Mom’s Crispy Baked Chicken Wings with Buffalo Sauce are super crispy and tossed in a classic spicy sauce. These wings are baked, not fried, and are delicious! Serve them with blue cheese sauce and crispy celery for the ultimate game day or party snack!

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Why you'll love buffalo chicken wings recipe:
- Easy recipe: These wings are really easy to make and can be marinated ahead of time, which is great for a party!
- Mom's recipe: Yes, these are my mom's perfect chicken wing recipe. I just love them and know you will too!
- The sauce: The hot sauce has a perfect balance of heat and sweetness.
- Not fried: Mom's buffalo chicken wings are baked and not fried. Not that there's any thing wrong with frying, but these wings are baked and super crispy! So if you're cutting back on fried foods, you will love them!
- Crowd-pleaser: If you need a great wings recipe for a party or any game day, these will be a hit!
Jump To
- Why you'll love buffalo chicken wings recipe:
- Where did Buffalo chicken wings originate?
- What year were Buffalo wings created?
- What ingredients are in hot wings?
- All you need for these crispy baked buffalo wings:
- How to make buffalo wings recipe?
- How to make buffalo sauce for wings?
- How long does it take to bake chicken wings?
- Expert tips for buffalo wings from scratch:
- Variations for crispy buffalo wings:
- What to serve with chicken wings?
- How to store leftover chicken wings?
- How to reheat chicken wings?
- FAQ's
- Some other chicken recipes to enjoy:
- Baked Buffalo Wings
I have a thing for chicken wings! Yes, that may be one of my secret cravings…especially crispy chicken wings. But I tend to get disappointed when I order them out in a restaurant. They’re never the same as mom’s!! I should have just titled this: Mom's Best Chicken Wings!
And since we have cut out frying as much as possible, mom has perfected the baked chicken wings. When it is the day of the Super Bowl, you bet mom’s baked buffalo wings are what we are enjoying (no one can even tell she didn't fry them).
These chicken wings are so easy to put together with restaurant style results. And the bonus is there is no greasy mess to clean up. A healthier way to enjoy your favorite wings!!
Mom is basically the cheesecake queen, the wing queen, the every thing queen. So I am sharing with you how she makes the wings. I've seen recipes where the wings are dredged in flour or baking powder, but she doesn't dredge the wings in any thing. And they turn out super crispy! Since no flour, they're totally gluten-free!
She makes an amazing blue cheese dressing to go with the celery. But the real magic is in her hot sauce. Since they aren’t fried, there are less calories and fat (and slightly less guilt!).
Where did Buffalo chicken wings originate?
Well, I know I sway often to dishes that aren’t only Italian. What I love about Buffalo wings is that they were created in Buffalo, NY by an Italian immigrant named Teressa Bellissimo. Teressa was from Rome (she passed away in 1985).
What year were Buffalo wings created?
The Bellissimo family has all confirmed the story of how this iconic recipe came to be in 1964 at their Anchor restaurant. Leave it to their mamma Teressa to invent something with what she had on hand for her son’s hungry friends. The story goes that the mom invented the wings and the son perfected the hot sauce recipe. And the rest is wing history!
What ingredients are in hot wings?
Here is all you need to make these super tasty chicken wings. Full printable recipe is below:
For the wings:
- Chicken wings: main ingredient for the dish
- Sea salt: adds flavor to the chicken
- Freshly Ground Pepper: adds a hint of spice to the chicken
- Garlic powder: adds additional flavor to the chicken
- Vegetable oil: used in marinade to help coat and cook the chicken
- Unsalted Butter (or margarine for dairy-free): used in hot sauce to add richness and flavor
- Hot sauce: main ingredient for hot sauce, adds heat and tanginess to the dish
- Brown sugar: adds sweetness and depth of flavor to the hot sauce
- White vinegar: balances out the flavors in the hot sauce
- Blue cheese dressing: serves as a dipping sauce for the wings
- Celery sticks: provides a refreshing and crunchy accompaniment to the hot wings.
For the blue cheese dip:
- Blue cheese: Use whatever crumbled blue cheese brand you like. You'll have to soften it to make the dip.
