I turned 21 when I lived in Montpelier, VT. To celebrate, about 27 of my classmates and I caravanned north on route 12 to the tiny town of Morrisville for some fantastic wings, BBQ and beer at Bonz Smokehouse & Grill. In hindsight, we probably should have called first because we most certainly overwhelmed the 20ish seat restaurant. Management was kind and stayed open an extra two hours to accommodate our wild bunch before we took the party back to Montpelier.
The wings at Bonz, to this day, are the best wings I have ever eaten. You had a choice of four sauces(in order of hotness): BBQ, Buffalo, Kryptonite & Peach Habanero. My favorite was Kryptonite, a thick green sauce that is more of a hot - sweet pepper relish. Not only did they have innovative sauces, the Peach Habanero sauce was ahead of its time in 200l, but the wings themselves were plump, juicy & crisp.
I have tried to recreate Kryptonite sauce maybe three times before finally nailing it last week. I probably would have gotten there sooner if the hubby wasn’t a Peach Habanero man and/or if I hadn’t over complicated my previous attempts. The recipe is shockingly simple. You will need a food processor, Do Not Use a blender.
Recipe:
1.5 cups pickled & sliced jalapenos, drained & rinsed
8 each fresh jalapenos
4 each fresh Pasilla Peppers
1.5 to 2 cups Karo Syrup
4 Tbl. Butter, melted
2 tsp. kosher salt
Place fresh peppers in large pot, fill with H2O & bring to a full boil until they start to split. Turn off heat, drain, return peppers to pot and cover & let steam with the residual heat for about 15 minutes. Remove the stems & seeds from the peppers and tear in to large pieces in to a food processor. Pulse 3 - 4 times. Put rinsed and drained pickled jalapenos in to the food processor & pulse until mixture resembles pickle relish. Transfer pepper mixture to a glass bowl; add butter, kosher salt & Karo Syrup. You may need more or less syrup depending on your taste buds and the hotness of your peppers.
-Makes enough sauce for about 5 dozen wings
Mix as needed with cooked chicken wings, serve with Ranch or Blue Cheese & veggie sticks. You can also substitute Honey if you are anti Karo Syrup. I have found practicing moderation with corn syrup is easier on the wallet. Besides you’re already fixing wings.
