As a lover of chicken wings, I always wonder who came up with the concept of a boneless version and why someone didn’t punch them in the face.  To me, the beauty of the wing is the small amount of delicious meat that is cooked while on the BONE. If you know anything about cooking, it is just common knowledge that everything tastes better cooked on the bone. Plus, being able to chew the meat off of a bone is just part of the charm.

What is this mystery meat that these people claim is wing meat? And if it is wing meat, how did they get it to look like a chicken mcnugget? Seriously, have you ever seen a piece of meat on a chicken wing that is the size of the smallest boneless wing? This mystery meat can not be trusted.

I decided to consult my sources on exactly what boneless wings consist of.  My findings did not surprise me.

What restaurants usually sell as “boneless chicken wings” are not wings, but other chicken parts.  All the meat is thrown in together in large containers.  The meat is then ground up and put in to molds, and artificial skin is put on the “chicken wings”.  They also very often dye it to make it whiter than it actually is.  After this process, the chicken wings are cooked and sent to the restaurant.  They resemble chicken wings, but are actually very processed.  Furthermore they also tend to use all the nasty stuff from chickens, such as the intestines, veins, arteries, etc. In this case, a thickening base is used.

So basically what you are eating is a combination of ground up chicken parts, dye, and chemicals.  AKA chicken mcnuggets.  Enjoy!

I went over to Sidetracks Bar & Grill last night for a tasty burger with goat cheese, sweet potato fries, and spinach, artichoke, and crab dip. If you’re not from the Ypsilanti area, you are really missing out. Visit their website and if you’re ever in the area, you need to make a visit. During the Winter, my go to beer is Bell’s Winter White, which is a delicious wheat beer that has some citrus and spice flavors. If you don’t live in an area that distributes Bell’s, I feel sorry for you. It’s based in Kalamazoo, but I have heard people from as far away as North Carolina say they have seen Bell’s beer for sale there. Anyways, Sidetracks was advertising Bell’s Hop Slam, which is on very limited release during the Winter season only (January and February, keg only).

Bell’s Hop Slam is an I.P.A. that is advertised to contain more hops in a pint than 8 pints of Budweiser. If you’re not familiar with “hops”, they are to beer what lemon is to lemon aid. It is a bittering ingredient without which, beer would be coyling sweet. Hops also add the aroma to your beer. Pretty much all you need to know, is hops create the balance between bitter and sweet. If you like sweeter beer, less hops. If you are a fan of bitters, more hops.

The beer was almost what I expected, but so much more. The amount of hops created a perfect balance between sweet and bitter. The strong taste of BEER existed, but it also contained a delicious citrusy sweet flavor. Add in the fact that it’s 11% alcohol, and you have a pretty impressive beer there.