Today I’m eating the best oven-baked chicken wings with homemade Buffalo sauce. Check out my other chicken recipes.
For years, I’ve looked for a suitable oven-baked chicken wings recipe that produced a crispy wing without having to fry them in oil. I’ve seen everything from adding corn starch or baking soda to the rub to double baking at different temperatures.
I had given up.
Yes, it’s healthier to oven-bake chicken wings that to fry them, but the New Yorker in me couldn’t bring myself to really enjoy a wing out of the oven – until now. I finally experimented by cranking the oven and letting ’em go until they looked like fried wings to me.
And these are hands-down the best oven wings you’ll ever have.
Prepare the Chicken Wings
Grab about two pounds of separated chicken wings. If the wings come whole, separate at the joint and the wing tip to get a flat and a drumette.
Pat the wings dry with paper towels, then season liberally with a rub of salt, pepper, paprika, granulated garlic and brown sugar. You can do this either immediately before cooking or the night before. If seasoning the night before, put them uncovered in the refrigerator to maximize skin crispiness.
Cook the Chicken Wings
Heat the oven to 450 degrees and remove the wings from the refrigerator while the oven preheats. I’ve found you want to allow the wings to approach room temperature before cooking.
Place the wings on a wire rack over a rimmed baking sheet. This will allow the heat to evenly swirl around the wings while the fat renders off.
Cook for 45-50 minutes, flipping halfway, or until the wings reach an internal temperature of 175 degrees.
Prepare the Sauce
While the wings are cooking, prepare the sauce. A good wing with a bad sauce is devastating. A bad wing with a great sauce is equally devastating. You need them both to work together to create a beautiful experience.
This sauce is inspired by the entire wing-eating experience, combining hot sauce and blue cheese for a deep, rich Buffalo sauce that makes these wings impossible to resist.
In small sauce pan, melt one tablespoon of butter. Then, add 1/2 cup of Frank’s Red Hot, 1/4 cup of crumbled blue cheese and a couple dashes of Worcestershire sauce. Heat to just simmering, then reduce heat to low and keep warm while the wings finish.
The Eat
When the wings are finished, toss in the warmed sauce and plate. Serve immediately and eat with plenty of napkins and beer.
Print
Best Oven-Baked Chicken Wings
- Total Time: 55 minutes
- Yield: 24 wings 1x
Description
Crispy fried texture in an oven-baked chicken wing. Not to mention a killer Buffalo Sauce.
Ingredients
- 2 pounds chicken wings, separate into flats and drumettes
The Rub
- 2 tsp kosher salt
- 2 tsp fresh cracked black pepper
- 2 tsp granulated garlic
- 2 tsp brown sugar
- 2 tsp paprika
The Buffalo Sauce
- 1 Tbsp unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup Frank’s Red Hot
- 1/4 cup crumbled blue cheese
- 2 dashes Worcestershire sauce
Instructions
Chicken Wings
- Preheat oven to 450 degrees
- Combine rub ingredients in a small bowl or spice shaker
- Pat wings dry and season liberally with the rub
- Put wings on a wire rack over a rimmed baking sheet and cook for 45-50 minutes, flipping halfway, or until wings reach 175 degrees internal temperature
- Toss chicken wings in buffalo sauce
Buffalo Sauce
- While the wings are cooking, make the sauce. In a small sauce pan over medium-low heat, melt butter
- Add Frank’s Red Hot, crumbled blue cheese and Worcestershire sauce. Whisk to combine
- Cook, stirring occasionally, to a bare simmer, 10-15 minutes
- Keep warm while wings finish
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Category: Appetizer
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 12 wings
- Calories: 1,400
Keywords: Chicken wings, buffalo wings, hot sauce, oven-baked
