No false promises here – these crispy oven baked wings are SERIOUSLY crispy! You will be gob smacked how easy they are to make. They honestly taste like they’ve been deep fried, with a thin shatteringly crisp golden skin. You can see how easy these are to make and hear how crispy they really are in this cooking video.
These are so good they can be eaten plain. Or toss them in your favourite sauce, or serve it on the side. I’ve provided a selection of sauces for these crispy baked wings in the recipe below!
Truly crispy oven baked wings
This recipe for how to make Crispy Oven Baked Wings is a discovery by the genius folk over at Cook’s Illustrated. Being the food nerd I am, I really enjoy how Cook’s Illustrated explains the science behind why they do things in a particular way.
And I honestly believe this to be one of their most all time most epic recipes, especially because it’s so insanely EASY!!! And today, I’m sharing the secret with you. Are you ready? 🙂
How to make crispy oven baked wings
Crispy oven baked wings in 3 easy steps:
Pat wings dry with paper towels;
Toss wings in baking powder and salt;
Bake at 120°C/250°F for 30 minutes, then at 220°C/425°F for 40 – 50 minutes until golden brown and crispy.
Yes, that’s it. That’s all there is to it. 🙂
Why this recipe works
In those 3 simple steps are 2 very important things to make these truly crispy oven baked wings:
1. Coat in baking powder – yes, you read that right, baking powder! I won’t go into all the technicalities, but in a nutshell, the baking powder draws moisture to the surface of the skin so it can evaporate, thereby making the skin crispier; and
2. Bake for 30 minutes on low to melt the fat before blasting in a very hot oven to crisp up the skin. There’s a lot of scientific explanations around this and I’ll skip it because I’ll bore you! But basically, the wings are first baked on the lowest shelf in the oven at a very low temperature for 30 minutes which causes the fat under the skin to “melt”, then you move the wings up to the top shelf and crank up the heat which crisps up the skin.
The other tip is ensuring that the wings are dry. If you are organised enough, put the wings on the rack and refrigerate, uncovered, overnight. However, I neither have the fridge space nor am I organised enough, so I just dry them using paper towels (see photo below for how I do this).
When these come out of the oven and you tap the skin with your nail, you can instantly “hear” how crispy the skin is. They even look like they’ve been fried! And in case you are concerned, you don’t taste baking powder at all.
Got questions? See FAQ under the recipe card.
You will notice that the wings are smaller than you are used to. That’s because so much of the fat under the skin melts off the wings – you’ll see it all pooled on the tray. So these have the added benefit of reduced calories too!
You can toss the wings in your sauce of choice or serve the sauce on the side. I’ve also shared classic Buffalo Wings using this same method for crispy oven baked wings. For this recipe, I’ve included a few simple sauces that I like to serve wings with: Honey Garlic Sauce, Honey Mustard Sauce, Ranch Dipping Sauce.
Let’s get stuck into these wings! – Nagi x
PS I’ve now published the Buffalo Wings version! Here it is: Truly Crispy Oven Baked BUFFALO Wings.
Watch how to make it
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Truly Crispy Oven Baked Chicken Wings
Ingredients
Crispy Wings
- 4 lb / 2 kg chicken wings , cut into wingettes and drumettes (Note 1)
- 5 teaspoons baking powder (NOT BAKING SODA / BI-CARB SODA!!)
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- Oil spray
Instructions
Crispy Wings
- If you are organised enough, uncover the chicken wings and leave them in the fridge for a few hours to dry out. Otherwise, use a paper towel to pat the wings dry.
- Adjust oven racks to upper-middle and lower-middle positions.
- Preheat oven to 250F/120C (all oven types – standard/convection/fan).
- Line a baking tray with foil, then place a rack (like a cooling rack) on the foil. Spray the rack with oil spray.
- Place wings in a large bowl or in a ziplock bag. Add the baking powder and salt, then toss to coat evenly.
- Place the wings on the baking tray in a single layer with the skin side up. They should just fit snugly. They will shrink when they cook because the fat renders out so don’t worry if they look too snug.
- Place wings on the lower middle oven rack and bake for 30 minutes.
