Crispy baked chicken wings smothered in a sweet and tangy homemade barbecue sauce. I'll show you the trick for making the crispiest chicken wings in the oven.
The whole family are going to devour these wings and they're so simple to prepare (with none of the grease splatters from fried wings) you'll love making them too.
These wings go SO fast! I only bought 1kg of them, and everyone whizzed through them like cartoon characters zooming through corn-on-the-cob at high speed!
They make a fantastic appetizer or game day treat, but equally they make a fab treat dinner served with a few sides.
I'm totally obsessed with the barbecue sauce too. This recipe makes enough to smother the wings, with another cupful or so leftover to serve on the side or to save and use as a dip for fries or to top burgers and sausages.
What do we need for the wings?
- Chicken wings (of course)
- Aluminium-free baking powder (more about this below)
- Salt and pepper
How to make the wings
Full recipe with detailed steps in the recipe card at the end of this post.
- Cut each wing at the joint so you have a mini wing and a drumette. Dry with paper towels, then place in a large bowl and add the baking powder, salt and pepper. Toss to combine.
- Place in a single layer on a rack above a tray. Bake in the oven at 120C/250F for 30 minutes.
- Turn the oven up to 220C/425F and cook for a further 40-45 minutes until the wings are lightly golden and crispy. They taste great as they are, but they're over-the-top tasty with the homemade BBQ sauce.
What do we need for the Barbecue Sauce?
Full quantities in the recipe card below
- For sweetness - tomato ketchup (and plenty of it!), dark brown sugar, black treacle or molasses and honey
- For tanginess - white wine vinegar and Worcestershire sauce
- For a bit of heat and smokiness - mustard powder, smoked paprika and black pepper
- Plus a little vegetable oil to bring it all together and make it smooth and glossy.
How to make the Barbecue Sauce
- Place all of the ingredients in a saucepan and mix together.
- Heat over a medium-high heat, until boiling, then simmer for 5 minutes. Turn off the heat.
Putting it all together
- Toss the barbecue sauce with the wings (you can toss them in a large bowl, or use two spoons to toss them all together) and serve straight away.
What to serve it with
You can serve these tasty baked BBQ chicken wings with:
- Creamy Potato Salad
- Homemade Coleslaw
- Garlic Chilli Oven Baked Fries
- Cobb Salad with Smoky Chickpeas
- Roasted Smashed Potatoes with Garlic, Cheddar and Bacon
Do you put BBQ sauce on chicken before or after baking?
For ultimate crispiness, put the barbecue sauce on AFTER baking, then serve right away.
Can you put BBQ sauce on raw chicken?
Some recipes call for baking/grilling chicken in BBQ sauce. My method involves baking the wings first to guarantee crispiness.
However, even if you weren't looking for a crispy coating (i.e just baking chicken pieces in the regular way), I would recommend adding the sauce after cooking, or for the last 5 minutes of cooking only. Barbecue sauce has a lot of sugars in, which can burn and taste bitter if cooked for a long period or over too high a heat.
How do you get sauce to stick to chicken wings?
These baked wings have a crispy, craggy exterior, so the sauce will easily cling to the wings without sliding off.
Do I need to marinate the wings first?
Nope. We want the chicken skin to be dry so we can get it extra crispy.
Is there a vegetarian option?
I have been asked this question a number of times and after much testing I made a veggie option. These Baked Asian Cauliflower Wings are as good as this chicken version.
Bake the cauliflower in the same way, but swap out the Asian-style sauce for the barbecue sauce.
More fantastic Appetizer recipes
- Buffalo Chicken Wings
- Sticky Asian Style Wings
- Baked Cauliflower Wings
- Fried Korean Chicken
- Cheese and Bacon Stuffed Bread
- Chicken and Chorizo Puffed Pastry Rolls
- Chicken Satay or my new Beef Satay Recipe
- Thai Fish Cakes
- Sesame Prawn Toast
I've got soo many delicious appetizer recipes < CLICK HERE to check out the whole category full of them.
Watch how to make it
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BBQ Chicken Wings
Ingredients
Crispy Chicken Wings:
- 2.2 lbs (1 kg) chicken wings
- 2 level tbsp aluminium-free baking powder (It has to be baking powder - NOT baking soda - see further notes on baking powder below
- ½ tsp salt - make sure it's regular table salt
- ½ tsp pepper
Barbecue Sauce:
- 1 ¼ cups (300g) tomato ketchup
- 4 tbsp white wine vinegar
- 5 tbsp dark brown sugar
- 2 tbsp black treacle or molasses
- 3 tbsp honey
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
- ½ tsp mustard powder - - or 1 tsp English mustard
- 1 ½ tsp smoked paprika
- ½ tsp black pepper
INSTRUCTIONS
- Preheat the oven to 120C/250F and place a rack on a large baking tray.
