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
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NICE RECIPE
These are the best recipe I’ve ever had. I would recommend these together. I would feed these to children.
These are the best wings known to man kind. 10/10 would recommend. Not too spicy not too bland just perfect. I love it. It’s zesty like me slayyyyy 💅💅💅💅🏿💅🏿💅🏿💅🏿
Been making these for years. Best wings ever!! Sometimes if your wings are small you cook a bit less but just keep that in mind.
Ahaha I was so excited for these and realised I had mistaken my baking soda for bicarb. Then thought “it can’t be that bad 😅”
Boy you were right about bicarb soda being inedible 😂
They were unbelievably crunchy though- exited to try making these again
Excellent rwcipe, though I did modify the dressing a little. I went with blue stilton and added some greek yogurt. It’s in my save file now.
Thank you so much for this recipe! My husband and I enjoy it greatly; we are both conscious about our health and it is so awesome to have wings that are crispy like deep fried ones but come out of the oven. I have celiac disease and it’s wonderful to be able to have “dusted” wings without the worry of wheat gluten. Once again, thank you for this yummy recipe!
I agree the baking soda was overpowering, so I might try half and half rice flour and baking soda. Less salt the better. also, I am against single use plastic and just to put it out there, use a paper bag or a washable bowl to coat the wings
BIG MISTAKE, BAKING POWDER, DUH OOPS ON MY PART! PLEASE DISREGARD THE ABOVE COMMENT.
This recipe was amazing. The whole family enjoyed it thoroughly. I put wings in the fridge overnight as suggested, and they came out very crispy. I only tossed with about half the sauce because we prefer a drier wing and then served the rest on the side, However, the real winner here is the blue cheese dressing. It was outstanding! I’m just trying to come up with things to put it on now. Thanks so much for this winning recipe Nagi!
Sorry Nagi tried this recipe twice but the wings are way too dry. An hour and ten minutes to cook wings? Back to the Weber for 25 to 30 minutes, crispy juicy wings. The blue cheese sauce and Franks sauce are Fantastic! Thanks Greg 😋
Tried this recipe today, 1/18/26, and I was skeptical but then I looked closely at the directions of the low temp cook first then high temp cook, and that told me this was going to be a good recipe. It delivered! Very crispy, still very juicy on the inside, and the sauce was perfect. Great job.
Excellent!! Better than our local bar serves— which is very good but this is a lot cheaper and even crispier and better!! Will definitely use this recipe again and again.
Holy moley, woman, these are amazing!! Sitting on the couch eating them and have to comment mid wing. I used a different sauce (BBQ one we had in the fridge) but the crispiness!!! Chef’s kiss! You make my life brighter, Nagi!
I made these and found I could taste a trace of the baking powder bitterness (the sauce mostly covered it). Then a friend told me cornflour would do the same job – and it did. So now, with that one alteration, this is my go-to wings recipe.
I love this recipe t9 Mae the wings crispy. Can I use your honey soy sauce after these are cooked?
Nah. No good
My husband said these were the best chicken wings ever!
Works great with cornstarch if you’re out of baking powder (1:1 ratio). It also works wonders on other cuts of bone-in meat. Only downside is that there wasn’t enough spices on it! I put a TON of adobo & cajun seasoning on it on top instead of salt. That made it extra flavorful on top of the buffalo sauce! (Id you have RedHot powder, you can use it, but you probably need more melted butter/oil!)
This buffalo wing recipe is a keeper!! The buffalo sauce part is a must- it is addictive and delicious! No bottled pre-made buffalo sauce compares to it. The gorganzola dip will also be my go to….ratio of ingredients is spot on!! Thanks for finding – and sharing- the secret to crispy baked wings!
unbelievable. I’ve never tasted chicken as crispy and delightful as this recipe. Tried to dip it into sauce but decided it was so delicious straight, that’s how I ate the rest