- Move wings up to the upper middle rack and increase the oven temperature to 425F/220C. Bake for 40 – 50 minutes, rotating the tray halfway through.
- Remove baking tray from the oven and let it stand for 5 minutes.
- Toss wings in sauce of choice or serve it on the side to dip / drizzle on the wings, then serve.
Recipe Notes:
* Honey Garlic Sauce: Mix together 4 tbsp honey, 2 tbsp soy sauce, 2 tsp white vinegar (or sub with any other vinegar except balsamic), 2-3 garlic cloves, minced. Use for dipping OR tossing.
* Honey Mustard Sauce: 1/4 cup Dijon mustard, 1/4 cup mayonnaise 1/4 cup honey
* Ranch Dipping Sauce: Mix 1/3 cup mayonnaise, 1/3 cup sour cream, 2 tbsp milk, 1 tsp lemon juice, 1/4 tsp EACH dried dill, parsley, chives, onion and garlic powder, salt & pepper to taste.
* Spicy Creamy Dipping Sauce: 3/4 cup mayo, 1/2 tso garlic powder, 1/8 tsp paprika, 3-4 tbsp sriracha, salt & pepper
* Pink Sauce: 1/2 cup mayonnaise, 2 tbsp sweet chilli sauce, 2 tbsp ketchup, 2 tsp garlic powder, 1 tbsp sriracha (or other hot sauce) 7. Nutrition: The nutrition is per serving, assuming 8 servings. Note that the calories is HIGHER than it actually is because so much fat is rendered out (melted) and discarded which is not reflected in the nutrition below. I measured the discarded fat once and calculated that it should be 60 calories LESS per serving (around 1/4 cup fat in total was discarded).
Nutrition Information:
Originally published in November 2014, updated with fresh new photos and step by step photos!
Frequently asked questions
I don’t have a rack. Does this cause a problem? The skin will still be crispy but the bottom of the wings that is in contact with the tray will be oily. This is because the purpose of the rack is to elevate the wings off the tray and allow the chicken fat to drip down.
One way to get around an oily underside is to take the wings out after around 35 minutes during the high temp cooking. Drain the oil out of the tray then return to the oven to finish crisping/browning. You could also drain the excess oil from the wings on paper towels before serving.
Can I make ahead? These stay crispy for as long as the wings are warm, so around 20 – 30 minutes. After that, the skin starts to wrinkle and soften. However, I was shocked how well they reheat! Just allow the wings to cool (uncovered), then cover and refrigerate. Spread wings out on tray, skin side up, and bake for 5 to 8 minutes at 200C/390F. The skin smooths out and puffs up, just like when they were baked fresh. Other than to you (if you’ve made as many wings as me!) and true hard core Wings experts, the difference in juiciness and crispiness is barely noticeable – my friends never notice when I reheat!
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.
Please do not toss in baking powder then refrigerate or freeze, this won’t work (makes the wings sweat too much to become crispy).
Can I add seasonings? You sure can! It does marginally reduce the actual skin crispiness but a crust forms from the extra seasonings/spices and adds more crunch. I did a lot of testing around this and I can assure you it works really well!
There was a lot of smoke! Help! A few readers have had this problem and I don’t think it’s from the chicken wings because I’ve made a ridiculous amount of these wings (in my kitchen and others) and never had the problem. The problem may be: a) spillage of chicken fat onto the oven burners when transferring from the lower to the upper shelf or b) there already was fat on the oven burners. I can’t think of anything else. While the smoke point of chicken fat is below that of the high oven temperature used in this recipe, the fat is not in direct contact with the heat because it’s shielded by all the wings and diluted by chicken juices dripping into the fat.
You really don’t need to flip? Really! Even if you don’t use a rack, the underside will get crispy.
Can I make this with other cuts of chicken? Yes BUT the crispiness will only work on the skin. So it works best on wings because they are almost fully enclosed by skin. With drumsticks, thighs and skin on breast, they are not fully encased with skin when raw and the skin shrinks while cooking. But the actual technique works super well! For 1 kg / 2 lb drumsticks or other cut of chicken, using 2 tsp of baking powder and 1/4 tsp salt – less than the recipe for wings because there is less skin surface area.
