For baked chicken wings that are perfectly crispy, you need our three-step method that’s loved by hundreds of thousands of cooks, cooks who come back here over and over again to make them. It’s the best chicken wing recipe ever!
Good news! You don’t have to deep fry wings in order to end up with deliciously crispy chicken. You can easily make trays of wings for game day in the oven with my crispy baked chicken wings recipe. A little bit of baking powder and a two-step baking method gives you delicious wings without a lot of effort.
Scroll down to read more about how it all comes together or click here to jump straight down to the recipe.
- Video: How To Make Crispy Oven Baked Wings
- Why Bake Chicken Wings?
- Why These Baked Wings Are SO Crispy
- Why Use Baking Powder?
- Can You Use Baking Soda Or Cornstarch?
- Time and Temperature for Baked Chicken Wings
- How To Bake Chicken Wings So They’re Extra Crispy
- Seasoning The Wings
- Sauce For Baked Wings
- Even Better Crispy Chicken Wings?
- More Chicken Wing Recipes
- Podcast Episode: Baking Chicken Wings
- Crispy Oven-Baked Chicken Wings Recipe
Video: How To Make Crispy Oven Baked Wings
Here’s a short video showing the three-step baking powder method for making crispy baked chicken wings. You’ll see the three steps in our process: (1) baking powder, (2) low temperature, (3) high temperature.
Why Bake Chicken Wings?
There are several factors that influence how you might choose to cook your wings. Here are the reasons that you might want to bake yours.
- You want a lot of wings. You can fit a lot more wings on a pan in the oven than you can in an air fryer or in a pot for deep frying. This means you can make a lot at once without working in batches!
- You want a hands-off process. Once they are in the oven, you don’t need to move them around or flip, making it super easy.
- You want crispy skin! With my baking method, you get wonderfully crispy chicken skin with very little fuss.
You can see in this How to Cook Chicken Wings post that we compared different ways of cooking chicken wings and baking is best for cooking for a crowd and the best option for crispy skin other than deep fried chicken wings.
Why These Baked Wings Are SO Crispy
These chicken wings are seriously so crispy, you’d think they were deep-fried. There are three reasons why they give you that crunch:
- They use a small amount of baking powder which helps crisp the skin, see more about why this happens below.
- They are baked at a low temperature first to really dry the skin out and to give the baking powder time to start working.
- High heat at the end to finish cooking the wings and to really brown and crisp the skin.
“My son says they’re as good as from his fave wing shop!”
Melody, TheCookful reader
Why Use Baking Powder?
Baking powder is a leavening agent usually used in baked goods such as cookies and cakes. It’s a mixture of sodium bicarbonate, cream of tartar, and cornstarch. But interestingly, when mixed with salt and dusted on chicken, after cooking, the chicken skin is extra crispy. Why does this happen?
It happens because baking powder is alkaline (the opposite of acidic). The addition of the baking powder therefore raises the pH level in the chicken, allowing the peptide bonds in the skin to break down, which in turn lets the skin get more crisp and brown.
You can also use this method with other cuts of chicken, like these amazingly crispy Baked Chicken Drumsticks. And, I’m going to tell you below how adding baking powder to a wet brine mixture can also get your crispy chicken skin.
Use Aluminum-Free Baking Powder
Note that while most of the comments below this post are very positive (people seriously love this method of baking crispy wings!) a couple of commenters noted a bitter taste on their wings. I at first thought that they were using baking soda instead of baking powder. Doing so would definitely lead to a terrible taste. However, they claimed that they were really using baking powder for sure. I was stymied until another helpful commenter posted this link showing that some people are sensitive to a flavor that is found in some brands of baking powder.
Baking powder that contains “sodium aluminum sulfate” has a bitter taste to some people. If you notice this flavor, you’ll want to try a different brand of baking powder. The Rumford Brand is aluminum-free, so that’s one to try. And note that Rumford is not a sponsor of this post or anything like that. We just know for sure that they are an aluminum-free brand.
Can You Use Baking Soda Or Cornstarch?
Baking soda is NOT a good substitute for baking powder. While baking powder does contain baking soda (sodium bicarbonate), baking soda alone is stronger and has a very metallic taste if used without being neutralized with an acid. The cream or tartar found in baking soda is acidic and neutralizes that taste.
In the comments below this recipe, several people have asked if they can use cornstarch instead of baking powder. While people do use cornstarch on their wings to make them crispy, it works in a different way. Baking powder changes the pH of the skin so that the skin itself gets crispier. On the other hand, when you put cornstarch on wings, it’s the cornstarch coating itself that is toasting and crisping.
