transfer to a gallon sealable plastic bag.  Add all the remaining ingredients under the chicken wings and the cooled steeped tea.  Mix all the ingredients to combine. 

3.      Trim the wing tips and set aside for another use.  (They are great for making stock.)Cut the wings at the joint to separate.  Place the wings in the resealable bag.  Seal the bag and make sure the wings are coated evenly.  Place in a bowl or pan and place in the refrigerator at least overnight or up to 3 days.  Turn every 12 hours. 

4.      When ready to cook, preheat grill to medium and remove the wings from the fridge to allow to come to room temperature.  Remove the wings from the marinade (discard the marinade) and grill until cooked through and juices are clear about 6-8 minutes per side. 

Directions for the Sauce:

1.      In the bowl of a food processor combine all the ingredients except the EVOO.  Process for about 30 seconds to chop the greens.  Scrape down the sides.  With the processor running add the EVOO in a slow stream.  Add salt and pepper to taste. 

The heat is not in the wings, it is in the sauce.  This recipe is from the Swan Bar at the Boston Park Plaza Hotel, so if you are in Boston just pop over and enjoy.  The sauce is absolutely delicious.  You have a ton of sauce, so if you want to make these for a party, double the wings, even triple them, but you just need one recipe of sauce.