Among your favorite finger-licking foods, chicken wings are an ideal meal for just about any time of the day or season of the year. The different options of sauces and seasonings for your chicken wings range from spicy to sweet and everything in between. One of the most fun additions you can make to flavor your chicken wings is a mouthwatering compound butter. The myriad of compound butter combinations is nearly endless, but there’s a single flavor that stands out above the rest for wings. If cowboy butter seriously elevates your steak game, just imagine what it can do for your chicken wings. This buttery blend of savory and tangy herbs and spices is the perfect mix for a bold and rich sauce that will elevate your next batch of chicken wings.
If you’re wondering what cowboy butter is, rest assured that you won’t need to look for tiny spurs and a hat to adorn a stick of butter. Simply put, it’s a flavored butter made using a mixture of lemon zest or juice, chopped or minced garlic, chives, paprika, and mustard. Other variations of herbs can include parsley and thyme. Some recipes call for crushed red pepper, Worcestershire sauce, and horseradish as well. The best thing about cowboy butter is how easily and endlessly customizable the flavor can be to suit your specific tastes, making it ideal for chicken wings.
Making the ultimate cowboy butter
To properly dress your chicken wings, there are a few tips for making compound butter with your favorite cowboy-inspired flavors. First and foremost, it’s important to use quality butter and keep your flavor profile cohesive. If you want to go more herb-heavy with your cowboy butter, remember that dried herbs have a stronger potency than fresh. Further, if you want to turn up the heat, choose your spices carefully. Red cayenne, hot or smoked paprika, and crushed red pepper flakes are a good source of spiciness; however, horseradish and Dijon mustard can bring a different style and level of heat into the mix. A dash of Worcestershire sauce also brings a great amount of tangy, savory flavor to your wing sauce.
Whichever way you choose to prepare your chicken wings, remember to make the butter mixture ahead of time to let the flavors fully incorporate before using it to toss your chicken wings. It’s a good idea to store your flavored butter in the fridge for at least 24 hours or longer, and then melt the butter sauce down right before adding it to your freshly cooked chicken wings. Mixing up your wings with a creative cowboy butter will keep your snack time fresh and filled with flavor.
