Skinny Cooks Can't Be Trusted by Dave Kessler 

 

Once in a while on Saturdays and Sundays I get a chance to tune in to the “Chubby Howard Show” and listen to Chubby and his sidekick Wyatt McCubbin talk about country music artists and spin some good classic country music.

Chubby is a Hall of Fame pedal steel guitar player and Wyatt is one of the hot singers who lives in this area, but is in Nashville almost weekly. You can hear them on WBZI 1500 AM or WEDI 1130 AM.

The reason I mention the guys is I heard them mention a place that serves hog wings. That really got my attention because I know pigs can’t fly … but Chubby and Wyatt wouldn’t lead me astray on some good eating.

After checking this out I can tell you how to make some delicious barbecued hog wings yourself.

What you need is some shanks from the front legs of the hog. Some companies sell these precooked and frozen, and other markets sell them fresh out of the meat case.

You push the meat from the small end of the shank bone up about an inch, leaving about an inch of bone to hold on to when you have them prepared and are ready to eat. Here’s the rest of the ingredients and the methods.

Barbecued Hog Wings

Hog shanks (front leg shanks)

Apple juice

Barbecue dry rub, the kind you like best

Barbecue sauce, the kind you like best, warmed up

If you buy the precooked frozen shanks, you just need to thaw them out. Then follow the grill instructions below. If you buy fresh from the meat case, you’ll need to par-boil them until they’re cooked through about medium.

Put the shanks over good, hot coals on the rack of your grill and baste them with apple juice every now and then, turning them over until they get good color and have almost finished cooking. Then sprinkle on the dry rub, turning them over again to grill on each side.

Warm up your favorite barbecue sauce and serve it in bowls alongside each plate. Some folks will want to pour or spoon the warm sauce over the hog wings, and some may want to use it as a dipping sauce.

When you’ve got the system down so you don’t overcook them, you’ll have good, moist barbecued pork with good smoky flavor and color.

The restaurant and bar famous for these is Warner’s Smoke House, located at 11396 Allen Rd., Jeffersonville, OH 43128. The recipe above is not the recipe used by Marsha and the gang at Warner’s; they have a secret recipe.

They sell their special hog wings as appetizers, with four going for $10.49. You can get half-orders because these average 4-6 ounces each – and that’s a lot of good eating.

Readers with questions or comments for Dave Kessler may write to him in care of this publication.