CityView Magazine

28 | July/August 2017 advertising, and a local dry rub. Each had a specific pepper as the base of the sauce: a habanero, ghost, secret recipe, and red chili. I sampled four North Carolina beers, two IPAs, one Double IPA, and a Cream Ale. ese I decided to grade on a scale of "Drink" or "Do Not Drink." You can contact my publicist to contact CityView if you'd like me to recommend the only one I awarded "Drink." Otherwise, the beers were pretty mediocre. I opted for a severe grading scale because there is not enough time on the planet to drink bad beer. Because, with the exception of the cream ale, I only drank IPAs, and thus used a rigorous grading metric of "how much water can I taste." A good friend describes the flavor profile of IPAs as tasting "like a pine tree." ey're such naturally intense beers that very little apart from the flavorful sting of the higher hop content is tasted. So, a good IPA shouldn't be dilute, and if you taste anything that seems like the blandness of good old water, it's a crap beer. Despite what high-paid food critics may tell you, there's no real reason to judge a beer other than as good to drink or diluted junk. To prepare the drumettes, I tossed the wings in a ziplock bag with flour until each piece was coated. Aerwards, I tossed two drumettes each in a ziplock bag with roughly 4-5 tablespoons of a certain hot sauce. e two drumettes that got the dry rub I just tossed once in a bag with flour and the dry rub. en I cooked the chicken in an oven preheated to 400° for 35-40 minutes occasionally taking it out to brush more hot sauce on. e assessment: Habanero is king, and I don't understand dry rub. Beer better not taste like water, and tater tots better be crispy. Certain hot sauces are too sweet, and then there're the sadistic varieties that make you so preoccupied with a certain transcendental burning sensation that flavor is irrelevant. Habanero is a good, moderate choice that does not overwhelm other flavors like the pineapple and banana that were in this variety I had. I'm uncertain of the chemistry behind it, but you know a hot sauce is good when the sugars in it congeal when cooked and get on your hands—let's call this the "Finger- Licking Quotient." I forgot the pickles! e pickles weren't a focus for flavor, but if we're thinking summer and burly-man type meals, of the pub eats variety, pickles are fundamental. You always need a vehicle for salt. And so I hear salt is good for rehydration, and when you find that beer that meets the "Good to Drink" criteria, you may need some electrolyte replenishment. CV Recipe for Loaded Tater Tots 1 Bag Tater Tots 2-3 Jalapeños 4-5 Green Onions 1 Package of Bacon 1 Bag Shredded Mild Cheddar or Monterey Jack Cheese 1. On a glass or steel baking sheet, line the strips of bacon without overlapping. Cook in a cold oven set at 400° for 20 minutes. This is known as the Bacon Method. Really. You can look it up online. 2. While bacon is cooking, spread out the tater tots on another baking sheet and let thaw until bacon is done. Once bacon is done remove it and let cool—preheat the oven to 450°. 3. Once the oven reaches 450°, put the tater tots in the oven and cook until consistently brown. (Side note: I had an epic rant after I got loaded tater tots at a local establishment that came out in a skillet with all the tater tots a pale gold. We will only settle for brown, barely golden. Tots are a texture, and they must be crispy.) 4. While you are waiting for the tater tots to cook, bundle the bacon and cut to your desired size. The goal is to evenly distribute the bacon across the tater tots. 5. Roughly chop the green onions and set aside. 6. Thinly slice the jalapeños and set aside along with the seeds. 7. Once the tater tots are finished, take out the tray and dribble the jalapeños, green onions, bacon and cheese evenly on the tater tots in that order. Set the oven to a low broil and continue cooking until the cheese bubbles. 8. It's always a stylish option to transfer the loaded mixture to one of the single-serving cast iron skillets before broiling. This will impress people.

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