9-Spice Grilled Chicken Wings with a New Spice Rack

You can never have too many spices. But the wrong spice rack might make it seem like you do. I had that tiered spice rack, but I still couldn’t read the labels and always had to play an annoying tetris game each time I needed a spice. KP and I were walking through a used furniture store, when I saw this window sill and had a lovely thought:

Added on a few wooden accents and repainted the window, KP extended each window sill back to the wall for an added ledge, and voila!

Now to put these spices to use, I made grilled chicken with 9 spices. This is better than any grilled chicken I’ve ever had. And tastes great in the taco recipe below this!

Grilled Chicken Wings with 9-Spice Dry Rub

Adapted from Food and Wine

BRINED WINGS

1/2 cup kosher salt

3 tablespoons light brown sugar

2 garlic cloves

1 teaspoon whole black peppercorns

1 bay leaf

3 pounds chicken wings, tips discarded and wings split

DRY RUB

1/4 cup dark brown sugar

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup sweet paprika

1 tablespoon kosher salt

1 tablespoon granulated onion

3/4 tablespoon black pepper

1/2 tablespoon dry sage

1/2 tablespoon dry mustard

1/2 tablespoon ground ginger

1/2 tablespoon cayenne

Canola oil, for brushing

Lime wedges, for serving

BRINE THE WINGS In a large saucepan, combine the salt, sugar, garlic, peppercorns and bay leaf with 2 quarts of water and bring to a boil. Cook over moderate heat, stirring, until the sugar and salt dissolve, about 3 minutes. Let cool to room temperature.

In a large bowl, pour the brine over the chicken wings. Cover and refrigerate for 3 hours.

MEANWHILE MAKE THE RUB In a bowl, mix all of the ingredients except the oil and lime.

Light a grill and oil the grate. Drain the wings and pat dry with paper towels. In a large bowl, toss the wings with 1/3 cup of the dry rub. Grill over moderate heat, turning, until nicely charred and cooked through, about 15 minutes. Serve hot with lime wedges.

Corn Crema Tacos

Adapted from Food and Wine

3 ears of corn, shucked

1 pound mixed haricots verts, green beans and yellow wax beans, halved lengthwise

1 cup Greek yogurt

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

2 ounces creamy feta cheese

3 tablespoons finely chopped cilantro

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

Eight 6-inch flour or corn tortillas

Slices of that yummy 9-spice grilled chicken above

Avocado wedges, sliced radishes and cilantro sprigs, for garnish

Working in a large bowl, cut the corn kernels off of the cobs. Add the beans and toss.

Using the back of a knife, scrape all of the corn milk from the cobs into a medium bowl. Add the yogurt, olive oil, cheese, chopped cilantro and cumin, season with salt and pepper and mix the corn crema until smooth. Add all but 1/2 cup of the corn crema to the corn and beans, season with salt and pepper and toss to coat.

Spoon the corn and beans onto the tortillas and top with avocado, radishes and cilantro sprigs. Fold in half and serve with the remaining corn crema.