Therefore, my answer is that you can use cornstarch on wings, but not as a substitute for the baking powder in this recipe – it won’t work the same way and the amounts would not be equivalent.
Time and Temperature for Baked Chicken Wings
We start at the low temperature of 250°F for 30 minutes to dry out the wings.
Then, without removing the wings from the oven, increase the temperature to 425°F and bake for 40-50 minutes more. This cooks the chicken through and browns the wings to crispy perfection. If your wings are smaller than average, you will likely only need to cook them for 30 minutes at this step.
How To Bake Chicken Wings So They’re Extra Crispy
Prep and Season
If you have whole wings, you can learn how to cut chicken wings here. (When you cut ten wings, you end up with 30 wing pieces. That’s 10 drumettes, 10 flaps and 10 wing tips. You’ll either discard the wing tips or save them for another use. That leaves 20 wing pieces that you’re using here.)
Note: You can leave the wings whole if you prefer and it won’t affect the cooking time. I think they area little more awkward to eat though. You also can leave the wing tips attached to the flap, but there’s so little meat on there that they aren’t the best to eat.
Once they’re all cut up, put them into a big bowl. Sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon of salt and 1 tablespoon of aluminum-free baking powder (and NOT baking soda!). It doesn’t seem like much but you’re not trying to make a coating for the wings here. You’re trying to change their pH level so that they will crisp up better. Mix it up, I usually just toss it around or get in there with my hands.
I’ll also say that I am somewhat of a perfectionist and so to get a really even coatingthat is dispersed well on the wings, what I usually do is to put half of the wings into the bowl, sprinkle with half of the salt and baking powder, then add the other half of the wings and sprinkle with remaining salt and powder, and then I mix them with my hands. That just reduces the likelihood that the salt and baking powder will be overly concentrated on some wings.
Use A Wire Rack
Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil to make clean up easier. Then set an oven-safe metal rack onto the baking sheet. Spray the rack with cooking spray or lightly oil it to help prevent the chicken from sticking. Place the wings on the rack.
The rack is really helpful for crisping the wings because it allows air to circulate all around the chicken pieces so that they get evenly crisp. It also lets the fat drip away from the chicken so they’re not sitting in pools of fat, which will also reduce crispiness.
Start at a Low Temp
Place the chicken in a 250°F oven for 30 minutes. This gets some of the fat rendered from under the skin and starts that drying out process. Here’s how they look after 30 minutes. These are not cooked. Do not eat them yet.
Finish with High Heat
Leave them in the oven and crank the heat up to 425°F and cook 40-50 minutes more, until golden brown and so crispy. If your wings are smaller, skinnier ones, you will likely only need to cook them for 30 minutes at this step. If they’re crispy on the outside and their internal temperature on an instant read thermometer is 165°F, they’re done.
Note that a lot of people’s ovens aren’t calibrated well and usually run a bit lower than is displayed. If your wings are not browned well after 40 minutes, increase the heat to 450°F or even 475°F to get a final bit of browning on them.
In general, I highly recommend getting an oven thermometer that sits in your oven and tells you the actual internal temperature. They’re inexpensive and very useful if you’re trying to perfect your cooking. They sell them at a lot of grocery stores, and you can also get one on Amazon here.
Seasoning The Wings
You can season them before baking, but sometimes some spices burn from the high heat. I therefore prefer to toss them with just the salt and baking powder for baking and then add flavor with a spice blend and/or sauce after.
Having said that, this wing dry rub contains baking powder and great seasonings and works beautifully – these spices don’t burn.
After baking, my favorite is really just adding more salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Use regular fine salt, which is more likely to stick to the wings, not kosher or anything thick here. A bit of tajin seasoning thrown in is always good too! Or try these seasoning blends that are great on wings. And yes, pizza seasoning is one of them and is my kids’ favorite on crispy baked wings!
Sauce For Baked Wings
These wings are so crispy that I find it a shame to add moisture to them and lose any of the crispiness with a sauce, but if you must toss them with a sauce…
This easy decadent homemade Buffalo sauce will blow your mind or grab some BBQ sauce.
And then you’ll need a great dip, like ranch or blue cheese dressing. I prefer ranch dressing. You can grab a bottle at the store, make your own with fresh herbs like this, or make homemade ranch seasoning with ingredients from your pantry and stir together 1 cup of sour cream with 1 tablespoon of the seasoning. It’s so fresh-tasting and delicious!
Even Better Crispy Chicken Wings?