Life of Dozer
No wings for Dozer – cooked chicken bones are dangerous for dogs! How about a Honey Prawn instead??
Looks delicious. Never cooked in my life, surely gonna try this
So I tried baking powder for the first time. I did not notice the 2 tbs amount and just dumped a bunch into a shake bag like flour. Tasted so bad we could not eat them. I assumed according to this that baking powder was used the same as flour but it just crisped the meat better. Oh well. Live and learn.
OH NO!!! That WOULD taste terrible!!! The 2 tbsp is a very specific amount – just enough for max crisp without being able to taste it once cooked. Wish I could have been there in the kitchen with you to stop you!!!! 🙂
Thanks, I saw the large warning not to use baking soda, but never having used baking powder, a large warning for that may have helped. Again, that’s how I learn. 🙂
This is a GREAT one to start on!!! Promise! 🙂
Do you know if they recipe would work with regular chicken drumsticks instead of wings?
Hi April! Yes it does work with only an extra 5 to 10 minutes baking time BUT the crispiness comes down to how much skin is on the drumstick. Wings are perfect because they are filly enclosed in skin, whereas drumsticks are not and also while they are baking, the skin shrinks somewhat. However, all the skin is crispy, just like the wings!
Hi
It does work with regular drumsticks. I stretch the skin and use tooth picks to hold it. Cooking time is longer but they come out extra crispy!
OOOOHHHH!!!! Thanks for the tip Chris! I have to try it with drumsticks 🙂 Works GREAT with thigh cutlets! I must share a recipe soon 🙂
Thank you! I’ll give it a try this week!
Hi Nagi, I am thinking of doing this chicken wings recipe tonight but I don’t have baking powder at home. Is it ok if I uses all purpose flour or self raising flour?
Hi Karen! Unfortunately this won’t work with flour or self raising flour. 🙁 Sorry to disappoint! but I promise it is worth the effort of popping by the store to get baking powder!!!
These are excellent. I’ve made them 4 times now and the wings come out perfect for saucing lightly and still retaining some crisp on the skin. I don’t use the garlic sauce (my wife can’t eat garlic) but purchased a bottled teriyaki instead. Love them!
Thank you Brian! I really appreciate your feedback – and I’m SO GLAD you enjoyed it!!
Wow, these are the very best chicken wings I have ever had ! Love them !
I’m SO GLAD!!! <3
Nagi, thank you for sharing this recipe. I made it last night and the wings were great! I like to deep fry my wings because I love them crispy. I don’t think I’ll ever need to fry again because these are just as good and healthier. So yummy!
Cindi! I am SO glad you loved it! I love hearing validation from people who (used to!) fry wings to get them crispy!!! Thanks so much for taking the time to come back and let me know. 🙂
hi Could I make the wings and then freeze till the day of the party [2 weeks]
Hi Helen! Yep, you sure can! Just defrost then pop them in a cranked up oven for 8 to 10 minutes until piping hot and crispy again. It is not QUITE as juicy inside – just like any other frozen cooked meat – but it is still juicy and the skin crisps up again!
I love the science behind this! (I’m an Alton Brown fan ?). Will this recipe work with frozen wings? Or do they absolutely HAVE to be thawed first?
Same here!! They do need to be thawed first because wings get really wet when they defrost and they need to be as dry as possible to get the crispy wings!
These were great. I had picked up a small package of pre-trimmed wings but will make a triple recipe next time for our Monday Night Football group. The cook times were spot on and the honey garlic dipping sauce was the perfect compliment to the crispy skin. KEEPER! Thanks for sharing. (Love those folks at Cooks Illustrated)
Aren’t they the best? I use their foolproof Apple Pie dough too, using vodka. Brilliant, works overtime. 🙂 So glad you enjoyed this Deb! Thanks for taking the time to come back and let me know!
I am excited to try this recipe. My husband is the wing master around the house, but his are typically fried or grilled. I want to bring a new element to football Sundays, but i am curious how to adjust the recipe for a dry rub as opposed to a sauce. Do i just add the seasoning in with the baking powder while coating?
