The six wing sauces at Harold's: which one to order, and why

There is a question we hear every night, usually with the menu still open: which one should I get?

It is a fair question, because on a plate of wings the sauce is not a side. It is the dish. Everybody has chicken; what tells one plate of wings from another is what coats it. That is why we keep six sauces, and why they are cooked here, in the kitchen on Alonso Cano, rather than bought ready-made.

Why a cooked sauce does not taste like one from a jar

An industrial sauce is built to sit on a shelf for months and taste the same every time. You get there with sugar, vinegar and thickeners, and the result is flat: it hits hard, sits on the tip of your tongue and stops.

A cooked sauce behaves differently. The ingredients are sweated, the sauce is reduced, corrected and left to rest, and along the way it grows layers — an opening, a body and a finish that are not the same thing. That is the logic of Louisiana cooking, where sauces are dishes in their own right rather than a last-minute addition. There is more on that in our guide to Creole and cajun cooking.

The six sauces, one by one

Bourbon

The house sauce, and the most ordered by a distance. Sweet and toasted, with the wood-and-vanilla base that bourbon leaves behind as it reduces, and enough salt to keep it from turning cloying. It is the best first time: no heat, almost universally liked, and the one people remember when they come back.

If you are only trying one, try this.

Hot Louisiana

The one that bites, and the one you can dial: order it mild, medium or hot. This is not the dry heat that numbs your mouth; it is the flavoured heat of Louisiana sauces, built on cayenne, with acidity behind it so the next bite is as good as the first.

Hot is genuinely hot. Worth asking the table before ordering it for everyone.

Honey

Butter and smoked honey. The sweetest of the six and the gentlest, which makes it the safe bet when you are with children or with someone who will not hear of chilli. The smoke is what saves it from being merely sweet: it leaves a base that nods at barbecue without being it.

Buffalo

The American classic, made in house. Buffalo sauce was born in Buffalo, New York, in the 1960s, and in its original form is barely two things: cayenne hot sauce and butter, emulsified. It carries moderate heat, it is sharp, and it is the one that cleans your palate best between bites.

If what you want is proper American bar wings, this is your sauce.

Ranch

The only creamy one of the six, and the one most people order twice. Ranch is a cold buttermilk sauce with herbs and garlic, and here it works as a counterweight: it cuts through the frying instead of adding to it. It can be ordered with or without heat.

It is also the easiest one to share with someone who would rather not get messy: order it on the side and dip.

Original

Unsauced. The wings arrive exactly as they leave the fryer, properly crunchy, and whichever sauce you pick comes in a pot on the side.

It is not the boring option. It is the option for people who want the last wing to crunch like the first.

Which to order, depending on who you came with

Coated, or sauce on the side

There is a small war between the two camps, and it helps to know what it is about before you order.

A coated wing is tossed in the sauce straight out of the fryer, and the crust soaks it up. It gains flavour — every millimetre of crust tastes of the sauce — and loses crunch as the minutes pass. That is how they are eaten in the American South, and the reason they are served the second they are ready and eaten fast.

A wing with the sauce on the side keeps its crunch to the end, but only tastes of sauce where you dipped it.

There is no right answer. There is a trick: order one coated portion and one Original, and put the pot in the middle. That way you have both on the same table.

How many to order

Portions are 6 wings (€6.95) and 12 wings (€10.95), and an extra sauce costs €1.

For reference: six works as a starter for one, or shared between two if you are ordering other things. Twelve serves two as a starter, or one person as a main. A table of four usually orders two or three portions with different sauces and passes them round.

They are in the Specialty Chicken Wings section of the menu, next to the rest of the fried chicken.

Frequently asked

Which wing sauce is the most ordered?

Bourbon, and it is not close. It is the house sauce and the one most first-timers end up with.

Which sauces are spicy, and how spicy?

Hot Louisiana comes mild, medium or hot. Ranch comes with or without heat. Buffalo carries the moderate kick of the American classic. The others do not bite.

Can I mix sauces in the same order?

Each portion comes with one sauce, but you can add an extra sauce for a euro to dip into. That is what most groups do.

Are the wings on the bone?

Yes, they are whole chicken wings. If you want chicken off the bone, the strips are the same idea with the same sauces.

Is there a gluten-free or dairy-free option?

The crust is made with wheat flour, so the wings are not coeliac-friendly. For dairy and other allergens, ask us when you book or when you arrive — we know them by heart and we would rather tell you in person.

In short

Six sauces, each cooked in house, on chicken breaded by hand and fried when you order it. First time: Bourbon. In a group: one coated, one spicy and a pot of ranch in the middle. And if crunch matters to you above everything else: Original, with the sauce on the side.