No false promises here – these are seriously crispy Baked Buffalo Wings that are made entirely in the oven! Using a now-world-famous Cooks’ Illustrated technique, the skin is so shatteringly crispy it’s hard to believe they aren’t fried.
Don’t believe me? I don’t blame you! See and hear it for yourself in the recipe video……
Super Crispy BAKED Buffalo Wings!
The great thing about the internet is that there are loads of options for any recipe your heart desires.
The bad thing about the internet is sifting through all those Google search results to find a recipe that actually works as promised and is exactly what you are after.
So here is what I promise you: If you love perfectly seasoned crispy buffalo wings, tossed in a classic spicy, buttery Buffalo Sauce with a tinge of sweetness, and you prefer to avoid the mess and calories of deep frying, this is The One.
These aren’t just “quite crispy but still not like they’ve been deep fried”. These wings are seriously crispy. Read hundreds of testimonials from people who have tried it!
You can’t see how crispy the skin is when I’ve smothered them in that glorious Buffalo Sauce so here’s a photo of them plain, straight out of the oven. And if you have 90 seconds, watch the recipe video below the recipe so you can hear how crispy they are!
The recipe is ridiculously simple, and it’s a genius discovery by the amazing folk over at Cook’s Illustrated who used science to figure out how to make truly crispy wings in the oven.
How to make Ultra Crispy Buffalo Wings in the Oven
The 2 unique steps in this recipe that make all the difference are:
1. baking powder (secret ingredient!) – tossing the wings in baking powder which draws moisture to the surface of the skin and helps make it crispy. Rest assured you can’t taste the baking powder at all; and
2. bake on low then high – usually, the fat under the skin is part of the reason why baked wings don’t get really crispy. In this recipe, we start at a low temp first which melts the fat under the skin, then we crank up the oven which makes the skin super crispy!
What you need for Crispy Baked Buffalo Wings
And here’s a visual for what you need.
1. The crispy baked wings
2. The Buffalo Sauce
That perfect combination of spiciness from Franks hot sauce, buttery goodness and and hint of sweet.
3. Blue Cheese Dip
I know some people aren’t a fan of blue cheese dip – but I’m all in!! In fact, I love blue cheese dip so much, I like to keep mine a bit lumpy so I get little pops of blue cheese. But usually, restaurants serve it completely smooth. Go with what rocks your boat!
Celery?? YES!
Crispy wings + spicy, buttery Buffalo Sauce + earthy, creamy blue cheese dip + fresh, crunchy celery = MAGICAL COMBINATION
I don’t know who discovered it, but they deserve a Nobel Prize. I remember the first time I tried it, I squinted at the celery sticks and thought, “who would bother with them?”. But they work! It’s like the perfect way to reboot your taste buds in between each wing!!
You’ll make a total mess of yourself eating them. It’s just not possible to eat wings elegantly. You’ll get Buffalo Sauce smeared all around your mouth. You’re doing well if your shirt stays clean.
But that’s all part of the Buffalo Wings experience, right?? The dramatic clatter as you toss the naked bones into a bowl. Smack you lips. Suck each finger clean.
Dive in for another.
YES PLEASE. – Nagi x
Crispy Baked Buffalo Wings
Watch how to make it
PUMP UP THE VOLUME so you can hear how crispy they are!!
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Truly Crispy Oven Baked Buffalo Wings
Ingredients
Crispy Baked Wings
- 4 lb / 2kg chicken wings, wingettes & drumettes (Note 1)
- 5 teaspoons baking powder (NOT baking soda / bi-carb soda) (Note 2)
- 3/4 teaspoons kosher salt / cooking salt (not table salt, too fine)
Sauce
- 4 tbsp (60g) unsalted butter, melted
- 1/2 cup Frank’s Original Red Hot Sauce (Note 3)
- 1 tbsp brown sugar
- 1/4 tsp kosher salt / cooking salt
Blue Cheese Dip
- 1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese, softened (I use gorgonzola)
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1/4 cup mayonnaise , preferably whole-egg
- 1 clove small garlic , minced
- 1 – 3 tbsp milk
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt / cooking salt
- Black pepper
To Serve
- Celery sticks
- Lots of beer!
Instructions
Crispy Baked Wings
- Dry overnight (optional) – If you plan ahead, lay the wings on a rack on a rimmed baking tray and let them dry uncovered in the fridge overnight. Alternatively, pat them dry with paper towels.
- Preheat the oven to 250°F/120°C (all oven types). Put one oven shelf in the lower quarter of the oven and one in the top quarter.