I have to tell you something. So it is absolutely true that the recipe below, the one I’ve been telling you about so far, is the one I’ve been using for over 15 years and is the one that everybody raves about it. I love it and my readers keep coming back and making it over and over. I still stand by it and it is still the same recipe down there that it has always been.
However, recently, I’ve started doing things a little differently at my house. I’ve started brining the wings in a mixture of water, salt, and you guessed it, baking powder. Why?
- The baking powder flavor is undetectable with the brine method.
- The chicken wing meat gets nicely seasoned right though from the salt brine, so much flavor.
- I swear, the skin is even crispier! It even kind of bubbles up in places as though it’s deep fried.
So, if you want to try something new, head over to my new crispy baked brined chicken wing recipe.
More Chicken Wing Recipes
If you haven’t guessed it already, I’m obsessed with chicken wings. Here are all of my chicken wing recipes for you to browse through. If you specifically want to bake wings but with a different flavor, try our Zesty Lemon Pepper Chicken Wings! They are baked with baking powder, salt, and lemon pepper seasoning, and then have fresh lemon zest and cracked pepper added at the end, which is so crazy-good! Or, if I haven’t convinced you that baking is the way to go, here are some other ways to cook your wings:
Podcast Episode: Baking Chicken Wings
Listen to me explain briefly about how to make this recipe, with some great tips along the way, by clicking the play button below:
Listen to more Recipe of the Day episodes here.
Print
Crispy Oven-Baked Chicken Wings Recipe
For perfectly crispy baked chicken wings, you need our trusted three-step baking powder method loved by hundreds of thousands of cooks.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 25 minutes
- Yield: 20 wings 1x
- Category: Entrée
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 10 whole chicken wings, cut into flats and drumettes (here’s how to do it). Discard tips or use for a stock. That leaves you with 20 wing pieces total
- 1 Tbsp. aluminum-free* baking powder (NOT baking soda)
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- Sauce or dry rub
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 250°F.
- Line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil. Place an oven-safe rack on top of cookie sheet. Spray rack with cooking spray or lightly oil it.
- In a large bowl, use your hands to toss the flats and drumettes with the baking powder and salt until chicken is evenly coated. But do not add extra baking powder, just mix them so they all have some.
- Place wings on the prepared rack in single layer. Transfer rack with the cookie sheet under it to oven and cook for 30 minutes. This baking at a low temperature dries the wings out and allows the baking powder to penetrate.
- After 30 minutes, leave the wings in the oven but raise the heat to 425°F. Continue to cook until brown and crispy, 40-50 minutes.**
- Take wings out and let rest 5 minutes. Toss in a delicious sauce like this one and serve.
Love this recipe? I’d appreciate it if you could scroll down and add a *5 star rating* to help others know they’ll love it as well!
Notes
This post originally appeared in January 2016 and was revised and republished in December 2024.
Hello I just made your wing recipe for granddaughters birthday party they came out perfect thank you so much!!!
Elisa, So happy you like it. Thanks for letting us know! Hope party was a success.
I’m making five lbs of party wing how much baking powder and salt do you suggest
Elisa, There are about 4-5 whole wings in a pound. Once you cut them, that yields 8-10 wingettes/drumettes per pound. Our recipe calls for 10 wings (20 wingettes/drumettes) so that’s about 2 pounds. If you have 5 pounds, you’re multiplying the recipe by 2.5, essentially. I’d go with 2.5 tablespoons of baking powder and 1 and 1/4 teaspoons of salt. Let me know how they turn out 🙂
Can not wait to try this with wings but I am trying thighs tonight. We cook ours on a rack to try and get a little crispy. So hopefully this makes them even more so.
Kathleen, Let me know how they turn out for you. I actually tried it with drumsticks awhile ago and it didn’t work as I’d hoped. I’m going to experiment with it again but if you have some success, I’d love to hear any pointers you uncovered. Thanks!
It worked and my family of 6 loved it! The skins were nice and crisp. The only issue for me to change was I season with a garlic chicken herb and with the salt in that and the salt/baking powder combo it was too much. We cooked on 375 and bumped up to 425 right at the end. I am going to try starting lower next time like you mentioned. This was a keeper for sure! Oh and I am not a great cook and just learning. Love an easy idea!
(NOTE TO READERS: Kathleen is talking about trying the above method on chicken thighs, not wings).
Kathleen, delighted that you guys liked it. Yes, with the salt already, adding another salty seasoning wouldn’t be ideal. You could try a salt-free seasoning or just go in with some garlic powder (NOT garlic salt).
