Hot wings are chicken wings, cut into flats and drumettes, fried or baked until crisp, then tossed in a spicy sauce. The classic Buffalo version is unbreaded wings in hot sauce and butter. Below is the method I’ve used since the early days of Hot Sauce Blog, plus sauce picks by heat level.
What are hot wings?
According to the Anchor Bar in Buffalo, New York, Teressa Bellissimo first deep-fried chicken wings and tossed them in a secret sauce on March 4, 1964, for her son Dominic’s hungry friends. They became a regular menu item that night. The restaurant still calls the recipe a closely guarded secret.
“Buffalo wings” means that unbreaded original. “Hot wings” is the broader term, and it includes the breaded, bar-style wings a lot of us grew up on. This guide covers both.
How to make classic Buffalo wings
The original hot wing is unbreaded and deep-fried, then tossed in a simple sauce of hot sauce and butter.
Fried
- Cut the wings at the joints to separate the flat from the drumette. Discard the tips, or save them for stock.
- Pat the wings dry with paper towels. Moisture is the enemy of crispiness.
- Heat canola oil to 375°F in a deep fryer or heavy pot, deep enough to submerge the wings.
- Fry for 10–12 minutes until the skin is golden. Don’t crowd the pot.
- My tip: after 3 minutes, pull the wings out, poke each one once with a fork, then put them back in the oil. It separates the skin from the meat and makes them noticeably crispier.
- Drain on a wire rack, not paper towels, which trap steam.
- Check doneness with a thermometer: USDA says chicken wings should reach 165°F, measured in each wing away from the bone.
Baked
Preheat to 425°F. Set a wire rack on a foil-lined baking sheet, arrange the wings without crowding, and bake 45–50 minutes, flipping halfway. Toss them lightly in oil first for extra crispness.
Air fryer
Pat dry, toss lightly with oil, and cook at 380°F for 20–25 minutes, shaking the basket every 5 minutes.
The sauce
Equal parts Frank’s RedHot and melted butter, mixed while the wings are hot, and tossed immediately. Frank’s is thin and tangy, so it clings without turning gloppy. For more sauce, go 2 parts Frank’s to 1 part butter; for more heat, add a second hot sauce. Crystal Hot Sauce works as a substitute.
For the step-by-step version with photos from our 2005 Wing-Off, read How to Make Buffalo Wings: A Step by Step Guide (November 14, 2005).
Breaded hot wings: my 2005 step-by-step method
Step 1: Quality chicken wings
Buy the highest quality wings you can find. Plan on 10–15 wings per person for a meal, or 5–7 as an appetizer.
Step 2: Prepare your cutting board
Sanitize the board and use a sharp knife, since you’ll cut through bone. I put a towel under the board so it doesn’t slip.
Step 3: Prepare your breading
Mix the breading first so each wing goes straight in as you cut it. For that 2005 Super Bowl batch I used Hooter’s Wing Breading because it’s what I had on hand; homemade works too, just flour and spices to taste.
Step 4: Cut the wings
Cut each wing in two places and discard the tip.
Step 5: Bread the wings
Toss the cut wings in the breading until evenly coated, then cover and refrigerate for about an hour to an hour and a half.
Step 6: Fry
Fry in good vegetable oil until golden brown, in small batches so each wing cooks evenly and keeps its coating. Drain off the excess oil.
Step 7: Sauce and serve
Toss the hot wings in a large bowl with your wing sauce, then plate with blue cheese and celery.
The bottled sauces I rated in that 2005 post: Anchor Bar Original Wing Sauce (5/5), Anchor Bar Honey BBQ (4/5), Anchor Bar Honey Mustard (3/5), Wing Time Hot Wing Sauce (4/5) and Hooter’s 3-Mile Island (4/5). Those ratings are from 2005.
Wing heat levels guide: mild to extreme
No Scoville numbers here; heat varies by batch and brand. These are the tiers I use on the site:
- Mild Mild: Frank’s RedHot, Crystal, Texas Pete. Flavor without much burn.
- Medium Medium: Sriracha, Secret Aardvark Habanero, Tabasco.
- Hot Hot: ghost pepper and Carolina Reaper sauces.
- Extreme Extreme: Blair’s Ultra Death and Mega Death. More novelty than flavor; use a few drops in the sauce. See my Mega Death heat test.
Best hot sauces and gear for wings
- Frank’s RedHot Original, 12 fl oz (pack of 12): $24.04, in stock, sold by Amazon.com. The classic Buffalo sauce.
- Secret Aardvark Hot Sauce Variety Pack, 5 × 8 oz: $44.99, in stock. For the medium tier.
- Blair’s Mega Death Hot Sauce, 5 oz: $17.49, “Only 17 left in stock.” For extreme wings, a few drops at a time.
- TempPro TempSwift TP19H instant-read meat thermometer: $14.99, in stock. For checking 165°F.
- Stainless baking sheet + cooling rack set (2 pans, 2 racks): $24.99, in stock. For draining fried wings and for baking.
Wing recipes from the 2nd Annual HSB Wing Off (2008)
In January 2008 we ran the 2nd Annual HSB Wing Off, judged on ingredients, recipe and presentation. The winners (February 3, 2008): Lee’s Kamikaze Wings in first, Sam’s Thai Peanut Wings in second, and a tie for third. Reader recipes:
- Kamikaze Wings
- Thai Peanut Wings
- Habanero Pomegranate Chicken Wings
- Naga Wings with Oyster Dipping Sauce
- Hot ‘n Dusty Wings
- North Meets South Wings
- A Pirate’s Death Wings
- Cap’n Capsium Wings
- Asian Style Sesame Wings
- Chipotle Honey Glazed Wings
All of them live in hot wing recipes. Related: wings just taste better in Buffalo, the Buffalo wing eating contest, Duff’s Famous Wings, Duff’s Honey Hot Sauce and 357 Extreme Wing Sauce. There’s also a free 2012 How to Make Hot Wings PDF.
Serving, dips, and how many wings per person
My 2005 rule: 10–15 wings per person as a meal, 5–7 as an appetizer. Serve with blue cheese and celery. Food safety from USDA: don’t leave cooked wings out more than two hours, or keep them at 140°F or above, and reheat leftovers to 165°F.
Frequently asked questions
What are hot wings?
Chicken wings, cut into flats and drumettes, fried or baked until crisp, then tossed in a spicy sauce. The classic Buffalo version is unbreaded wings in hot sauce and butter.
How do you make hot wings crispy?
Pat the wings dry, fry at 375°F, poke each wing once with a fork about 3 minutes in, drain on a wire rack, and sauce them right before serving.
Should you bake, fry, or air-fry hot wings?
Frying gives the crispiest result. Baking on a rack at 425°F for 45–50 minutes and air-frying at 380°F for 20–25 minutes both work well without a fryer.
What’s the best hot sauce for wings?
For classic Buffalo wings, a thin cayenne sauce like Frank’s RedHot mixed with melted butter. For more flavor or heat, see the heat levels guide on this page.
How many wings per person?
My 2005 rule of thumb: 10–15 wings per person as a meal, 5–7 as an appetizer.
What’s the difference between hot wings and Buffalo wings?
Buffalo wings are the unbreaded original, fried and tossed in hot sauce and butter. “Hot wings” is the broader term and includes breaded, bar-style wings.
What internal temperature should wings reach?
165°F, according to USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service. Check each wing with a food thermometer, avoiding the bone.
