The Best Chicken Wing Marinade
Move over buffalo wings, this is the only Chicken Wing Marinade you’ll ever need because these wings are so juicy and flavorful they’ll melt in your mouth!
Wings are one of the things you absolutely have to have at any football game or party with friends (like New Year’s Eve parties). But in order to make the very best chicken wing marinade there are a few things you need to know. Lucky for you, we’ve got you covered – not only with the best wing marinade, but also all the best chicken wing recipes you could possible want.
Scroll down to read more about how it all comes together or click here to jump straight down to the recipe.
- Video: Making The Best Chicken Wing Marinade
- Why Use A Chicken Wing Marinade?
- What Is A Good Marinade Made Of?
- What Makes A Good Wing Good?
- How Long Should You Marinate Your Chicken Wings?
- What Can You Do With Leftover Marinade?
- More Easy Marinade Recipes
- Podcast Episode: Marinating Chicken Wings
- Best Chicken Wing Marinade Recipe
Video: Making The Best Chicken Wing Marinade
Why Use A Chicken Wing Marinade?
Marinades are a great way to tenderize and add flavor to the meat. It’s especially good to use for tough cuts of meat as it tenderizes them while adding flavor. Even though chicken wings aren’t tough, it’s the perfect way to add flavor to this party food.
What Is A Good Marinade Made Of?
There are many different varieties and flavors of marinade. However, marinades usually consist of some basic ingredients – sweetener, salt, and acid.
Salt and sugar both break down muscle fibers in meat to some degree, but acid does a lot of the hard work. Once we have that covered, we can add a variety of spices and flavor enhancers to get just the taste we’re craving.
What Makes A Good Wing Good?
I have my own opinions, but I figured I’d ask a group of people what they thought a good wing has and we all agreed – the chicken wings need to be tender and fall-off-the-bone, they need to be crispy, and they need a hot and tangy sauce!
How Long Should You Marinate Your Chicken Wings?
- 20+ minutes if you’re in a pinch
- Best results: 2 – 12 hours
- Less than 24 hours – You need to be careful not to marinate the meat too long because the acidity from lemon or vinegars can actually damage the meat by breaking it down too much!
What Can You Do With Leftover Marinade?
The chicken wing marinade recipe below makes about 3/4 cups, which we have found to work great for 12 wings. Cut it down or double it as needed, but don’t worry if you end up with leftover marinade.
If you end up with leftovers, you can use the marinade as a sauce if you like. The important thing to note here is that you must bring it to a boil to kill any pathogens from the raw meat before using it. Then, whisk together a small amount of water and a tablespoon of cornstarch per cup of liquid you are trying to thicken and whisk it into the marinade mixture in a small saucepan over medium heat. Whisk continuously until thickened.
The next step is cooking the wings. My favorite way to cook marinated wings is to grill them like this. You can also bake them at 450°F until they reach an internal temperature of 165°F, about 40 minutes, flipping them halfway though.
More Easy Marinade Recipes
- Chicken Thigh Marinade
- Greek Chicken Marinade
- Mexican Chicken Marinade
- Best Steak Marinade
- Fajita Marinade for Steak or Chicken
- Tri-Tip Marinade Recipe
Podcast Episode: Marinating Chicken Wings
Listen to our editor, Christine Pittman, 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
Best Chicken Wing Marinade Recipe
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
- Total Time: 5 minutes
- Yield: 3/4 cup 1x
- Category: Entrée
- Method: Marinate
- Cuisine: American
DESCRIPTION
Move over buffalo wings, this is the only Chicken Wing Marinade you’ll ever need because these wings are so juicy and flavorful they’ll melt in your mouth!
This recipe makes enough marinade for 12 wings.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup low-sodium soy sauce*
- 1 Tbsp. brown sugar
- 1 Tbsp. lemon juice
- 1 Tbsp. sriracha/hot sauce
- 1 Tbsp. sesame oil
- 1 and 1/2 tsp. hoisin
- 2 tsp. garlic powder
- 1 tsp. fresh minced ginger (or 1/2 tsp. dried ground ginger)
Instructions
- Mix ingredients together in a medium-sized bowl.