I don’t think she said she came up with it personally. She was just sharing and that’s what Pintest is. I for one can’t wait to try. Thanks for sharing!!!
Did you just forget to credit j.kenji lopez-alt/food lab/serioueats.com, or were you hoping noone would notice the use of all his work as your own?
Wow, that’s pretty passive-agressive! I have seen several recipes on various websites that use baking powder to get the wings crispy.who knows who came up with it for the very first time? She’s just sharing a recipe, not trying to make a million dollars off it!
My great grandmother has been doing it this way since she was a young woman same with my grandmother and my mom. Dont be a troll.
What a troll, this recipe is ancient.
You replied that you tried your method on Chicken drumsticks, but did you try the method on Thighs?
I did not try it on thighs but I suspect it would be very similar to the drumsticks since the meat to skin ratio and size of the chicken pieces is similar.
I’d love to know how they don’t overcook and dry out at such long cooking times. I love baking chicken wings, and the recipe that I have been following for quite some time now has me baking my wings on a wire rack for 45 minutes @ 400 degrees. They always come out crispy on the outside and juicy on the inside. I understand that you only cook them at 250 degrees for 30 minutes, which is a low cooking temp, but then you crank it up to 425 and cook another 40-50 minutes? They aren’t like jerky when they are done? How is this possible?
Michelle, the first round of cooking only manages to dry the skin a little bit. It doesn’t affect the meat. It does seem like a long time, but really, they don’t end up dried out at all. If you give it a try, let me know how they turn out for you.
Wow!! Definitely going to try this! I want to do it with a dry lemmon pepper rub. When would I put the rub on in the process??
Al, toss the rub with the wings when you take them out of the oven the final time. Put the rub in a large bowl, add the wings and toss. If you want the rub to stick a little better, toss wings with a bit of lemon juice before the rub. You can see this method over here since it’s how we did our dry Indian wings https://thecookful.com/crispy-indian-dry-wings/
I would like to know if this process works for Chicken Thighs. If it does what would the temperature and times be?
Ronnie, I did a test with chicken drumsticks and it didn’t work as I’d hoped. They were cooked through but not crispy like the wings get. If I try it again, I’ll do them at 450F instead of 425, minimally.
I am making these for a second time. I added the baking powder to some sewsonded flour as we like a little breading.and they turned out great! Yhank you for the baking powder tip.
Edna, That is great to know. I can’t wait to try it. Thanks!
I followed the recipe exactly, my wings didnot get golden brown, I had to put the oven temp to 450 degrees. Luckily the wings then came out golden, crispy and moist. The other headache was cleaning the oven racks, I was tempted to rub the racks with olive oil prior to placing the wings on it. My wings stuck to the rack.
Anna, I’m glad the increase in oven temperature worked for you. I’ve used two different racks and did not have any sticking problems. But yes, perhaps rubbing with oil would help. Thanks for the feedback.
These were not good at all! You could taste the baking powder completely and it left a horrible chemical taste in your mouth. No doubt they were crispy but hey were inedible due to the off putting taste.
Jessica, This is strange to hear. I’ve made these so many times and you cannot taste the baking powder at all. I’m curious, are you certain you used baking powder and not baking soda? I know that baking soda leaves a terrible taste whereas baking powder leaves no taste at all.
This is by far the best way to cook your wings…I love wings…I tried them 10 differnt ways at least. This hands down kills the competition. I would not change it. I wouldn’t do anything. Follow the recipe, you will be impressed!
Connor, Thanks for letting us know they worked for you. Yay!
It would be very helpful if the ENTIRE directions were given in each of the descriptions. Seems worthless if you are following them and later find out there are more complete instructions way down the page.
Jack, I understand what you mean. The photo tutorial is meant to be a visual demonstration of the process, much like when you watch a cooking show and they demo the process but you need to go to their website to get all the amounts and times, etc.. Regardless, I went in and added the ingredient amounts since that seemed to be the only thing missing from the top. I hope that helps.
Sounds great, of course the wings have to be thawed out right?because I always get the bag of pre frozen kind and just toss in the oven, I hope can find some baking racks at the 99 cent store.
Yes, thawed first. But this recipe is for unprepared wings. If you buy ones that already have a coating or seasoning or sauce on them, then don’t use this recipe.
should the wings be rinsed first? tks. Irene
I believe the general feeling these days is that you should not rinse chicken before cooking. The rinsing spreads bacteria around the kitchen. Just start with plain raw wings and follow the recipe as is.