- Sour cream: Use full fat or light, it doesn't matter.
- Mayonnaise: A little bit of mayo gets combined to make it extra creamy.
- Garlic: Minced garlic adds a nice touch of flavor.
- Freshly squeezed lemon juice: A bit of lemon juice adds some brightness to the sauce.
- Sea salt: A dash of salt for flavor.
- Freshly ground pepper: Just a little bit for flavor. Omit if you don't like.
All you need for these crispy baked buffalo wings:
1. Crispiest baked chicken wings I've seen different methods to get the crispiest wings. Mom's "secret" is to bake on the high temperature for 30 minutes.
2.The Best Buffalo Sauce
Mom has created a wing sauce that rivals whatever you'll get at your favorite wing place. Takes just minutes to put together! And, you could make this dairy-free! Yes, no butter! She's made it both ways for us, but the ones in the recipe are made with a plant based butter.
A bottle of Frank's hot sauce (mom prefers to use Frank's!), butter(you could even use margarine for dairy-free), a touch of sweetness and a bit of tang from vinegar (OMG, so good!).
3. Blue Cheese Dip
Blue cheese dip or ranch dip, your choice! But mom makes always a blue cheese dip, so I'll share that with you. Mom makes hers with cheese pieces. Sometimes I make mine more smooth. You could make it whatever texture you like.
4. Celery
Yes, cold and crispy celery sticks are totally what these super spicy wings need. It's the crazy combination of knock your socks off spicy wings, the blue cheese, and the celery. It all belongs together.
How to make buffalo wings recipe?
- Prep the chicken: Pat dry the chicken wings with paper towels. Transfer the wings to a large zipped lock bag, or a medium bowl (I prefer to use the zipped lock bag so you can squeeze the spices over the wings).
- Marinade the chicken: Add the marinade ingredients to a large bowl toss to combine. Let marinade 2-3 hours in the refrigerator or overnight. While the wings are marinading, prep the homemade blue cheese dip
- When ready to cook: Heat oven to 425°F.
- Arrange chicken: Place wings on a foil lined baking sheet. Cook wings for 25 minutes.
- Make the hot sauce: While wings are cooking, prep the hot sauce.
- Adjust heat: Lower oven to 350°F. Keep cooking until crispy, about 35-45 minutes
- Toss in sauce: As soon as the wings are ready, toss them in the rest of the hot sauce.
- Ready to serve: Serve wings while hot with a side of blue cheese dressing, more hot sauce, and celery sticks.
How to make buffalo sauce for wings?
The best part of these crispy wings is the hot sauce! Mom’s magical hot sauce is made with...
- Frank’s Red Hot Sauce (she uses a whole 12 ounce bottle!)
- one stick of of butter (or margarine for dairy-free)
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- a little bit of apple cider vinegar
- She said don’t forget a dash of Tabasco sauce
- She made a slur of corn starch (1 tablespoon) with 1/2 cup hot water.
Mom's top tip is: Make sure it’s Frank’s Hot Sauce! But I think you could sub with your favorite hot sauce if you can't find Frank's.
How long does it take to bake chicken wings?
Baked chicken wings take a total of about 60 minutes. Mom starts the wings at a very high heat to sear them. Then she lowers it for the rest of the baking time. The longer it’s baking, the fat renders and the skin crisps up nicely.
Expert tips for buffalo wings from scratch:
- If you don't have a wire rack, you can place the chicken wings directly on aluminum foil.
- Make sure to marinade the chicken for at least 2-3 hours or overnight for maximum flavor.
- Adjust the oven rack to the upper-middle position for even cooking.
- Tossing the wings in hot sauce while they're still hot helps to evenly coat them.
- Don't skip the step of flipping the wings while cooking, this prevents them from sticking to the foil.
- For a spicier version, add more hot sauce to the butter mixture.
- Serve with celery sticks and blue cheese dressing for a classic buffalo wing experience.
- Experiment with different types of hot sauce to find your favorite flavor profile.
- If you're making this as a party appetizer, keep the wings warm in a slow cooker on the "warm" setting. It's a great way to let the guests help themselves throughout the event to warm wings.
