Yes, Delaware rules the roost in broilers, and here's where to get its great wings too

With the Oscars ceremony slated for this coming Sunday, it’s time to recall that the first Academy Awards were given out in 1929. Best Picture went to “Wings,” a silent film about two World War I aviators and their romantic pursuit of the same woman.

While that film is not likely to be shown at The Movies at Midway in the near future, or at the Cinema Art Theater for that matter, avian wings of the consumable kind are here, there, and everywhere.

At last month’s 9th annual Best Wings on the Shore contest, 20 local restaurants competed for chicken wing bragging rights for the coming year. Thompson Island Brewing Company, interestingly located not at sea but on land (Route 1 to be exact), won in two of the three categories (Best Overall and Hottest) with its Sticky Icky Asian wings.

The recently opened Lewes Oyster House took top honors in the Most Creative category with its pickle-juice-accented wings. Undoubtedly, they would make a most appropriate snack following a game of pickleball.

The National Chicken Council estimates that 1.45 billion wings, that’s billion with a “b”, were consumed during last month’s Super Bowl football weekend. Having difficulty digesting that number? Well, it would probably be easier to absorb if you knew that it is “enough to give four wings each to every man, woman and child in the United States,” as the council goes on to crow, or rather cluck.

Of backyard chickens and the birth of broilers

Given the demand for wings, is it any wonder that the Milton Town Council is currently considering a proposal that would allow residential properties to have chickens in their backyards? Combine a flock of hens (but not of the blue variety) with a rooster or two and you’ve got the makings of chicken wings for your next party with a few eggs thrown in for good measure.

Whether this is a good idea or not was recently the focus of a web poll by a local bi-weekly newspaper. Nearly a thousand readers responded, with 48% voting “cluck yes,” 31%, “cluck no,” and 21%, “who cares?”. Those who think the issue is of no importance might want to reflect on both the current price of eggs and the diminished size of their nest egg.

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Chicken wings are one of the few things (including balloons) that are not made in, or imported from, China. In fact, a fair number of them come from just down the road — at Mountaire, Perdue and Allen Harim, although admittedly it’s not the same road.

In fact, Sussex County is the No. 1 chicken producer in the entire known world, and this year we are celebrating the 100th anniversary of the birth of the broiler industry here. It took place in Ocean View to be exact, where, as we have previously observed, it takes significant effort to get a sighting of the sea.

Boneless, but are they reall even wings?

Admittedly, not all chicken wings are created equal. Like most red-blooded Americans, I have fallen victim to the allure of “boneless” chicken wings. After all, the convenience is irresistible. Besides, it sounds like poultry’s answer to the soft-shell crab, in that both are consumed without concern for their skeletal structure.

Boneless wings, however, have generated a fair amount of controversy for the simple reason that they not actually wings at all. As others have noted, such wings are chunks of white breast meat shaped to resemble, eat, and taste like wings once they’ve been breaded, deep-fried, and sauced.

It’s like putting chicken and waffles together, smothering them in gravy, and calling it “breakfast’ — as they have been known to do in Pennsylvania Dutch country.

In any case, Bon Appétit, one of the magazines foodies swear by, or at least subscribe to, calls them “little white meat lies”. Admittedly, Bon Appétit is not the go-to read for the Wing Bowl crowd. Nonetheless, there’s no denying the truthiness of its observation.

Notably missing in boneless wings, besides the obvious, are the flavor and juiciness akin to dark meat and the skin of the legitimate wing. Some have claimed that, in their heart, or, more appropriately, in their marrow, they know that boneless chicken wings are no more than adulterated chicken nuggets.

They are really wings in name only, or WINOs as they are commonly called at a certain private resort in Palm Beach, Florida.

Regardless of where you stand on this bona fide issue, one of the more interesting aspects of this year’s crop (or is it “flock” or “flight”) of wings is their lower price. In a period of significant inflation, the cost of wings is down double digits from a year ago according to the USDA.

By contrast, the King Crab Legs entrée at the Henlopen City Oyster House in Rehoboth goes for the princely sum of $200. Now that’s not chicken feed.

Mike Berger is a freelance writer and retired university administrator with a home in Lewes. Contact him at edadvice@comcast.net.

This article originally appeared on Salisbury Daily Times: Delaware rules the roost in broilers, and yes, chicken wings too