_{#KickUpTheFlavor this season with Pace® Salsa with cheesy Salsa fries served alongside these gorgeous baked chicken thighs and wings!}

Wings are a classic party pleaser, and these Salsa and Cheese Wings are no exception. Simple to make and easy to love, this recipe combines cheesy cheddar goodness with a delicious salsa kick, set over baked chicken wings and thighs, with a side of hardy steak fries.

This recipe works great as a side or starter, or as a light meal on its own. For a nice surf-and-turf combo, consider pairing it alongside something like my Aguachili Tuna Cups. To really play up to the festive and cheesy goodness of the wings, pair this recipe alongside something like my Jalapeno Poppers and you’re good to go.

Below, I’ll cover everything you need to make today’s wings, while giving you a few notes and tips for each ingredient. After that, we’ll cover how to select the best chicken possible for these wings (or any chicken recipe!).

Ingredient Checklist and Notes

Potatoes. I’m using russet potatoes, but Yukon Golds or Sante would also work fine as well. Any medium to high-starch potato will works for steak fries.
Olive Oil. Though not front and center in this particular recipe, the olive oil is still ‘present enough’ where I would strongly advise ‘against’ using vegetable or seed oil as opposed to olive oil. Personally, I’m using my ‘all purpose’ extra virgin olive oil for these wings.
Salt. Plain table salt is all you need.
Black Pepper. Pre-ground or cracked pepper is really all you need for today’s recipe, no need to fuss with grinding.
Salsa. Largely a matter of preference. I’m using a chunky, medium heat red salsa for today’s recipe. However, feel free to use the salsa of your choice. Again, this one’s entirely a matter of preference.
The Chicken. While you can use all thighs or all wings for today’s recipe, I’m using a mix of bone-in chicken thighs ‘and’ wings.
Lemon Juice. As in all cases, fresher is better, so opt for fresh lemon juice if you have some lemons on hand. Bottled lemon juice will work fine, but I do suggest fresh.
Balsamic Vinegar. For a dash of acidity and that lovely ‘balsamic umami’ flavor that you really can’t get anywhere else.
Nutmeg. The spice that tastes like Christmas. This delightful spice is super versatile, and well worth learning how to use, as it can fancy up everything from grilled vegetables to beef roasts. If you don’t have nutmeg on hand, use mace or cinnamon in roughly equal amounts.
Cheddar Cheese. I find that yellow cheddar melds the best with the chunky red salsa. However, feel free to experiment. Mozzarella, Oaxaca, gouda, or Manchego would all work deliciously with today’s recipe.

How to Select The Best Chicken

Nobody wants to pay top dollar (or even sale price) for bottom shelf chicken. But how do you make sure you’re buying the good stuff, or at least that you’re not buying the ‘bad stuff?’

It’s easier than you might think, you just have to know what to look for.

Here are a few tips for making sure you’re buying the best chicken your local market has to offer:

Color. You want pink. The pinker the better. That means the ‘pink hue’ beaming through the chicken’s skin. As the chicken sits on the shelf, that pink hue will began to fade, which will result in a ‘yellowing’ texture, and then finally in a ‘grey’ coloration. Basically, pink is good, yellow is turning, and grey is decay.
Check the Skin. First and foremost, you want to make sure that the skin is free of blemishes, gashes, bruises, or discoloration. Spines and/or feather fragments, while certainly unpleasant as you’ll have to pick them out of the chicken before cooking, actually have no bearing on the quality of the meat below – it simply indicates a less thorough ‘cleaning.’ Second, if selecting pieces, make sure that the skin doesn’t appear ‘loose’ or ‘torn,’ as this indicates that the chicken has been poorly handled.
The Bone Test. If you’re selecting a whole chicken, press on the breast-bone area. You want the breastbone to feel soft or pliable, which is indicative of a fresher chicken.
If Buying Unfrozen. Chicken that’s fresh should feel ‘malleable’ in the hand, as opposed to stiff or ridged.
If Buying Frozen. Frozen chicken should be absolutely rock solid, and free of any indication of frost or freezer burn.

Cheesy Salsa Fries Salsa Chicken Wings & Thighs

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5 from 1 review

Author: Living the Gourmet
Total Time: 55 minutes
Yield: 4-6 1x

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Ingredients

Units Scale

5 lbs. of potatoes - peeled and sliced into 1/4 inch wedges
3 - 4 tbs. olive oil
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1 cup of Pace Chunky Salsa
8 oz. of cheddar cheese - shredded
12 chicken wings
8 - 10 bone-in chicken thighs - without skin
1 cup Pace Chunky Salsa
1/2 cup honey
Juice of 1/2 lemon
2 tsp. balsamic vinegar
Grated fresh nutmeg
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
Olive oil for drizzling

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Instructions

Rinse and pat dry the potato wedges. Place in a large bowl; add the salt, pepper, olive oil and toss.
Place in a baking pan, you will need about three baking pans; and bake 40 – 45 minutes, turning once during the process.
When the potatoes are finished cooking place all of the potatoes on one baking pan and add the shredded cheese and the salsa; gently combine.
Bake for another 3 -4 minutes until the cheese melts.
Preheat Oven 350 degrees F.
Place the chicken in a large bowl and sprinkle with the salt and pepper and toss.
In a medium bowl combine the salsa, honey, lemon juice, balsamic vinegar, ground nutmeg and mix.
Pour the salsa mixture over the chicken and toss.
Place the chicken in a baking pan and drizzle each piece with a little olive oil.
Bake for 45 – 50 minutes or until the juices run clear.

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 45 minutes