- Place chicken wings in a large baggie, pour marinade in and let it marinate in the fridge for 2 hours or overnight.
- Cook chicken wings with your favorite method.
To Bake:
Bake at 450°F until they reach an internal temperature of 165°F, about 40 minutes, flipping them halfway through.
To Grill:
Prepare grill for direct grilling over medium heat, around 350°F. Cook about 20-25 minutes total, flipping and adjusting placement as needed.
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
*You may notice that the nutritional info for this recipe shows the sodium as being quite high. That’s because the dietary numbers for this website are calculated under the assumption that you will consume the full serving of food. For marinades though, you don’t actually consume the full portion. We’re not sure how to calculate the numbers differently. However, we estimate that about one quarter of the marinade is actually absorbed by the chicken and consumed. You can therefore reduce the amounts with that in mind.
This post originally appeared in January 2019 and was revised and republished in March 2023.
Marinade was delicious. I added an orange and habanero peppers to enhance the flavor. Turned out amazing. Thanks for the recipe!
You’re welcome, Joey! Thanks for sharing your additions.
Taste good
Thank you, Mila!
Followed your recipe did a two hour marinate and finished with a BBQ method. Absolutely delicious, thank you.
You’re welcome, Norm! So happy you enjoyed.
Made this delicious marinade with the addition of 2 tbsp horseradish and freshly grated garlic. Everyone loved it. Thanks for such a good tasting yet uncomplicated recipe!
You’re welcome, Caroline! Thanks so much for sharing your additions.
Great recipe using cupboard staples.
Although I did have to substitute for the hoisin with bbq sauce. Yum.
Thanks so much, Leonie! Glad you enjoyed.
Hi Carol, excellent recipe, thank you!
So simple to make. So delicious! Used fresh minced garlic rather than garlic powder! Yum!
Thanks for sharing, Carol. So happy that you enjoyed!
Trying your wing marinade tonight. Will give you my feedback later
Excellent receipt. Thank you it is a keepe.
Thanks so much, Maria!
I made this today. Marinaded the wings for ~7 hours before baking on a rack in the oven. They were very flavorful, not too sweet or spicy or sticky. My husband loved them too – he wanted more. This is a keeper. Thank you!
You’re welcome, Nancy! So happy it was a hit.
Delicious
Thanks, Deb!
I’m sure this recipe is great but when you completely leave out what to do with ingredients (brown sugar) and talk about bringing the marinade to a boil with no reference in the instructions it’s tough to follow for rookies.
Mike, sorry about omitting the brown sugar. That’s been fixed. As to the boiling, that isn’t part of the marinade instructions. It’s an extra thing that you can do after marinating if you want to use the marinade as a sauce. So, you’ll marinate your wings in the marinade. Then take the wings out of the marinade and cook them. You can then either discard the marinade, or you can put it into a saucepan and bring it to a boil to use as a sauce. Hope that helps, -Christine
Excellent flavor. I took the liberty of adding a bit of dry mustard to the marinade. The guests at my org’s pot luck made every wing disappear. Thank you!
You’re welcome, Mark! So glad they were a hit. 🙂
Thank you for sharing with us, Clara!
Can you make the marinade ahead of time?
Sure, Jen! You can make and store the marinade (before any chicken goes in it) in the fridge for a few days in an airtight container.
Excellent. Juicy! I grilled for 25 minutes. printed the recipe because I will make again.
That’s wonderful to hear, Susan. Thanks for taking the time to comment!
well you ruined it for me.. since i started using this marinade no one will eat my wings any other way.. i like to experiment but the family will not have it, its your way or nothing. so i hope you are happy with what have to be the most amazing wings in the world. We thank you from the bottom of our stomachs. rock on!!!!!!
Haha, thank you, Karl! Glad it’s such a hit!