33 Next-Level Chicken Wing Recipes

Fry, bake, grill, or smoke our best spicy, sticky, and crispy chicken wings.

By

Food & Wine Editors

Updated on February 6, 2024

Buffalo Wings — Photo:
Matt Taylor-Gross / Food Styling by Amelia Rampe

The first flavor that comes to mind when you think of chicken wings might be Buffalo — and it's a classic for a reason. But there are plenty of other sauces and rubs to try, whether you're baking your wings, frying them, or even grilling them. Smoked chicken wings with ranch dressing; crispy garlic-glazed chicken wings; limoncello-marinated chicken wings with pepperoni sauce (pepperoni! sauce!). With more than 30 chicken wings to choose from, you're sure to taste a few new favorites.

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Crispy Chicken Wings

A platter of crispy fried chicken wings served with buffalo sauce and glasses of beer — Diana Chistruga

Here's how to make basic fried crispy chicken wings. All you'll need are your split wings, all-purpose flour, good old salt and pepper, and a fair amount of oil for frying.

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Classic Buffalo Wings

Buffalo Wings — Matt Taylor-Gross / Food Styling by Amelia Rampe

There’s no substitute for a classic Buffalo wing when it comes to snacking while watching a game or relaxing on a weekend afternoon. These wings are fried, then tossed in a buttery hot sauce and served with blue cheese dipping sauce and celery. The tangy blue cheese dressing is the perfect counterpart to the wings. If you like extra-crispy wings, fry them for an extra minute or two. And if you have an air fryer, cook the wings skin-side up to keep the skin as crispy as possible.

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Air Fryer Lemon Pepper Chicken Wings with Hot Honey Glaze

Air Fryer Lemon Pepper Chicken Wings — Photo by Antonis Achilleos / Food Styling by Ruth Blackburn / Prop Styling by Christina Daley

Hot, sweet, crispy, and buttery, these wings are certain to become your next go-to snack recipe. They're tossed with lemon pepper seasoning, cooked until crispy in an air fryer, and coated with a buttery hot honey glaze. A garnish of cilantro adds color and more brightness to the dish.

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Adobo Chicken Wings

Adobo Chicken Wings — Photo by Greg DuPree / Food Styling by Margaret Monroe Dickey / Prop Styling by Kay E. Clarke

"This dish is fully inspired by my dad," says chef Anna Swann. "His family's chicken adobo is the first Filipino dish he taught me how to make when I first started getting into cooking." Her adobo wings are flavored to the bone thanks to a stint in an umami-rich soy sauce and vinegar marinade.

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Crispy Garlic-Glazed Chicken Wings

Crispy Garlic Glazed Chicken Wings — Justin Walker

At Anan Saigon, in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, chef Peter Cuong Franklin serves next-level chicken wings that are at once sticky-sweet and explosively umami. Baked then stir-fried in a mixture of fish sauce, lime juice, and soy sauce, the wings get finished with crunchy fried garlic and fresh scallions.

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Grilled Chicken Wings with Jaew

Grilled Chicken Wings with Jaew — Aubrie Pick

Low and slow grilling keeps these wings juicy and gives the skin time to render and char. Jaew, a sweet and sour chile sauce, delivers a heat-packed punch in this recipe by Kris Yenbamroong, chef-owner of Los Angeles' Night + Market restaurants.

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Limoncello-Marinated Chicken Wings with Pepperoni Sauce

Limoncello Marinated Chicken Wings with Pepperoni Sauce Recipe — Victor Protasio

Tart limoncello flavors and tenderizes these standout wings from Jeffery Russell, former chef at the Louis M. Martini Winery in St. Helena, California. Try the pepperoni sauce on pizzas, sandwiches, or as a dip.

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Spicy Fried Rice-Stuffed Chicken Wings

Spicy Fried Rice Stuffed Chicken Wings — Greg DuPree

This recipe for stuffed and fried chicken wings from 2019 F&W Best New Chef Junghyun Park features wings dredged in a crackling breading and stuffed with spicy, savory doubanjiang fried rice. The final touch is a tongue-tingling spice blend of Szechuan peppercorn, salt, sugar, and powdered vinegar.

