These Crispy Baked Hot Wings are super crispy and delicious. You would never guess that they're baked instead of deep-fried.
I have had an on-again-off-again relationship with hot sauce for many years now. There have been times (frequently) that I would literally eat it off a spoon! Then again other times, the vinegary/spiciness of it bothers my mouth and/or my stomach and I stay away, at least temporarily.
I always have no less than 3 different types of hot sauce in my house, usually closer to 5. If I ever eat chicken wings they are, without a doubt, hot wings. It was only a matter of time before I started making them at home, and since I hate deep frying, I make Crispy Baked Hot Wings.
These do take a bit of time to make, thanks to their multi-step cooking process, but the result is totally worth it. The wings are super crispy, AND you don't have to deal with the mess and hassle of deep frying! You would never know that they weren't just pulled out of the deep fryer.
These wings would be perfect to serve at a Super Bowl party. To save time, steam them ahead and then keep them in the fridge for several hours, or overnight.
If you happen to not like hot sauce (WHAT??) you could also use the same method to cook the chicken wings, and use any sauce you like instead of the hot sauce. Serve the wings with cut-up raw veggies, and blue cheese or ranch dressing.
How to make Crispy Baked Hot Wings:
The key to making perfectly crispy wings in the oven is to follow a multi-step cooking process. Trust me, the extra steps are worth it.
First, steam the wings. This cooks the meat through and helps to render a little bit of fat from the skin.
Now we let them rest in the fridge. Make sure to leave them uncovered to give the skin a chance to dry out a little bit. This helps to make sure it becomes nice and crispy when they finish cooking.
The last step to cooking the wings is to put them in the oven. This finishes the cooking process and makes sure you end up with tender meat and crispy, not soggy skin.
Just before you're ready to serve the wings, mix up the wing sauce. This is a super-easy mixture of common pantry ingredients but adds more flavor and texture than simply using bottled hot sauce.
Crispy Baked Hot Wings Ingredients:
- Split chicken wings: if you happen to buy wings that aren't already split, you'll have to split them yourself. Use a sharp knife to remove and discard the wing tip. Then use the knife to separate the wingette from the drumette.
- Butter: Either salted or unsalted butter will work here. Use a Dairy-Free butter alternative to make this recipe Dairy-Free.
- Hot sauce: use your favorite type, but for a classic hot wing flavor I usually go with Frank's
- Garlic
- Salt: This is a great recipe to try using MSG-Salt
Want more game day snacks?
Crispy Baked Hot Wings Nutrition Notes:
Even though these wings are baked and not fried, they are still pretty high in fat (a lot of which is saturated fat). This is mostly thanks to the skin on the wings. Make sure to enjoy chicken wings in small portions.
This recipe is gluten-free as written. To make these wings dairy-free, simply replace the butter in the hot sauce mixture with a dairy-free butter alternative.
Crispy Baked Hot Wings
Ingredients
- 20 split chicken wings
- 2 Tablespoons butter melted (use Dairy Free butter alternative to make this recipe Dairy Free)
- 2 Tablespoons hot sauce
- 1 small clove garlic minced
- ½ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Bring a pot of water with a steamer on top to boil. Put the wings in steamer and steam for 10-15 minutes. (You may need to do this in batches depending on the size of your steamer).
- Line a baking pan with paper towels and place a wire rack on top. Set the steamed wings on the rack and place in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour.
- Heat oven to 425°F. Remove paper towels from the baking tray. Bake the chicken wings on the wire rack over the baking sheet for 20 minutes. Flip the wings, bake until skin is crispy and golden brown, 15-20 more minutes.
- Whisk melted butter, 2 Tablespoons hot sauce, minced garlic, and ½ teaspoon salt in a large bowl. Add chicken wings to the bowl and toss until coated.
Notes
Nutrition
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