Origin of the Spices: The Evolution of the Buffalo Wing

Everyone loves buffalo wings, but who exactly invented them?



Well, add to that list the humble buffalo wing—America’s favorite meat-based appetizer and a staple of Super Bowl parties everywhere. This Sunday, an estimated 1.2 billion chicken wings will be eaten in the U.S., according to the National Chicken Council. What’s more, this year happens to be the 50th anniversary of the buffalo wing... or so we're told.

The true history of the chicken wing is mired in mystery fit for the annals of the great creation myths. But one thing seems certain: The buffalo wing was definitely invented in Buffalo, New York, in the 1960s.

The Anchor Bar Theory

Most buffalo wing origin stories revolve around the Anchor Bar, a long-standing Buffalo restaurant owned by the Bellissimo family. The general consensus is that this place gave birth to the now famous chicken wings, but exactly how is less clear.

Most origin stories revolve around Buffalo's Anchor Bar.



Today, the bar that still claims to be the home of the original buffalo wing, and its modern-day menu offers up a purportedly authentic (but probably apocryphal) story from the son of the original owners, claiming that his mom made the wings as a one-off late-night snack for him and his friends.

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Anchor Bar in Buffalo, NY

The John Young Theory


...an entirely different restaurant with an entirely different recipe.



What exactly is a buffalo wing?


wing prep.jpg

However they’re made and whatever their origin, buffalo wings are widely beloved in the United States. Last year, in response to questionable reports of a looming wing shortage ahead of the Super Bowl, two men even made off with $65,000 worth of frozen wings. They were quickly caught, presumably due to the challenge of secretly transporting 10 pallets of frozen chicken wings.

Last year’s shortage never really came to pass, and this year’s supply of chicken wings is expected to match the record 1.25 billion wings consumed in 2012.

“More chickens mean a bigger supply of wings and more favorable prices this year for consumers,” said Bill Roenigk, chief economist and market analyst for the National Chicken Council, in a statement. “Based off of current supermarket features, consumers can expect to pay around five percent less than last January for wings.”

If your Super Bowl feast includes buffalo wings this year (we recommend this recipe from Elise Bauer over at Simply Recipes), do try and pay homage to their creators—whoever they are.

Images: Hero: Flickr user "dishingupdelights" (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0); Bar: Wikipedia Commons user "Darmon" (CC BY 2.0)

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