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I steered close to her guidance for the sour cream feta dip and the marinade, which my husband handled the night before, and then the next day I veered into uncharted waters by letting the wings air dry for a few hours in the fridge before tossing them in a dry rub for ultimate crispiness, which is always where I want to end up when making wings.

I made some slight variations to her chipotle-agave dipping sauce by swapping out olive oil for shallots and garlic lightly caramelized in brown butter, and then blending the sauce. These are hands down the best chicken wings I have ever made or eaten, and in a game day situation, no matter the team you’re rooting for, this is a big win. I have finally found our new family game day go-to.

Crispy chipotle chicken wings

Makes: 4-6 servings;

total time: 4 hours to 2 days, depending

on the length of marinade time

For the marinade:

2 cups buttermilk

4 garlic cloves, finely chopped

2 chipotle chiles with sauce from a can of chipotles in adobe sauce, finely chopped

Zest and juice of 1 large orange

1 tablespoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon ground pepper

3 pounds chicken wings

For the dry rub:

2 tablespoons baking powder

2 teaspoons kosher salt

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 teaspoon ground coriander

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon smoked paprika

1 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning

For the chipotle brown butter sauce:

3 tablespoons butter

2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

1 large shallot, peeled and thinly sliced

4 tablespoons real maple syrup

2 tablespoons sauce from chipotles in adobo

3 teaspoons hot sauce (like tabasco)

2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar

Salt and pepper to taste

For the sour cream feta dip:

1 cup sour cream

¾ cup crumbled feta cheese

Zest and juice of 1 juicy lime

2 tablespoons chopped cilantro

2 tablespoons chopped chives

Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation: First, marinate the wings: In a large bowl, stir together all of the marinade ingredients. Add the chicken wings, making sure they are fully coated and cover this with a lid or plastic wrap and marinate for anywhere between two hours and overnight.

When you are done marinating them, line a sheet tray with a couple of layers of paper towels and place each wing on the tray in a single layer. Use paper towels to pat dry the tops and place this in the fridge for a couple of hours to let them dry out more.

Cook the wings: Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Line a large sheet tray with foil or parchment paper (which makes cleanup easy) and place a cooling rack on top of the tray. If you don’t have a cooling rack that safely sits on the sheet tray, it’s OK — just place them on parchment paper or a silicone baking sheet. This step just helps the entire wing get crispy during cooking. Whisk together the dry rub ingredients in a large bowl, add the dried chicken wings and toss gently to completely coat the wings. Place the wings in a single layer on your prepared sheet tray and transfer them to the oven. Cook for 20 minutes, flip each wing over and cook for another 20 minutes, or until the internal temperature of the wings are at least 165 degrees.

To make the chipotle-brown butter sauce: Place a small saucepan over medium heat. Add the butter and let the butter melt and start to bubble. Add the shallots and garlic and cook until the butter turns a golden caramel color. Turn off the heat and add the maple syrup, adobo sauce, hot sauce and apple cider vinegar. Taste and add salt and pepper as needed. Blend this until smooth and pour directly into a small bowl for serving.

To make the sour cream feta dip: Fold together the sour cream, lime zest, lime juice, cilantro and chives. Add salt and pepper as needed.

Serve the chicken wings with the chipotle-brown butter sauce and sour cream feta dip on the side. Carrot and celery sticks are a great accompaniment.