These Baked Buffalo Wings are super crispy and tossed in a classic spicy sauce. Serve them with blue cheese sauce and crispy celery for the ultimate game day or party snack!
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!!
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).
Mom is basically the cheesecake queen, the wing queen, the every thing queen. So this is how she makes the wings. I’ve seen recipes where the wings are dredged in flour, 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. The 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!
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, plant butter, 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 long does it take to bake chicken wings?
Baked chicken wings take a total of about 60 minutes. The longer it’s baking, the fat renders and the skin crisps up nicely.
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 plant based butter (or real butter if you’re not 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.
Are these baked wings gluten-free and dairy-free?
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.
How many wings per person?
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.
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.
Can chicken wings be cooked ahead of time?
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.
How to store leftover chicken wings?
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).
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.
Some other chicken recipes to enjoy:
- Air Fryer Chicken Tenders
- Baked Pineapple Chicken
- Slow Cooker White Chicken Chili
- Slow Cooker Whole Chicken Soup
One last thing…I promise!
Just a quick request: if you enjoyed these baked buffalo wings as much as we did, would you kindly leave me a 5-star rating and a short (or long!)comment–the ratings are what helps get my recipes and hard work discovered, so I can keep leaving you more delish recipes!
Your comments mean the world to me….and I really SMILE when I read them. Thank you so much! XX
Baked Buffalo Wings
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).
- 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.
- 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).
- 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.
- Toss in sauce: As soon as the wings are ready, toss them in the hot sauce.
- Ready to serve: Serve wings while hot with a side of blue cheese dressing, more hot sauce, and celery sticks.
Notes
- Marinade 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.
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