- Line the tray with foil. Put a rack on the tray then spray the rack with oil.
- Toss wings – Place the wings in a large bowl. Sprinkle over baking powder and salt. Use hands to toss well (or shake in ziplock bag) to coat wings evenly.
- Bake 30 minutes on low temp – Place the wings skin side up on the rack (ok if snug, they shrink). Bake on the lower shelf in the oven for 30 minutes.
- Bake 40 minutes on high – Move the tray up to the higher shelf and turn the oven up to 425°F / 220°C (all oven types). Bake for a further 40 to 50 minutes, rotating the tray halfway through. The wings do not need to be turned over. They are ready when dark golden brown and the skin is very crispy.
- Toss in sauce – Transfer the wings into a large bowl. Pour over sauce and toss to coat. (Alternatively, serve wings plain with Buffalo Sauce for dipping).
- Serve immediately with Blue Cheese Dip (for both wings and celery sticks dunking)!
Buffalo Sauce
- Whisk together the Sauce ingredients until the sugar is melted. Keep warm or reheat just prior to using.
Blue Cheese Dip
- Mash the blue cheese with sour cream until smooth (or to your taste).
- Add remaining ingredients and mix well until combined, using milk to get it to the consistency you want. Store in the fridge until required. Remove from the fridge 15 minutes before serving.
Recipe Notes:
* Salt – only a small amount is required, it’s a phenomenon I can’t explain but this small amount perfectly seasons 2kg/4lb of wings using this baking method.
* These shrink when baked because the fat under the skin renders out (melts) which is how these become super crisp. So they can be snug on the rack.
* They are JUICY not dry, despite the long cook time. This is because the first bake at the lower temp barely cooks them, it only melts the fat.
* These bake to a golden brown, not a deep golden brown. You will know they are done because the skin will be lovely and crispy. 5. Source: The recipe for the wings is from Cook’s Illustrated “Meats Book” cookbook. The sauce recipe is my own. 6. To reheat: Allow wings (not tossed in sauce) to cool, then cover and refrigerate. The skin will wrinkle and soften. Preheat oven to 200°C/390°F. Spread wings out on tray, skin side up, and bake for 5 to 8 minutes or until the skin puffs up so the wrinkles smooth out and becomes crisp again. Works 100% perfectly! 7. Make Ahead: These stay crispy for as long as the wings are warm, so around 20 – 30 minutes. The skin stays crispy for around 10 – 15 minutes after tossing in the sauce, then after that they start to soften but not go soggy, up to around 30 minutes. If you reheat after tossing in sauce, they go soggy. 8. Comprehensive FAQ is available in the original Truly Crispy Oven Baked Wings. 9. Nutrition for just plain crispy wings (419 cal) and including the hot sauce (476 cal), both assuming 8 servings. Note that the wings have been adjusted to reflect the amount of fat that is rendered out (I measured the fat I poured off the tray 🙂 ).
Nutrition Information:
Originally posted June 2015. Republished February 2020 with improved video and photos, then updated with tidy ups in 2023. NO CHANGE TO RECIPE. I wouldn’t dare – it’s perfect as is!
Life of Dozer
This is what a Food Coma looks like.
Have used your recipe for years. I like dry wings and can get them perfect using your recipe. Wings are my favorite food & none satisfy me like your recipe does. All of your recipes I’ve used are phenomenal!
There should be a note about the baking powder. Purchase a brand that states it is aluminum free. If not you will likely taste the metal. I sure can.
She did specify to buy an aluminum free baking powder
Am I missing something? I can’t see anywhere in the recipe or in the video where it states what the ‘lower temp’ actually is.
It’s in the pre-heat directions–250.
Step 6 in the cooking instructions
250
It’s 120C then up to 225C after 30 mins
Loved this recipe, used F. Whitlocks & Sons Chipotle sauce as a cheat for the sauce and it was perfect (still warmed it & added butter but it didn’t need sugar).
I agree that they were a little bit on the dry side but soooooooo crispy, and NO MESSY DEEP FRY. The sauces & dip moistened them up 10/10!
Preheat the oven to 250°F/120°C (all oven types).
This is so real. I was wondering why i could taste the baking powder!
I’ve made this recipe 7 or 8 times now and it has always turned out fantastic. Nothing but rave reviews from guests and I personally love them as well. The only tweak I’ve tried which ended up working very well with the recipe as written the last couple of times I’ve made these wings is the addition of about a teaspoon of flour to the butter while it’s melting. The sauce clings to the wings much better that way.
That’s really helpful, thanks! I thought the sauce needed some tweak to make it stick to the wings. Or maybe the sauce needs to get cooked onto the meat. I’ll try your way next time!