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Sticky Baked Chicken Wings

Sticky Baked Chicken Wings — © Marcus Nilsson

For the ultimate game day snack, chef Matt Jennings tosses chicken wings that he bakes in the oven (instead of deep-frying) in a spicy glaze made with gochujang, the Korean red pepper paste.

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Spicy Sriracha Chicken Wings

Spicy Sriracha Chicken Wings — Maura McEvoy

These crispy chicken wings get their heat from Sriracha, the Thai hot sauce that chef Michael Symon says is his favorite in the world. "We always have a couple of extra bottles at home, because my stepson blows right through the stuff."

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Huli Huli Chicken Wings

Huli Huli Chicken Wings — Greg DuPree

Chef Sheldon Simeon uses fresh ginger and pineapple juice to add bright heat and tang to the sweet, teriyaki-like homemade huli huli sauce that coats the chicken wings and pineapple slices in this recipe.

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Honey Mustard Chicken Wings

Honey Mustard Chicken Wings — © Todd Porter & Diane Cu

Sweet honey and tangy mustard make these classic chicken wings extraordinary. This simple recipe is a snap to make and can be ready to wow your tastebuds in 45 minutes.

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Chicken Wings with Angry Sauce

Chicken Wings with Angry Sauce — © CON POULOS

This Korean-inspired recipe is fiery and a little bit sweet. If you'd like, you can make the sauce one day ahead of time and refrigerate it overnight. (Just make sure to bring it to room temperature before you toss it with the wings.)

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Old Bay Hot Wings

Old Bay Hot Wings — Raymond Hom

These easy wings are seasoned with Old Bay and roasted in the oven until browned and crispy, then tossed in a simple combination of butter, hot sauce, and Worcestershire sauce.

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Baked Chicken Wings

Baked Chicken Wings — Fred Hardy / Food Styling by Emily Nabors Hall / Prop Styling by Josh Hoggle

These wings have a simple ingredient list — canola oil, salt, pepper, hot sauce, butter, and grated garlic, plus chopped parsley, blue cheese dressing, and lemon wedges for serving.

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Soy Sauce Chicken Wings

Soy Sauce Chicken Wings — © TODD PORTER & DIANE CU

Salty and sweet, these chicken wings are the perfect game day snack. The sauce comes together in just 10 minutes from ingredients you probably already have on hand: butter, fresh garlic, soy sauce, oyster sauce, ketchup, and brown sugar.

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Hill Country Smoked Chicken Wings with Texas Ranch Dressing

Hill Country Smoked Chicken Wings with Texas Ranch Dressing — © Peden + Munk

Rubbing chicken wings with a variety of sweet and spicy seasonings before smoking gives them a double dose of delicious flavor. The ranch dressing goes equally well with these wings as does a nice smoky lager.

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Honey-Chile Chicken Wings

Honey-Chile Chicken Wings — © Quentin Bacon

Chef Tim Wood avoids the deep fryer and instead opts to broil or grill his chicken wings, which turns them super crispy. A soy and honey glaze makes them sweet, sticky, and salty. If you'd like to pair the wings with wine, choose a supple, blackberry-rich Merlot.

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Spicy Apricot Wings

Spicy Apricot Wings — © MARCUS NILSSON

The apricot-based sauce that's brushed on these chicken wings before grilling provides plenty of zingy flavor, and the extra sauce is good for dipping. A refreshing wheat beer or fruity Pinot Gris would be a superb complement to the wings.

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Garlicky Chicken Wings

Garlicky Chicken Wings — © Todd Porter & Diane Cu

These sticky, crispy chicken wings have a nice kick, thanks to a simple chile-garlic glaze. The glaze includes eight whole garlic cloves to make good on the promise of "garlicky."

