Crispy Baked Chicken Wings
These Crispy Oven Baked Chicken Wings are a staple in our house. We love them as is with the simple spice rub and with a garlicky dipping sauce or ranch dressing dipping sauce. They are super easy to make and come out the oven nice and crispy on the outside and tender on the inside and so delicious. The can also be enjoy with a hot buffalo sauce for a buffalo wings version too and they are perfect as an appetizer or a game-day snack. Great base chicken wings recipe for all your sauces.
Why You Are Going To Love This Recipe
- Totally a no-fail recipe for crispy baked wings
- Very easy to make
- Although I have given you a tasty dry spice rub you can literally use any spice rub you like on these babies - it’s the technique that matters!
- No deep frying required or breading
- They go with just about any dipping sauce you can think of (I included an easy buffalo sauce)
Crispy Baked Wings Ingredients
- CHICKEN WINGS: This recipe calls for 2 pounds of fresh chicken wings, wingettes and drumettes split, which is the max amount that I can comfortably fit in a single layer on my baking sheet with rack. If you are cooking more, you’ll need to bake them in batches.
- SPICES: I use a blend of salt, pepper, paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, dry mustard powder and cayenne pepper.
- BAKING POWDER: DO NOT confuse with baking soda - this is the secret ingredient which is not so secret really that helps make these chicken wings nice and crispy and evenly golden. Try to use and aluminum free one if possible for the most neutral tasting baking powder.
- OPTIONAL ADD INS: Feel free to use any dry rub you like for these baked chicken wings (try lemon pepper, cajun, middle eastern spice blend etc). I didn’t do a heavier coat on these but you can definitely double up on the paprika or the cayenne for some extra heat or any of the other spices. If you want a hint of sweetness to the dry rub feel free to add a little brown sugar to it which will also help caramelize the wings too (1-2 teaspoons)
What You Will Need To Make These Baked Chicken Wings
- BAKING SHEET with WIRE RACK: The best way to ensure your chicken wings are nice and crispy all over is to bake them on a wire rack over a lined rimmed baking sheet for easy cleanup. This will ensure that the wings do not steam up and allows the fat to sort of melt off them during their initial low bake period then crisp up all over after. If you bake them straight on the baking sheet I cannot guarantee that your wings will be crispy - they may still be tasty and cook through but they won’t be nearly as crispy all over.
How To Make Baked Crispy Chicken Wings
- Preheat oven and prepare baking sheet and baking rack
- Pat the wings dry with paper towels
- Toss wings with spices and baking powder so they are evenly coated
- Place wings on wire rack over baking sheet and bake for INITIAL low temp bake
- Remove wings from oven and increase temp and place them back in the oven for the SECONDARY higher temp bake.
- Remove wings from oven once done and make the hot butter sauce and toss with the sauce or serve it on the side or enjoy them as is with any dipping sauce on the side and mini carrots/ carrot sticks and celery sticks
Baked Chicken Wings Storage & Reheating
- STORAGE: Leftover cooked and cooled chicken wings should be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
- REHEATING: Baked Chicken wings taste best right our the oven and eaten within 30min-1 hour of coming out the oven if you want them crispy. If they are tossed in sauce they stay crispy for 15-20 min, but will be soggy when reheating. If you are reheating wings that have not been tossed in sauce - for best results you can do so in the oven on a baking sheet at 400 degrees f for 5-8 min. You can reheat stove top or in the microwave but they may not be as crispy.
More Game Day Food & Appetizers You Will Love:
Recipe
Servings: 2-4
Prep Time: 10 mins
Cook Time: 1 hr 5 mins
Total Time: 1 hr 15 mins
Ingredients
- 2 Ibs split chicken wings (wingettes and drumettes)
- 1 tablespoon baking powder (not optional)
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon ground mustard
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper or chili flakes plus more to taste
For Hot Butter/Buffalo Sauce (optional)
- ¼ cup unsalted butter, melted
- ½ cup Frank’s Original Red Hot Sauce
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 250°F.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the baking powder, onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, cayenne, ground mustard, salt and pepper.
- Add the wings to the spice rub mixture and toss in the dry rub to coat evenly.
- Line a baking sheet/sheet pan with aluminum foil, spray wire rack lightly with cooking spray and place wire rack over baking sheet, then place the wings on top.
- Bake for 40 minutes. Remove pan with wings from oven and increase the oven temperature to 450°F.
- Return the wings to the oven after it reaches temperature and bake for 25 minutes. Remove the wings and enjoy with any sauce you like for dipping or make the hot butter sauce and toss the wings in the sauce before serving. (Alternatively, serve wings plain with Buffalo Sauce for dipping).
- To garnish, transfer to a platter and top with chopped parsley and serve with carrot sticks, celery sticks and blue cheese dressing, restaurant style if desired
- For the Hot Butter Sauce / Buffalo sauce (Optional): For the hot butter, place the butter, hot sauce, sugar and salt in large saucepan over medium-low heat. Swirl constantly to melt the butter, about 1 minute. Once melted and sugar has dissolved add the wings to the pan and increase the heat to medium. Cook for another 30 seconds or so to coat the wings in the melted butter sauce.
Recipe Notes
The three methods that make this recipe successful:
- Coating the wings with the baking powder along with the spices in the dry rub
- Baking on low then high heat
- Baking them on a rack. If you skip any of these three methods you will not get the same outcome.
