Smoked Chicken Wings Recipe

My crispy smoked chicken wings come off the smoker with rich pecan smoke in the meat and skin that actually cracks when you bite into it. Three ingredients, a dry brine in the fridge, and a hot finish on the fryer or grill. These are the wings I cook every game day.

If chicken wings are at a party I am at, I am eating those first, every time. Most home-smoked wings let me down on the skin, which is why I started linking them in my head with my Buffalo wings and grilled chicken wings with chili garlic sauce instead of treating smoke as the whole story. The trick was figuring out which technique from each one to borrow, and once that clicked, this smoked chicken wings recipe became the version that stayed.

Smoked Chicken Wings

Smoked chicken wings are whole or sectioned chicken wings cooked low and slow in a smoker so the meat takes on real wood-fired flavor. They are the BBQ version of the bar wing: bone-in, party-sized, made for sauce, and usually finished hot at the end so the skin actually bites instead of slumping.

I came up around fryers and broilers, and the move that took me a while to land was treating the smoker as a flavor tool and the fryer or grill as a finishing tool, not asking either one to do both jobs. The version I cook at home now uses my BBQ rub for the dry brine, pecan pellets for the smoke, and a hot fryer or grill for the finish.

Then I simply toss them in my homemade BBQ sauce for my wife, Buffalo for my daughter, or leave them dry with chives and flake salt for me, and the wing tips never go in the trash, I bag them for a batch of homemade roasted chicken stock the next month. I highly recommend cooking these on a Saturday with the game on.

Ingredients and Substitutions

Three ingredients is all you need to make this recipe. Here is what I use and what I swap in when I am out:

• Chicken Wings – You will need prepared drumette and wingette chicken wings. You can buy them whole and even smoke them whole, but for ease of eating, it’s best to cut them into individual parts.  
• BBQ rub – My homemade BBQ rub is my first pick because the salt and sugar balance is dialed for a dry brine. Any store-bought rub will work, and a teaspoon of chili powder, oregano, or cumin stirred in is the move when I want to take it somewhere new.
• Baking powder – Aluminum-free if I have the option, never baking soda. Cornstarch is my backup.

How to Smoke Chicken Wings

Cut: I lay each whole wing on a cutting board, find the joint between the drumette and the flat, and press down with my knife to split it. I cut the tip off at the next joint and set the tips aside for stock.

Pat the wings dry: Then I dry every wing aggressively with paper towels.

Mix the rub and baking powder: I whisk the BBQ rub and baking powder together in a small bowl until there are no lumps.

Coat the wings: I pour the rub over the wings and dig in with my hands until every piece is fully coated.

Rack them up: The wings go onto a wire rack set over a parchment-lined sheet tray with a 1/2″ of space between each piece so air can move around them.

Air-dry the wings in the fridge: The tray goes uncovered into the fridge for twelve to seventy-two hours. The wings come out looking shiny and almost dry to the touch.

Preheat the smoker to 225°F: I load pecan pellets and let the smoker settle at a steady 225°F before any wings go on.

Smoke the wings to 150°F internal: The wings go directly on the grates with space between every piece. A probe goes into the biggest wing on the rack and the lid closes. Plan on 90 minutes to 2 hours.

Rest the wings off the smoker: I pull the wings to a sheet tray and let them rest 1 to 2 minutes while the fryer or grill comes up to heat.

Finishing option one, deep fry at 350°F: I heat a neutral frying oil to 350°F in a heavy pot or fryer. The wings go in batches that do not crowd the pot, about two minutes a batch, until the skin is deep golden brown and the internal temperature hits 165°F. They drain on a wire rack for thirty seconds.

Finishing option two, hot grill at 450 to 550°F: I bring a grill or the firebox of a pellet smoker up to direct-flame searing heat. The wings go over the flame, turning constantly for one to two minutes total, until the skin is lightly charred and the internal temperature hits 165°F.

Sauce and serve: Finished wings go into a large mixing bowl. I drizzle in the sauce while I toss the bowl in a circle so every wing picks up a full coat. The bowl tips onto a platter, a handful of chopped chives goes over the top, and the wings go out while they are still hot.

Serving Suggestions

I keep two bowls of dipping sauce on the counter when these come out, the buttermilk ranch dressing for my daughter and blue cheese dressing for the rest of the room, with cut celery and carrots between them. The platter sits in the middle of the table, half tossed in Buffalo and half left dry with chives, so people pick a side without me cooking two batches.

For a bigger Saturday spread I plate the wings next to a big bowl of creamy coleslaw and a tray of homemade cornbread. The slaw cools the heat off the Buffalo side, the wings sharpen up the slaw, cold beer or iced tea sits on the side, and a stack of paper towels on the counter is non-negotiable. Whatever is left at the end of the fourth quarter goes into a sealed container for round two the next day.

Make-Ahead and Storage

Make-Ahead: I hold cooked wings on a sheet tray under loose foil in a 200°F oven for up to one hour before serving. The dry brine itself can sit on the rack in the fridge for up to seventy-two hours before the smoke.

How to Store: I cover and refrigerate leftovers for 3 to 4 days, in a single layer when possible, because stacked wings under foil steam each other overnight.

How to Reheat: I spread the wings on a parchment-lined sheet tray and bake at 350°F for six to eight minutes until the skin crisps back up. I skip the microwave.

How to Freeze: I freeze cooled wings in a single layer on a sheet tray, then transfer them to a sealed bag for up to 3 months.

More Smoked Recipes

• Smoked Brisket
• St. Louis Style Ribs
• Smoked Tri Tip
• Smoked BBQ Chicken
• Smoked Pulled Pork