Easy Classic Buffalo Wings Recipe

Whether it's game day or just a Tuesday night, you and your friends can dive into a platter of crisp, hot chicken wings with a creamy blue cheese dip in under an hour of cooking time. For this easy method, we chose to bake the wings in the oven. Don't let that stop you — if you're partial to fried wings, note that these are equally (if not more) crispy and delicious as their fried counterparts, and much more low-maintenance. The wings are quickly coated with baking powder, garlic powder, salt, and pepper, then baked, flipped, and baked again until crispy and deep golden brown. 

Once baked, these wings are tossed in hot sauce, butter, and a little brown sugar, leaving you with an incredibly tasty, crave-worthy dish. Pair with a homemade blue cheese dipping sauce and celery sticks for a classic presentation, and everyone will be impressed.

Recipe developer Katie Rosenhouse loves this easy version. "This easy Buffalo wings recipe is perfect for any night of the week, whether you're having a last minute get-together or you're just in the mood for some great comfort food. Make sure to grab enough wings at the market. The smell of the wings baking and the butter melting on the stovetop will amp up the hunger level in anyone within a 50 foot radius."

If you're new to making Buffalo chicken wings at home, you might be surprised by the simple ingredient list. To start, you'll need wingettes and drumettes. If you're at the supermarket and you only see whole wings, don't worry. It's incredibly easy to break them down at home. Just cut at the joints between the drumette, wingette (or flat), and wing tip, wiggling your knife if you feel resistance to find the right areas to slice. Discard the wing tips (or save for a batch of chicken stock), and you'll have perfect wingettes and drumettes ready to go.

The pieces are coated in a combination of baking powder, garlic powder, salt, and black pepper for a flavorful mix, with the baking powder helping to crisp and brown the skin more quickly in the oven. After baking, they're tossed in a balanced mixture of melted butter, hot sauce, and brown sugar.

Buffalo wings should be served hot, and a homemade blue cheese dip is the perfect pairing. Blue cheese crumbles, sour cream, mayonnaise, lemon juice, salt, and pepper come together for a creamy dip that cools the heat of the wings. The dip can be garnished with sliced scallions, and celery or carrot sticks can be served alongside if desired.

Preheat oven to 425 F.

Pat the chicken wingettes and drumettes dry with paper towels.

Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or aluminum foil.

In a medium bowl, stir to combine the baking powder, garlic powder, salt, and pepper.

Drop a few pieces of chicken at a time into the dry mixture and toss to coat.

Shake off any excess coating and transfer to the prepared baking sheet, spacing chicken pieces at least ½ inch apart.

Bake chicken for 30 minutes until golden on one side.

Flip and cook chicken an additional 25 to 30 minutes until crisp and browned.

In the meantime, prepare the blue cheese dip: In a medium bowl, lightly crush blue cheese crumbles with a fork to break down any large pieces.

Add the sour cream, mayonnaise, and lemon juice, then stir to combine.

Taste and season with salt and pepper. Stir in milk if needed to adjust consistency.

Transfer the dipping sauce to a serving bowl and top with scallions if using.

In a large bowl, stir to combine the butter, hot sauce, and brown sugar.

When the chicken is ready, transfer a few pieces at a time into the hot sauce mixture, tossing to coat.

Transfer the chicken to a serving plate with sauce and celery, if desired; serve hot.

A perfectly cooked chicken wing should be moist and tender on the inside, but crisp and deeply browned on the exterior. When baking chicken wings, you'll want to keep an eye on their color as they bake. Baked on a middle rack in the oven, they should be golden brown on both sides by the time they're finished baking (you'll be flipping them halfway through). A rack placed over the baking sheet can help with this, leading to even better air flow around the wings and an extra crispy skin as they bake, albeit a little extra cleanup. The finished wings should be firm to the touch, and the skin crisp. When you cut into a wing, the juices should run clear.

Keeping a meat thermometer on hand is an easy way to always know without a doubt that your chicken is fully cooked. A probe inserted into the thickest part of a wing should register 165 F. If the temperature is lower, leave them in for additional time. 

Rosenhouse has a lot to say about butter. "If there's one ingredient I treasure above all the rest, it's butter. Everything is better with a touch of butter, and this Buffalo wing sauce is no exception. It balances the sauce, adding richness and flavor."

Butter does wonders when paired with hot sauce, mellowing the heat on your tongue while imparting a silky richness to the sauce that helps it glaze and cling to the wings. The velvety consistency of the sauce, contrasted by the crispness of the wings and creaminess of the blue cheese dip, makes this dish completely irresistible. 

Looking to cut back on the quantity of butter in the recipe? Reducing the amount of butter will leave you with a greater proportion of hot sauce for a spicier result, but we don't recommend it. Buffalo wings should be savored, so we say go big or go home.

When you think of crisp chicken wings, you might assume they have to be fried. While frying is one way to ensure crispy wings, this oven method also yields extra crispy results. Baking powder coats the chicken before baking, helping ensure that the skin gets nice and crispy in the oven. If you have the time, try coating and leaving the chicken uncovered in the refrigerator overnight for even more of a crisp, blistering effect when baked. 

These oven-baked wings can even be baked in advance, and reheated until hot throughout when needed. When it comes time to serve, toss into the hot sauce mixture right before plating. While the wings will remain crisp until they're gobbled up, the more time the sauce sits on the chicken, the more likely the rich, silky sauce will soften the crispy skin, leading to a soggy result.