This healthier version of Buffalo Chicken Wings is a favorite snack for game days! Not only are they bite-sized and easy finger foods, but they are also loaded with flavor. A little hot sauce alongside a perfect blend of spices makes these oven-baked wings a great appetizer or snack for your next party!
Ingredients
3½ to 4poundschicken wingscut in half at the joint (This will end up being 12 whole chicken wings, making 24 pieces. Cut the drumette and the wingette, or “flat,” apart.)
½cupFrank’s RedHot® Original Sauce
1tablespoonwhite vinegar
¼teaspoonoregano
½teaspoonpaprika
½teaspoongarlic powder
Saltto taste
Black pepperto taste
Instructions
If the wings are whole, you need to split them at the joint to separate the drumette from the wing (or the “flat”) to make 12 pieces. Cut the piece that looks like a mini drumstick away from the middle part, cutting through the joint.
Preheat the oven broiler. If there are low and high settings, choose low. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil and place a cooling rack on top of that. Generously spray the cooling rack with nonstick cooking spray to help with cleanup.
Place the wings in a large pot and cover them by 2 inches with water. Bring to a boil, cook for 10 minutes, and then drain in a colander.
Run cold water over the wings to cool them down quickly. Then using your hands, gently peel the skin off of the wings, being careful not to pull the meat off of the bones. Use a paper towel to get a better grip.
In a medium mixing bowl, mix all of the sauce ingredients together, reserving half of it. Toss the boiled wings in half of the sauce. Place the sauced wings on the prepared baking sheet and broil for 4-5 minutes on each side, until cooked through.
Carefully toss the wings again in the remaining sauce and then place back under the broiler for an additional minute to heat the sauce and crisp the wings.
Notes
Tips:
Chicken wing breakdown:
Drumette: The part that looks like a mini chicken wing.
Wingette (or flat): The middle portion that is the most meaty.
Tip: This part of the wing can stay attached to the wingette when cooking, or it can be cut off. You typically wouldn't cook it on its own, unless you're saving it to make homemade chicken stock.
Boiling the wings to cook them most of the way through before broiling is a great way to reduce fat, because the extra fat comes off in the water and is drained away. The wings then finish cooking in the oven instead of being fried. Most buffalo sauce contains a lot of butter, but this method eliminates the butter altogether.
If the low broil setting is too low and you aren't seeing a crisping of the chicken, turn it up to high—but keep a careful eye on them! Broiling on high will go faster than you think.