- For added crispiness, you can broil the wings for the last 2-3 minutes of cooking time. Just be sure to keep an eye on them so they don't burn.
- You'll need to have plenty of napkins on hand, these wings can get messy!
- One final tip from Mamma's Kitchen: always make more than you think you need, these wings are addictive and will disappear quickly!
Variations for crispy buffalo wings:
- Spicy Garlic Wings: Instead of using hot sauce, mix in minced garlic and cayenne pepper to the melted butter for a spicy garlic marinade. Serve with ranch dressing and celery sticks.
- Honey BBQ Wings: Skip the hot sauce and brown sugar, and instead mix honey, BBQ sauce, and a dash of liquid smoke into the melted butter for a sweet and tangy marinade. Serve with a side of ranch dressing and carrot sticks.
- Teriyaki Wings: Substitute hot sauce for teriyaki sauce, and add in minced ginger, soy sauce, and brown sugar to the melted butter for an Asian-inspired marinade. Serve with a side of sesame dressing and sliced bell peppers.
- Lemon Pepper Wings: For a fresh twist, mix lemon juice, cracked black pepper, garlic powder, and melted butter for a zesty marinade. Serve with a side of ranch dressing and cucumber slices.
What to serve with chicken wings?
Here are some ideas of what to serve with these wings:
- Blue cheese dressing
- Additional hot sauce
- Celery sticks
- Coleslaw
- Mac and cheese
- Corn on the cob
- Baked beans
- Potato salad
- Grilled vegetables
- Salad with a vinaigrette dressing
- Cornbread
- Dinner rolls
- Chips and dip (such as salsa or guacamole)
- Artichoke dip
- Deviled eggs
- Mozzarella sticks
How to store leftover chicken wings?
- To refrigerate: Once the chicken wings have cooled down, store in an airtight container for up to 4 days (or in a large zipped lock bag...just squeeze out the air before you seal the bag).
- To freeze: I would not freeze these leftovers.
How to reheat chicken wings?
To reheat the wings, simply place them on an aluminum lined baking sheet and heat on 350F for 10 minutes. Or heat them in your microwave.
FAQ's
Yes, you can cook the wings ahead of time (minus the sauce). Once they cool down, refrigerate in an airtight container for 3 days ahead of time.
Since they aren't dredged with any flour, they are totally gluten-free. Also, mom makes the hot sauce with a plant based butter for my dairy-free kid (my kid doesn't use the blue cheese dip). IF you aren't dairy-free, make the hot sauce with real butter.
You may be wondering how to calculate how many wings to make. If there are other appetizers, you could calculate 4 wings per person (approximately).
It's 6 ounces of meat per serving. And each wing has about 1 ounce of meat (not calculating the bones) per wing. Depending on what else you are serving at the party/get together, that could mean 6 wings per person if they're having a full serving.
If all you are making is wings, you're going to have to double or even triple the recipe. It's better to have extra (they're SOOOO delicious!) and have leftovers to enjoy.
Cook for 25 minutes. Add some of the sauce and when they're ready, add the rest of the sauce and toss to combine.
After you bake them for 25 minutes, some of the sauce gets added on which creates a coating. Once they're baked, the rest of the sauce gets added on.
This is mom's recipe to bake chicken wings and she bakes first at a 425°F for 25 minutes then the temperature gets lowered to 350°F for 35-45 minutes.
The way to get crispy wings is to first bake at high heat as it explains in the recipe instructions for the first 25 minutes. The heat gets lowered for rest of baking time, but the first 25 minutes of high heat helps them to get nice and crispy.
Yes, be sure to have them thaw completely before using them.
Some other chicken recipes to enjoy:
- Air Fryer Chicken Tenders
- Baked Pineapple Chicken
- Slow Cooker White Chicken Chili
- Slow Cooker Whole Chicken Soup
Originally posted February 2022 and republished updated for content February 2024.
