POLAND — On one end of the table: light brown chicken wings heaped haphazardly in a scarred metal pan.

On the other: deep brown wings nestled in a bed of greens, surrounded by carrots and celery. 

The judges hadn’t even taken a bite yet, but looking at the two entries, 13-year-old Aaron Smith was sure he and his fellow middle-schoolers had this cook-off beat. Sure, they were competing against firefighters — people who know a good chicken wing — but the 11 Bruce M. Whittier Middle School seventh- and eighth-graders had something the professionals didn’t. 

Presentation.

“I think we are going to win,” he said.

Of course, there’s more to wings than visual appeal. That’s where the apprehension lay.

“I haven’t tasted them yet,” Smith said, “so I can’t say.”

The math students compete in cooking contests with teachers every couple of weeks or so to learn math skills, life skills and how to work as a team. Before this week, they’d never competed with outsiders.

Wednesday morning, the middle-schoolers, who come from Poland, Minot and Mechanic Falls, and a half a dozen members of the Poland Fire Department, who work with the school as part of a community involvement program, faced off in the school’s first student-firefighter cook-off. The prize: bragging rights and an award dubbed The Golden Spoon.

Students began researching chicken-wing recipes in October. By December they’d chosen an Emeril Lagasse spicy honey wings recipe that called for a handmade creole seasoning. In white aprons with dark bandannas tied around their heads, the kids began cooking Wednesday morning, assigning some to mix ingredients, some to cook, and some to perfect presentation.

The firefighters used a firehouse favorite recipe known as “basic barbecue.” They brought their cooked wings to the school in a foil-wrapped pan.

“Hey, we’ve been busy saving lives all morning, bud,” joked firefighter Tom Printup, when one of the students pointed out the difference in presentation.

The five judges — including middle school Principal Ayesha Farag-Davis and fire Chief Mark Bosse — noticed the difference, too. But while appearance and appeal factored into the overall score, execution and taste did too.

“Oh, that’s good!” said Farag-Davis, taking a bite of a chicken wing made by the students.

Then, a few minutes later, “Delicious. This is really good,” she said, eating one of the firefighters’ chicken wings.

By the time the judges retired to another room to deliberate, there was no clear winner.

Kimberly Cressey, 14, figured the firefighters would win.

“I didn’t think our chicken would be good,” she said.

Firefighter Justin Carver figured the students would win. 

“It’s due to the greenery,” he said.

“Yeah,” Printup agreed. “Garnish. You’ve got to have garnish.”

When the judges emerged, they announced they liked the firefighters’ wings, but wanted more flavor.

“Greater complexity in the recipe,” Farag-Davis said.

They called the kids’ wings “spectacular.”

“In the words of one judge, ‘The Fire Department got schooled,'” Farag-Davis said.

The students won possession of The Golden Spoon, as well as the right to say they beat professional firefighters in a chicken wing cook-off. After the announcement, the two sides hugged and shook hands.

Then they ate wings.

“I think it’s important to note,” Farag-Davis said, “the judges would like to volunteer for another round.”

ltice@sunjournal.com

Winning recipe: Honey’s Spicy Honey Wings

From FoodNetwork.com

Ingredients

20 chicken wings

1½ cups all-purpose flour

3 tablespoons garlic powder

3 tablespoons Essence Creole Seasoning, (recipe below)

1 teaspoon kosher salt

½ teaspoon freshly ground white pepper

Vegetable oil, for frying

1 cup hot pepper sauce

½ cup honey

3 tablespoons dark brown sugar

Blue cheese or ranch dressing, for serving

Directions

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or nonstick aluminum foil.

To prepare chicken wings, cut off wing tips at the joint and discard the tips or reserve for another use. In a large bowl, combine flour, garlic powder, Essence Creole Seasoning, salt, and white pepper. Dredge the wings in the flour mixture, shaking off the excess and let set on a plate.

In a large, deep-sided pot, heat several inches of vegetable oil to 350 degrees F. When the oil is heated, dredge the wings a second time, again shaking off the excess.

Deep-fry the wings until crispy and golden brown, about 12 minutes. While wings are frying, mix the hot sauce, honey, and brown sugar in a large bowl until mixture is smooth. Remove the wings from the oil, pat dry and then dip in the hot sauce mixture to coat. Lay the wings on the baking sheet. Bake coated wings until the sauce is dry, about 12 minutes. Serve hot with blue cheese or ranch dressing.

Emeril’s Essence Creole Seasoning:

2½ tablespoons paprika

2 tablespoons salt

2 tablespoons garlic powder

1 tablespoon black pepper

1 tablespoon onion powder

1 tablespoon cayenne pepper

1 tablespoon dried oregano

1 tablespoon dried thyme

Combine all ingredients thoroughly.

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