Crispy Baked Chicken Wings
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These crispy baked chicken wings come out beautifully browned and crisp without deep-frying. The secret is a quick parboil before they go into the oven.
If you’re looking for a baked chicken wings recipe that actually gets crispy, this is the one I swear by. I’ve tried the baking powder method that many recipes use, but I’ve never been happy with the results. My trick is to parboil the wings before they go into the oven. The brief simmer renders some of the excess fat from the skin, helping the wings brown and crisp beautifully as they bake.
Before baking, I toss the wings with a smoky spice rub that gives them plenty of flavor on their own. You can serve them just as they are or with Buffalo sauce, plus blue cheese dressing or ranch dressing.
“Super crispy…My husband, who is a wing nut, loved these. This is the only way I will be making my wings from now on.”
What You’ll Need To Make Baked Chicken Wings
- Chicken wings: Look for wings that are already split into drumettes and flats to save yourself some prep. If you buy whole wings, cut them at the joints and discard the tips or save them for stock.
- Vegetable oil: A neutral, high-heat oil is best for coating the wings before baking.
- Smoked paprika, garlic powder, salt, and black pepper: This simple spice blend gives the wings a smoky, savory flavor and plenty of seasoning even without sauce.
- Frank’s RedHot and butter: For Buffalo-style wings, toss the baked wings with melted butter and Frank’s RedHot Original. Frank’s is my go-to here for that classic Buffalo flavor.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
How To Make Crispy Baked Chicken Wings
Boil the wings: Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, add the wings, and boil briefly. This renders some of the fat from the skin, helping the wings crisp up in the oven. Drain the wings thoroughly.
Dry and season the wings: Transfer the wings to a baking sheet and blot them as dry as possible with paper towels, wiping away any moisture on the baking sheet, too. This is important—moisture will cause them to steam rather than crisp up. Drizzle with vegetable oil, sprinkle with the salt and spices, and toss until evenly coated.
Bake until crisp: Bake the wings in a hot oven, then flip and continue baking until browned and crispy all over.
Make the Buffalo sauce, if you like: Whisk together the melted butter and Frank’s RedHot. Serve the sauce on the side with the crispy wings.
Video Tutorial
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Crispy Baked Chicken Wings
Ingredients
For the Chicken Wings
- Salt
- 3 pounds chicken wings, split into drummettes and wings (tips discarded)
- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
For the Buffalo Sauce (optional)
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- 6 tablespoons Frank's Red Hot Original Cayenne Pepper Sauce (or similar brand)
Instructions
For the Chicken Wings
- Preheat the oven to 450°F (235°C) and set an oven rack in the middle position.
- In a large pot, bring 4 qts (4L) of water and 1 tablespoon of salt to a rapid boil. Add the chicken wings, return to a boil, and boil them for 7 minutes. Drain the wings thoroughly in a colander.
- Place the wings on a 13 x 18-in (33 x 46-cm) baking sheet. Using a wad of paper towels, blot the wings as dry as possible (wipe off any moisture from the baking sheet, too). Drizzle the oil over the wings and sprinkle with 1 teaspoon salt, the chili powder, cumin, and smoked paprika. Toss with a rubber spatula until the wings are evenly coated. Bake for 15 minutes, then remove the pan from the oven and, using tongs, flip the wings over. Return to the oven and bake for about 10 minutes more, or until the wings are crispy all over. Transfer the wings to a serving platter and serve with the Buffalo sauce on the side, if desired.
For the Buffalo Sauce
- In a small bowl, whisk together the butter and hot sauce. The sauce will solidify as it cools; reheat if necessary.
Notes
Nutrition Information
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
Gluten-Free Adaptable Note
To the best of my knowledge, all of the ingredients used in this recipe are gluten-free or widely available in gluten-free versions. There is hidden gluten in many foods; if you're following a gluten-free diet or cooking for someone with gluten allergies, always read the labels of your ingredients to verify that they are gluten-free.
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Can I use Himalayan salt or sea salt or kosher salt instead? Also, can I cook the wings in an air fryer? Would love to make these!
For the salt, that’s fine; you may want to use just a touch more. And regarding the air fryer, I don’t have one so I haven’t tried it, but I think it should work. Please report back if you try it!
Hi again. This is Jim. I had the wings on a rack over parchment. No sticking and clean up was a breeze.
Hi Jenn. I made your wings and they turned out OK. Good flavor but not crispy at all. I tried to follow your instructions to the letter. Would it help to parboil the wings for more than 7 minutes to eliminate more of the fat?
Hi Jim, Sorry you had trouble with these! I think the issue may have been cooking the wings on a rack. If you want to give it another shot, I would try cooking them directly on the sheet pan (no parchment or foil).
Par-boiling sounds like it would effectively aid in achieving crispness. What would you think about adding baking powder to the season mix, per J. Kenji Alt’s advice?
Hi Mike, I don’t think it would hurt, but it’s really not necessary if you par-boil. Hope that helps!
Excellent recipe!! I think Jenn is one of the best chefs there is. I will always look her recipes up and I love her cookbooks. It really has changed the way I cook and serve food to my family and friends. Thanks Jenn!
Regarding these chicken wings….yum yum yum! The second time I cooked them I added ground garlic to the chili, cumin and smoked paprika. Mine also stuck, but I used regular foil. Next time I will use non stick foil. I did notice however, that if you let the wings sit (in between the 15 minutes cooking time and returning them back in for 10 minutes) for a few minutes, that the wings released easier….so I just waited a few minutes, turned them and put them back in for the last 10 minutes. This is an excellent recipe!! Thanks Jenn.
Good morning Jenn, I love your recipe for the chicken wings, but I’ve run out of them, I do have drumsticks could I get away with cooking according to the recipe. Thanks so much I enjoy all your recipes. Fiona
Hi Fiona, you can use drumsticks here; they will just take a few minutes longer to cook. I’d love to hear how they turn out!
So good. The easy buffalo sauce and I had drumsticks. Next time I will do wings. Can’t wait to do them again!
These wings are absolutely delicious! I’d never made wings before but made these for Superbowl Sunday and will never need to look elsewhere for a recipe. My husband isn’t even a fan of wings for the most part but he requested I make these twice last week so he’s definitely a convert thanks to you! Thanks for another fantastic recipe!
Delicious and easy to make
Definitely want to put parchment paper on sheet pan or else your wings will stick
Just made the wings. Superb
I did boil them a couple hours earlier. Turned out really good. Will make them again
These wings have become a staple in our house! They are outstanding, and better than most restaurants. Tip: use parchment paper so they don’t stick.