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Baked Buffalo Wings
Equipment
Ingredients
Chicken wings:
- 4 pounds party style chicken wings or whole chicken wings that have been halved crosswise
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
- ¼-½ cup vegetable oil mom uses a 1/2 cup
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
Buffalo sauce:
- ¼ cup unsalted butter or plant butter if you're dairy-free
- 12 ounces Frank's Original Red Hot Sauce or sub with your favorite red hot sauce
- 1-2 Tablespoons honey white sugar or brown sugar (adjust to suit your tastes)
- 1 dash of Tabasco sauce optional
- 1 Tablespoon apple cider vinegar
Blue cheese dip:
- ½ cup crumbled blue cheese softened
- ⅓ cup sour cream
- ¼ cup mayonnaise
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 Tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
- salt to taste
- freshly ground pepper to taste
To serve:
- Blue cheese dip
- Ranch dressing
- Celery sticks
Instructions
- Prep the chicken: Pat dry the chicken wings with paper towels. Transfer the wings to a large zipped lock bag, or a medium bowl (I prefer to use the zipped lock bag so you can squeeze the spices over the wings).
- Marinade the chicken: Add in the salt, pepper, garlic powder, and vegetable oil. If you have the chicken in a bowl, use a large spoon to toss to combine and let it marinade in the refrigerator for 2-3 hours (or overnight).
- Make blue cheese dip: While the wings are marinading, prep the blue cheese dip. Place in a an airtight container in the refrigerator until ready to use.
- When ready to cook: Adjust oven rack to upper-middle position and preheat oven to 425°F for 25 minutes. Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil and set a heat-proof wire rack inside (if you don’t have a wire rack, you could put them directly on the aluminum foil).
- Arrange chicken: Place the chicken on baking sheet, leaving about 1-inch of space between each wing. Cook for 25 minutes.
- Make the hot sauce: While wings are cooking, in a small sauce pan, melt the butter (or plant based butter). Whisk in the hot sauce, brown sugar, and vinegar. Set aside.
- Adjust heat: Lower oven to 350°F. Flip the wings and spoon some sauce on the chicken. Continue to cook until golden browned and crispy (about 35-45 minutes longer). Mom highly advises to FLIP the wings, otherwise, they’ll stick to the foil).
- Toss in sauce: As soon as the wings are ready, toss them in the rest of the hot sauce.
- Ready to serve: Serve wings while hot with a side of blue cheese dressing, more hot sauce, and celery sticks.
Nutrition Disclaimer
Please keep in mind that the nutritional information presented below is an approximation and may vary depending on the exact ingredients used.
Notes
- Marinading the wings overnight will result in much crispier wings.
- In case you forget, you could even marinade 2-3 hours before and they’ll still crisp up.
- You'll be surprised that people will end up eating more wings than you expect, so buy and make extra.
- In case you have leftovers, you can enjoy them for a couple days after.
Ana says
Really love these wings. The sauce is so easy to make and I make it even a bit spicier!
Lora says
Hi Ana-Thank you for taking the time to let us know you love our baked Buffalo wings and happy you make the sauce even spicier!
Karee’ says
Very good wings!!
I tried adding to my buffalo sauce a little sour cream while sauce is cooking, it seems to coat wings better.
Lora says
Hi Karee'...really happy you like the wings! Interesting about the sour cream in the sauce! Thank you for letting me know:)
Lina says
AMAZING chicken wings! The baked up super crispy!! Tell your mom her sauce is the BOMB!
Lora says
Hi Lina-THANK YOU for letting me know you enjoy the wings and I will tell mom you love her sauce!
Craig Merrill says
I made pizza and THIS chicken wing recipe for the family, Sunday afternoon snack. I marinated wings overnight and that is a great suggestion. Perfect! Wings were baked outside on my grill. They turned out amazing! I made enough, (20) for lunches this week, so I thought. My 22 year old son came home and consumed more than half of what I cooked. We All Loved Them. I have cooked wings before, many ways. By far this is the best recipe. I will continue to use this recipe in the near future.
I will be sure to keep quiet and not tell Lane.
Thank you for sharing the wonderful recipe.
Craig Merrill and Family
Auburn, Ga.
Lora says
Hi Craig-Pizza and wings sounds just fabulous! Really happy you took the time to write me and leave a kind review. I will let my mom read it...she will be thrilled! We love her wings just as much as you do!Thank you!