Hi Terry! I have a bunch of recipes for rubs in my Wings cookbook 🙂 If you want to try your own, follow the recipe and toss the wings in the baking powder + salt first, then toss in your seasonings. Then bake as per the recipe! Hope you love it!
DO NOT ADD OTHER SPICES TO BAKING SODA AND SALT!!!! I made that mistake the second time I tried them for extra spice on skin and whooaaaaaa, not good… Stick to the original instructions and they are AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Cuz u used baking soda. Mine are awesome . Been mixing everything together for years. Must thaw frozen.
Hi Diane! SO GLAD you loved the original instructions! Sorry to hear it didn’t work out when you tried adding other spices. 🙂 Actually, you can add other spices, I have a bunch of recipes in my Wings cookbook with spices added to the wings and they come out lovely and crunchy, it’s just a matter of knowing how much to add. Also, the trick is to coat in baking powder and salt first before tossing in seasonings. Give that a go! N x
Hi, currently in the midst of making these as we speak. I just passed the 50 minute mark and my wings are still far from done, not counting the 30 minutes I did before the fact. My question is… if I wanted to speed up the cooking process, would it be better to simply turn the temperature up or to move these to another rack?
Thanks for sharing the recipe – I made the sauce and put in extra garlic because of how much i love it, and it tastes divine.
Hi Bryan! That’s really odd, all I can think is that your oven is weak. It should definitely be done, mine is usually pretty much ready at 40 minutes (on the high temp). Just turn it up. Though I missed your message when you were making them so I’m sorry, I hope they worked out!
Hi Nagi, my wings came out pretty good, but I had to leave them in for two hours. Maybe I misunderstood your directions, but when I placed my cooling racks on the foil, I had to do it in such a way where the racks weren’t directly pressing against it. Picture the racks sitting upright on top of a pan, and putting the wings on top of the racks.
Was I supposed to do this some other way? I feel that this is why my wings took so long to cook.
Thanks for your quick response.
Hi Bryan! My racks sit so they are slightly elevated over the foil on the tray, about 2/3″/1.5cm. From what you describe it sounds like what mine looks like! So the baking tray, foil then the rack sitting on the foil. The wings on the rack so they are slightly elevated off the foil.
2 hours is a very long time! All I can think is that your oven is weaker. Even if the wings are sitting directly on a tray without a rack, this doesn’t affect the baking time. But I’m glad they came out anyway! N
Ok, that gives me confidence to try this again. I think I may have identified my problem. I placed them on the top oven rack back from when I was baking cakes, so they were elevated in the oven. Silly mistake.
I’ll try them again today or tomorrow and see how they turn out. Thanks so much again!
What if I don’t have a rack will it work? Also the adds on this sites make the browsing terriable
Hi Alessandro, I’m sorry the ads are distracting. Right now, it is a way I am able to keep the blog running. I wish there were a better way!
Without a rack, the underside will be soggy as the wings will be sitting in fat. I really do recommend using a rack!
Just turn the wings a few times during cooking and you won’t have soggy wings! I use half & half corn starch and flour mix and bake directly on oiled heavy aluminum pan (without rack) and get same results. Bake at 400° for an hour, turn at 30 minutes and 1 hour, crank heat to 450 and bake another 10-15 minutes.
Nagi, these are the best wings ever! I have made them twice and we have loved them both times. My partner gets so excited when I say these are on the menu!
I’m so glad!! And also tell him there is 20% LESS FAT because so much of it melts away so he can have 20% MORE!!! 🙂
Hi Nagi, I came upon your blog a couple weeks ago and made your carnitas. Amazing! I’m going to try out these wings tomorrow night. One question: You mentioned in the post that sriracha in the sauce is optional. I’d like to try it. Can you let me know what amount or sriracha I should add (it isn’t specified in the recipe)? Thank you!
