Hot Wings for Packed Lunches, Picnics or Fishing Trips

Chicken wings can be kept hot in a food flask for several hours

This post definitely has to count as a serving suggestion rather than a recipe but hopefully you will think it a good idea and benefit from the technique. The good news is that this tip can also be made to apply to a great many foodstuffs other than chicken wings, from chicken drumsticks or thighs to meat pies to meat stews to root vegetable selections.

It is based on the premise of using a food flask to keep the chicken wings warm. A food flask is based on exactly the same principal as the more popular vacuum flasks designed to contain liquids. You can pick them up pretty cheaply (especially on Amazon) and if you look after them properly, they can often last for a lifetime. I have had the one used here since I was a very young child (about forty years!) and it still works as well as it did the day I got it. I couldn't even begin to guess how many fishing trips my flask has been on.



One thing I would suggest, however, re putting wings (or anything else) in a flask like this: don't put things in it that are required to be eaten by hand and are covered in sticky sauces. Especially if you're going fishing or going on a picnic, you may not have ideal hand cleaning facilities available. There is also of course the possibility that the sauce would forever stain the inside of your flask!

Tips are cut from whole chicken wings

I'll show you now how to prepare and store basic roast chicken wings in your food flask that they should keep warm for easily four hours and perhaps even slightly longer.

While my oven was preheating to 400F/200C/Gas Mark 6, I chopped the tips off some whole wings. The tips were discarded.

Tipped chicken wings are halved

I then cut the main parts of the wings in two.

Chicken wings are turned in seasoned oil

In to a large bowl went a couple of tablespoons of vegetable oil (vary as required depending upon number of wings). I seasoned the oil with salt and pepper before stirring the wings through it to evenly coat.

Chicken wings ready for roasting

The wings were arranged skin sides up in a single layer on a roasting tray. They then went in to the oven for thirty minutes.

Heating food flask

A few minutes before the wings were ready, I opened up my food flask, poured in enough boiling water to nearly but not quite fill it and put the seal and lid in place. I left it for a few minutes.

Drying heated food flask

Open the flask and very carefully pour the water out at your sink. Use a clean tea towel to quickly dry the flask. Lift the wings in to the flask with cooking tongs, put the seal and lid in place and you're ready to go.

Food flask of hot chicken wings is ready to go