Our Sriracha Mango White Balsamic Vinegar is our first balsamic with a ‘bite’ to it. We have been showing it at festivals for a few months now, and folks love it. Their first question, however, is how do we use it?
The first idea we had was chicken wings, ala buffalo wings, and finally we marched into Nan’s Test Kitchen and made the recipe work. Two amazing things happened! First, they turned out awesome – the oven roasted rich flavor of the wings contrasts well with the smooth sweet/hot mango, traditional and exotic at the same time. The other amazing thing? They were so darn easy to make!
We served these delicious wings with a sauce also made with our Sriracha Mango White Balsamic. You can find that recipe here.
ingredients
Pre-heat oven to 425 degrees.
In a large mixing bowl toss the chicken wings with the olive oil, Kosher salt and black pepper to taste. Spread evenly on an oiled baking sheet and bake about 30 minutes, turning once halfway through the cooking time. Remove from oven.
Using tongs, place the hot wings into a new large mixing bowl (or thoroughly wash the first one). Drizzle half the Sriracha Mango Balsamic over the wings, and toss to coat. Return to the baking sheet and bake 5 more minutes. Plate, and drizzle remaining vinegar over the finished wings.
Serve with our Sriracha Mango Multi-Purpose Sauce as a dipping sauce – you can find the recipe here.
Four servings.
We developed this recipe to be a dipping sauce to go with our recipe for Sriracha Mango Chicken Wings, which you can find here – however, this is a versatile sauce that can be used in many ways, including:
- Turkey Burgers
- French Fries
- Asparagus
- A Crema for Fish Tacos
- Salad Dressing
Depending on how you use the sauce, you can thicken or thin it with the lime juice – less for thicker, and more juice for thinner. Please note, this sauce is not overly spicy, the sweetness of the mango and sour cream tempers the sriracha. If you want more spice, you may want to add some of your own sriracha.
ingredients
In a small mixing bowl combine the first four ingredients with a whisk. Add the pinch and the pepper and whisk to combine. Normally with the lime and sriracha there is enough seasoning in the sauce, but the addition of a pinch of salt elevates the fruit flavors.
We recommend to refrigerate for at least an hour before using to allow the flavors to meld, longer is better. The sauce will keep for several days refrigerated in a sealed container.
Makes just less than one cup.
This recipe is an adaptation of a creation by our good friend, Esther the Zester. If you don’t know Esther, she is a food blogger who has graced us by incorporating our products into some of her fabulous recipes. She is a wonderful writer and very creative with her combinations – she cooks like we like to cook – clean & straightforward with great flavor from simple ingredients.
The brilliance of her guacamole recipe is the inclusion of our Ruby Red Grapefruit White Balsamic. It makes for a lighter, refreshing guacamole. The citrus makes it tangy and bright, but rich like a good guacamole at the same time.
We chose to simplify her original recipe for our recipe blog. She calls her creation a GuacaBLT, where she adds crisp bacon and shredded lettuce to the mix. You can find her complete version here.
One more note; the key to any good guacamole is the quality and ripeness of the avocado. We use only Haas avocados and prefer California when in season. To determine ripeness, gently squeeze without applying your fingertips as this can cause bruising. If ripe, the avocado yields to firm gentle pressure. If unripe the avocado does not yield to gentle pressure and it is considered still "firm”. Just hold off a few days and the avocado will become ripe.
ingredients
- 4 ripe Haas avocados
- 1 Roma tomato, diced small
- 2 tablespoons cilantro, chopped fine
- 2 tablespoons green onions, chopped small
- 2 tablespoons Nan's Ruby Red Grapefruit White Balsamic Vinegar
- 2 limes, juiced
- Freshly ground black pepper and Kosher salt
Cut the avocados in half, remove the pits and scoop out the flesh and into a medium bowl. Add the lime juice and mash with a fork. If you have a potato masher, these work well, as you want to leave the avocado chunky. Add the tomato, cilantro, green onions and vinegar and mix gently. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Makes about 4 cups.
If you have never tried cooking in a simple foil pouch, you are missing one of the easiest and tastiest ways to prepare delicious dishes. We like to use the technique for basic week night cooking, but it is also ideal for the backyard grill or camping trips. The best part? Cleanup is a breeze!
Fish works well because you end up cooking it in its own juices, making it hard to create a dry product. Other ideas for pouch cooking? Veggies (especially squash or corn), chicken, potatoes and sausage.
ingredients
- 4 (5 ounces each) salmon fillets
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 small sweet white onion, very thinly sliced (Vidalia or Maui)
- 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil (1T per filet)
- 6 tablespoons Nan's Passion Fruit White Balsamic Vinegar (1.5T per filet)
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Rinse individual salmon fillets under cold running water and pat dry. Cut four pieces of foil long and wide enough to encase the filets when folded and folded up on the ends. Place a salmon filet in the center of a piece foil, skin side down. Sprinkle the salmon with the salt and pepper. Pile the onion slices in a mound over the fish fillet. Drizzle the fillet evenly with the olive oil and the Passion Fruit White Balsamic and fold the edges of the foil up over the salmon and crimp to seal. Fold the edges together on both ends to create an airtight package. Repeat with the remaining filets and place on a baking sheet.
Bake the salmon for 15 minutes, or until just cooked through but still moist. Serve immediately, removing the filet from the foil using a large spatula. Serve with some of the accumulated juices spooned over the fish.
Serves 4.
This recipe is the second of Esther the Zester’s adventures with our Raspberry Balsamic. If you don’t know the story of Esther, you can read about how we met her here – but even better, you should visit her amazing food blog here.
Used with permission – Esther the Zester
Below is one of two chicken wing recipes Esther featured for Father’s Day, 2016. The full recipe and a recipe for Wings with Whiskey Buffalo Sauce can be found here.
In regard to baking the wings, Esther writes:
For my wings recipe, I decided to go with the baking process — mainly, because it’s healthier than fried wings (and just as yummy), and I wanted to keep the kitchen semi-clean for once (you can imagine how a kitchen looks when someone is working on a cookbook).
I love barbecue, so I created baked chicken wings with a sweet and tangy barbeque sauce, using an infused balsamic vinegar (raspberry was my choice, but you get to pick your flavor).
We love Esther’s choice of Raspberry; the sweet tangy pop of fresh raspberry is quite apparent in the savory sauce. We did experiment with some alternatives, our Traditional Barrel-Aged also performed well.
wings
- 1 dozen chicken wings, halved, with the tips removed and discarded (unless you’re saving them for a future chicken stock)
Preheat the oven to 400 F. Lay out all the wings in a single layer on a baking sheet and pat dry (this will help keep the wings crispy). Drizzle a little extra virgin olive oil on both sides (not too much), and sprinkle both sides with kosher salt and black pepper.
Stick the wings in the oven for 35-40 minutes (depending on if you like them extra crispy like I do), flipping them halfway through the cooking time.
sauce
In a small saucepan, combine all ingredients (except for the balsamic vinegar) and heat on medium-low heat until it begins to boil. Turn off heat and stir in the balsamic.
Transfer to a bowl and toss with wings. Serve and enjoy.