Hi Howard! I’m so glad you enjoyed my carnitas, SO GOOD! Re: sriracha, it comes down to taste really! Depends how much spice you can handle. I start with 1 tbsp into the sauce then go UP from there! 🙂
The cook times look very long, especially 40-50 minutes at 425. How do they still resemble food after all that?
yes the cooking time is way too long. chicken wings are usually baked at 425 for 20-25 mins . i wouldnt cook them as long as listed above
Hi Sue! Thanks for your input 🙂 The baking time is correct. It sounds long, but it is right, it needs it because of the baking powder on the skin (to make it crispy) and the wing does not dry out (the rendering fat bastes the meat). 🙂 Tried and tested many times by me, my readers and America’s Test Kitchen!! 🙂
I disagree. I made them according to your directions above and they were dry inside and rubbery /hard on the outside. not to mention the baking powder left the chicken a white color as it did not bake all the way in. The best temp is 425 for 40 minutes at the most.
I have made these multiple times as well following the cooking time exactly. They come out perfect every time- crispy or the outside and juicy on the inside, Yum!
I’m so glad Lisa!! 🙂 <3
I’m so glad Lisa!! 🙂 <3
Sue you seem a little daft. I think you should stick to boiled potatoes and quit criticizing a great recipe.
I’ve made this recipe 3 times, following the directions to a “T” and they are perfectly crisp yet moist inside every time.
Gosh, that’s odd Sue! I wish I could be “in” the kitchen with you to help troubleshoot. 🙂 It sounds like something went quite wrong. As you can see from the photos, there is no baking powder left on the skin! I’ve made this recipe over 50 times in the last 6 months alone (for the wings cookbook!) and they have come out juicy inside and crispy on the outside every single time. 🙂 I’m sorry it didn’t work out for you, all I can think is that either your oven temperature is out, there was something wrong with the wings themselves and/or the baking powder was off. 🙂 Hope you have a lovely evening!
Hi Kaelyn! I know, I was quite worried too but it certainly works! Wings are a very fatty cut of meat so it takes a LOT to cook them to the point of dry. These are really juicy inside. It needs that length of cooking time at the high temperature to crisp the skin. 🙂
Followed wing and sauce recipe exactly…I’ve made a hundred wing recipes before and I settled on a just okay baked wing…this recipe made me do a double read and I thought hmm ok let’s see…game changer! Perfect and yes crisp. I used to be fine with crispish(sorta burnt). Now I want people to come over to try these babies.if they don’t see them in the oven they wouldn’t believe….thank you.
Thanks Jeff! I love that you’re now totally converted. 🙂 I know what you mean about previously settling on sorta-crispy and am glad you’ve discovered this truly crispy version!! N x
Hi Trying your recipe as I type. I have to say the first step in the preheated oven at 250F for 30 minutes did not even begin to render any fat therefore it seems unnecessary.
I am curious as to how the baking powder will crisp up these wings. Worth a try
Thanks for the recipe.
Hi there! The lower temperature definitely makes a difference to the end result. You won’t see much fat that has melted onto the tray at the end of the first 30 minutes but the fat under the skin IS very soft and mostly melted. Then when it moves up to the top shelf at the high temperature, a LOT of fat melts onto the tray. I have tested this recipe many ways and much less fat melts if the baking at the lower temperature is skipped.
As for how the baking powder crisps up the wings – it is science and I can’t profess to know all the underlying details! In summary though, what it does is draw the moisture to the surface of the skin. It works far better better than flour, cornflour and everything else that is commonly used for creating crisp skin. Also a key factor for how it becomes so crispy is the melting of the fat because it leaves behind just the skin, which (with the baking powder on it) becomes very crisp. I do hope you love it!
I wish I could tell the world. FABULOUS !!!!!!!
The sauce has the perfect proportions for a delicate yet very flavorful dipping sauce
Was going to serve them as an appetizer for a family gathering.
Oooooops they disappeared before they arrived. Maybe next time.
Big thanks, too bad I didn’t know about this 40 years ago
Yes yes yes!! I’m so happy you love it so much! AND I trust out into laughter at the thought of them all disappearing before your family arrived – that’s a CLASSIC!!!! 🙂
These were truly crispy! We didn’t make the sauce, just used lemon and pepper. Will definitely make these again!
Yay! I am so glad you loved them! 🙂
These are so yummy! I made them last night and my husband said that they are much better than the ones we’ve had at restaurants. I added a few drops of sriracha in the honey garlic sauce. They were delicious!
Hurrah! I am SO glad you enjoyed these Maria!! High praise from your husband!! N x