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Lampe's Chicken Wings with Sweet and Spicy Pantry Sauce

Lampe's Chicken Wings with Sweet-and-Spicy Pantry Sauce — © REED DAVIS

National barbecue champion Ray Lampe bumps up the flavors in these sweet and sticky chicken wings by slashing the inside of the joints so the seasonings can penetrate. Nothing's better with a platter of spicy wings — Buffalo or not — than beer. Reach for a malty, flavorful ale like Old Speckled Hen.

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Maple-Bacon Chicken Wings

Maple-Bacon Chicken Wings — TODD PORTER & DIANE CU

Here, classic chicken wings are taken to the next level thanks to a decadent maple-bacon glaze.

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Lemon-Mustard Chicken Wings

Lemon-Mustard Chicken Wings — © TODD PORTER & DIANE CU

These sticky, delicious wings are fried until golden, then tossed in a tangy sauce made with butter, honey, fresh lemon, and mustard.

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Tomato-Glazed Chicken Wings

Tomato-Glazed Chicken Wings — © Evi Abeler

Opt for spicier baked Buffalo-style chicken wings by adding a few drops of hot sauce to the tomato sauce, which is made by pureeing roasted tomatoes with olive oil and mild goat cheese.

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Grilled Chicken Wings with 9-Spice Dry Rub

Grilled Chicken Wings with 9-Spice Rub — © Con Poulos

For extra juicy chicken, chef Timothy Hollingsworth brines his wings for three hours before tossing them in his go-to spice rub, which can be made up to one month in advance. Pair these intensely spiced wings with a crisp pale ale.

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Chicken Wings with Fragrant Herb Sauce

Chicken Wings with Fragrant Herb Sauce — © Con Poulos

The fresh and spicy sauce on these wings calls for both jalapeño and habanero peppers, plus a little honey to counter the heat. A variety of fresh herbs and spices rounds it out, including parsley, ginger, thyme, garlic, orange zest, and a touch of nutmeg. Make the sauce up to three hours ahead.

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Smokin' Sweet Chicken Wings with Cherry Barbecue Glaze

Smokin' Sweet Chicken Wings with Cherry Barbecue Glaze — © Lucy Schaeffer

Cherry preserves with habanero chile create a fabulously sticky, sweet, and spicy glaze for grilled chicken wings. The glaze can be prepared up to three days in advance; be sure to bring it to room temperature and glaze the wings just before serving so the sugars don't burn.

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Ginger and Honey Chicken Wings

Ginger and Honey Chicken Wings — © Con Poulos

Using fresh ginger juice mixed with honey to baste wings gives them a delicious flavor. Food & Wine Culinary Director at Large Justin Chapple tosses the grilled chicken wings with salted peanuts and fresh cilantro before serving them with lime wedges, which amps up the flavor even further.

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Coconut-Curry Chicken Wings

Coconut-Curry Chicken Wings — © Abby Hocking

Marinating chicken wings in a mix of coconut milk, curry paste, and lime lends them an alluring sweet-spicy flavor.

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Ike's Vietnamese Fish Sauce Wings

Ike's Vietnamese Fish Sauce Wings — © Wendell T. Webber

Andy Ricker based this Pok Pot recipe on the first fish sauce wings he tried at a roadside stand in Saigon.

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Classic Hot Wings

Plate of classic hot wings — Photographer: Fred Hardy, Food Stylist: Emily Nabors Hall, Prop Stylist: Josh Hoggle

These classic hot wings couldn't be more simple — they only take two steps to make, and require just five ingredients (three, if you don't count flour or salt). They're best paired with a crisp, malty lager.

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Green Jalapeño Hot Wings

Green Jalapeño Hot Wings — © RICK POON

These roasted chicken wings are smothered in a spicy green jalapeño sauce, which is pureed with pickled jalapeños for an extra hit of puckery flavor, then served with a cool blue cheese dipping sauce. They're especially tasty when paired with a classic German doppelbock.

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Sweet and Sticky Hot Wings

Sweet & Sticky Hot Wings — © TODD PORTER & DIANE CU

These wings get their flavor from plenty of spices and seasonings — smoked paprika, dried garlic, salt, and dried onion — along with red hot sauce and melted hot pepper jelly. They're oven-roasted until perfectly browned and crispy.

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