I met Edgardo Rodriguez (Big Ed) on Zoom a few months ago. After tasting the seasonings he shipped me I had to see what he could pull off on the grill. So, I invited him to my house to teach us all a very simple, straight-forward lesson to make absolutely perfect chicken wings for your Memorial Day barbecue.
The nuanced approach he teaches here is very easy to learn: something that every self-proclaimed grillmaster should have in their back pocket if they want crispy on the outside, juicy on the inside wings packed with Latin American flavor (or the seasoning of your choice). Even my kids, who typically won’t eat anything, lit up when they put these things in their mouth, “These are the best chicken wings I’ve ever, ever had. When can Big Ed come back again?!”
…crispy on the outside, juicy on the inside wings packed with Latin American flavor…
Related Post: If You Don’t Love Big Ed’s El Borikua Seasoning, Do You Really Know Love?
For me personally, I learned that what I’ve been doing wrong all these years is cooking my wings with brute force over a massive flame. Big Ed, despite clocking in at an intimidating 6’4″ height, is gentle with his wings. He cooks them over low heat, with patience.
BTW, for those of you who don’t know, Big Ed loves wings more than the average human should. He even thought about opening a chicken wing restaurant. I kinda definitely think he should: stay tuned. In the meantime, here’s his delightfully simple yet powerfully flavorful recipe for making the perfect chicken wing.
Related Post: Learn to Make Chef Jami’s Puerto Rican Pastelón
(Note from El Equipo: We used Big Ed’s Magic Dust seasoning in this recipe. You can also use his El Borikua or the seasoning of your choice.)
Big Ed’s Chicken Wing Recipe
Ingredients
This chicken wing recipe is super simple and serves six people.
- 4 Lbs Chicken Wings
- 1/4 Cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 3 Tablespoons of Big Ed’s Magic Dust seasoning
Preparation
The key to preparing Big Ed’s wings is to let the olive oil and seasoning coat them before cooking on a low heat. Big Ed’s video above shows the steps in detail.
- Cut the tips off the wings. These are inedible.
- Slice the joint between the drumette and the wing flat. This will give you the perfect “party wings.”
- In a large bowl, mix the wings, olive oil and seasoning.
- Mix well with your hands.
- Set aside to marinate for 20-30 minutes.
- Heat grill to 350 degrees, over a low flame.
- Cook wings for about ten minutes on each side.
Give these a try and let us know what you think. I find it ironic that the simplicity and gentle nature of how these wings are cooked is actually what makes them so strong and packed with flavor. Comment below with your experience.
Try Big Ed’s Spicy Caballero Seasonings for 10% Off at Startup Cuba
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Ken Deckinger
Ken Deckinger is the co-founder and CEO of Startup Cuba and the executive producer and host of its namesake docuseries. A native of South Florida, Ken has been an entrepreneur for his entire professional career. Previously he was co-founder and CEO of HurryDate, pioneering the global concept of speed dating to 45 cities throughout the US, UK and Canada. HurryDate eventually evolved into online dating and was acquired by Spark Networks, the parent company of ChristianMingle.com and JDate.com. Ken is a graduate of Boston College and the University of Florida, where he was honored with the University’s Alumni Entrepreneur of the Year Under 40 award and sits on the Board for the Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation. He actively advises entrepreneurs and is a two-time protagonist of a Harvard Business School case study. Ken’s filmmaking and journalistic journey is inspired by a love of travel and authentic connections with other cultures. He believes that the more we know about each other, through stories, the closer we can become — thus the mission of Startup Cuba: to amplify the voices of the people sharing stories in the Latinx space. After living in New York City for 15 years, he encouraged his wife to move their family to Miami to get back to his South Florida roots. Needless to say, it was a short discussion and he and his family now call Boston, where his wife grew up, their home.
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