Well I tried flour two ways: first making a roux of equal parts butter and flour. That was a fail and it was thick like peanut butter, even after adding more sauce. The second try I added 1 tsp flour as recommended, and it was the perfect solution. Thanks again!
I had a craving for buffalo wings but didn’t want to go the whole batter and fry route. I found your recipe and it didn’t disappoint. I love that the wings come out of the oven all crispy and juicy! I still haven’t put the sauce on, and several wings have simply disappeared… I will be enjoying wings more often now!
Re buffalo chicken wings salt. Is 3/4 tsps 3 to 4 tsps or 3/4 of 1 tspn(s)
hey, I made this and substituted hot sauce with sweet chili sauce and this was one delicacy. I absolutely loved it, thanks!
I got all excited about this approach to wings in the oven. Typically I do on gas grill or smoker.
I followed recipe but the skin came out leathery. this usually happens when chicken is cooked at too low a temp.(i.e below 275).
Thoughts?
I’d like to try again. Especially with so many positive results.
These are the BEST wings EVER!! They are better than ANY restaurant around. Sheer Genius!! Thank you!
Happened on this recipe this evening looking for a sauce recipe. Chances my arm and did 1/2 kg wingettes in my airfryer. Turned out brilliantly. Will def repeat and will try in the oven if I need to scale up!
Have made these twice now and are a family favourite. Truly the best wings I’ve had. The Franks hot sauce and blue cheese dip work together perfectly.
I add a teaspoon of plain flour to the melted butter before adding the hot sauce. This thickens it up a tad and coats the chicken better.
I’ve also made the crispy pork belly and the bbq ribs. Again all easy to follow and perfect results.
Thank you 🙏
Holy cannoli! My go-to recipe for yummy, crisssspy, incredible wings -not even gonna glance at others. This recipe deserves the high ratings 🙂
Awesome and truly crispy! Is there a trick to make the wings soak up more of the flavor? It feels more like a poured on sauce rather than getting absorbed. Maybe that’s the price to pay for crispy baked wings?
Made this today, loved it and will definitely try again. Couple of questions:
My wings were slightly dry for my liking, does this mean I should do less time on the low temp cook or the high temp cook?
Is there any way to make the sauce a bit more full bodied/thick. It was a bit runny/thin for my liking?
Awesome, great recipe. Wings were perfectly crispy and the sauce was great
Yeah shush pls
I don’t usually review but the cooking method here was spot on! I didn’t make the sauce but will try next time. The wings were crispy! My son even said better than Buffalo Wild Wings. He’s a teenager so you know he meant it giving a compliment. Thank u!
I SENT YOU A THANK YOU A FEW YEARS AGO, THIS IS A FOLLOW-UP. I HAVE 3 POUNDS OF WINGS IN THE OVEN AT 250 DEG AND AM PATIENTLY WAITING TO GET THEM DONE. I HAVE USE YOUR RECIPE MANY DOZENS OF TIMES, AND HAVE DIRECTED FRIENDS AND FAMILY TO YOUR WEBSITE. IT WORKS GREAT, AND I STILL ADD CAYENNE PEPPER, PAPERICA, CARLIC AND ONION POWDERS TO THE BAKING POWDER, AND SPRINKLE AND STIR THEM IN WELL. THANKS AGAIN FOR A WORLD CLASS METHOD FOR WINGS!
I made these tonight, but didn’t have any gorgonzola, so I made a ranch sauce with fresh herbs. Turned out great, combined with the wings. Great recipe, thank you!
This recipe is FANTASTIC!!
I have never had such delicious hot wings; let alone MADE them! My only change was butter on the racks instead of oil.
This has been my go to recipe for buffalo wings for some time now. It is really, really good. Until tonight, I just always used store bought bottled blue cheese dressing instead of making my own. I don’t know if I thought I was just being lazy or what, because the recipe for the blue cheese dip was quite easy. I guess I just didn’t realize what a dramatic difference it would make. Anyway, tonight I tried the blue cheese dip in the recipe, and it was phenomenal, just like the wings. I’m never buying blue cheese dressing again. The wings were always five stars and I’ve never found anything better, but with BOTH of them so good and pairing so well (along with celery sticks and carrots), I had to finally leave a review.
I made these today and they were delicious, I was so pleased by one of your recipes 2 weeks ago that I bought your book “DINNER” I will probably end up buying my adult children a copy each for Xmas.
Love Ya Guys John of Glen Forrest.
Nagi, these were sublime!!! Next level delicious xxx