What, Exactly, Does Buffalo Wild Wings Fry Its Wings In?

Every fancy restaurant, fast food chain, and home chef has their own way of cooking chicken wings. Some say the key is using boneless wings, others say the trick lies in how you do the cooking, but Buffalo Wild Wings likes to keep things traditional. So traditional that its secret to making the most crispy, flavorful chicken wings involves using an unconventional ingredient that's making a steady comeback: beef shortening.

Yes, you read that correctly. According to its official Allergen & Preparation Guide, Buffalo Wild Wings fries all of its wings (including cauliflower wings), chips, tater tots, and a good majority of its chicken-based menu items in beef shortening (otherwise known as beef tallow). But there's no need to sound the health department alarms just yet! The popular chain restaurant has good reason for using beef shortening in its recipes, and according to modern kitchen wizards, it isn't as dangerous as we were once led to believe.

Beef shortening, a rendered fat from the kidneys and loins of cattle, has been a primary ingredient in the kitchen for generations. It wasn't until the 20th century when negative public health perceptions about tallow and shortenings became rampant that it was phased out of cooking use in favor of oils such as olive oil, avocado oil, and other vegetable oils. But these days, the historic ingredient is slowly making its way back into popularity, proving to have many benefits in the kitchen that other oils simply can't compete with. A high smoke point and a cheaper price point make beef shortening a distinct alternative to creating that golden-brown crust that Buffalo Wild Wings is known for.

Though some chefs have tried frying chicken with duck shortening, and other chefs have tried using chicken shortening, even Michelin-starred Chef Danny Grant agrees with Buffalo Wild Wings that frying food in beef shortening is the best way to achieve an extraordinary flavor. Buffalo Wild Wings uses a combination of seed oils and a plethora of secret seasonings to give its wings that extra touch, but it's the chain's use of beef shortening in the frying process that sets them apart. 

If more restaurants follow in Buffalo Wild Wings' footsteps by using beef shortening in the future, maybe you'll be surprised to see articles about the "demise of vegetable oil" instead of Googling "how is beef shortening made" as soon as you finish this sentence.