- Cut each wing at the joint so you have a mini wing and a drumette. Dry the wings with paper towels, then place in a large bowl and add the baking powder, salt and pepper. Toss to combine. Note - it's important to dry the wings first so they only get a light coating. Discard any remaining coating once tossed together.
- Place in a single layer on the rack. It's fine for them to be touching slightly. Place on the lower shelf of the oven for 30 minutes.
- After 30 minutes, turn the oven up to 220C/425F and rotate the tray for even cooking. Cook for a further 45-50 minutes until the wings are lightly golden and crispy (if your wings aren't particularly meaty, cook for 10 minutes less). Take out of the oven.
- Whilst the wings are baking, make the barbecue sauce. Place all of the ingredients in a saucepan and mix together.
- Heat over a medium-high heat, until boiling, then simmer for 5 minutes. Turn off the heat.
- Toss the barbecue sauce with the wings and serve straightaway.
Video
✎ Notes
So if you're only looking for 12-13 wings, you can halve all of the ingredients.
If you're looking for 48-52 wings, double all the ingredients. The cooking times will be the same. Note: this recipe makes extra sauce. The recipe makes approx 2 cups of sauce altogether. You only need one to cover the wings, then I like to serve any remaining sauce with the wings and sides. So bear in mind that if you're doubling ALL of the recipe, you'll have 2 extra cups of sauce leftover. Note on baking powder: I get lots of messages on my other crispy wings recipe on how delicious the wings are, but also the occasional message that the wings tastes bitter - despite assurances the recipe was followed to the letter and baking POWDER not baking soda was used.
After doing a little research, it seems that some people can be sensitive to the taste of sodium aluminum sulfate - which can be an ingredient in some baking powders. People who are sensitive to it notice a bitter taste. If you are sensitive to it, you may have noticed certain cakes taste bitter. However, cakes contain a lot less baking powder then this recipe, so you may not have noticed it before and still been sensitive to it. My tips would be to:
- Thoroughly dry the wings before dusting with the baking powder - so they only get a light coating.
- Measure the amount of baking powder used exactly, and discard any excess left after tossing together with the wings.
- Use aluminium-free baking powder - make sure it has no aluminum sulfate in it.
Nutrition
Some of the links in this post may be affiliate links – which means if you buy the product I get a small commission (at no extra cost to you). If you do buy, then thank you! That’s what helps us to keep Kitchen Sanctuary running. The nutritional information provided is approximate and can vary depending on several factors. For more information please see our Terms & Conditions.
T says
Very yum, even though I didn't have treacle. My son was not sure if he liked chicken wings, but he ate them up and said they were "lovely" !
Thank you
Sharon says
Made these for the family , they thought I had bought them . They were so good
Nick T says
Hi Nicky. Fantastic recipe and a family favourite. We made it recently with fairly small wings (about 32 to a kilo) and had a small mishap with the oven resulting in the first 30 mins being at 220 instead of 120 - luckily the resulting wings were still super tasty and crispy (and we only have them an extra 15 mins just to ensure they were cooked through). Can you explain the reasoning behind the first 30 mins at 120 please?
Jo says
How many wings in a 1KG pack?
Layla says
Can I use corn flour or rice flour as a substitute for baking powder?
Nicky Corbishley says
Sorry no the baking powder is a must. The combination of the salt and baking powder work together to draw the moisture out of the skin to get the crispiest coating.
Layla. says
Can you share the brand or link of baking powder you use. As my local supermarket sticks one type and I'll probably have to order sodium aluminum sulfate free from Amazon or something. Thank you. Much appreciated x
Pat says
This is a very delicious and easy recipe.
Salisa says
Hi, Nice recipe...Is this can be freeze. If can, how to defrost it? Thanks
Nicky Corbishley says
Hi Salisa, You can freeze them, but they will lose their crispness upon reheating. They'll still be tasty though.
I would cool, cover and freeze, then defrost in the refrigerator overnight. You can reheat in the microwave until piping hot throughout. Or reheat on a baking tray, in a single layer, covered in foil until piping hot throughout (approx 20 minutes at 180C/350F).
Christine says
I have made your Asian chicken wings in the past, so I knew I was on to a winner with the family when I made these. Oh my 😋how tasty is that bbq sauce. So messy to eat, but so flippin good😍🍗