There’s nothing like “set it and forget it” recipes when you’re throwing a party, and Slow Cooker Chicken Wings are where it’s at when you’re craving chicken wings but have no time to watch them.
Chicken wings are a football party must-have and no matter how you cook your wings, there are a couple things that are a must. First, the meat must be tender. Second, the outside has to be nice and crispy. Last, but certainly not least, the sauce has to bring some serious flavor! This slow cooker recipe delivers all three.
Scroll down to read more about how it all comes together or click here to jump straight down to the recipe.
How To Make Slow Cooker Chicken Wings
To make things as easy as possible for you on party day, we’re sharing a crockpot chicken wings recipe. We use plain, fresh wings and put them straight into the slow cooker with homemade buffalo wing sauce until cooked.
While the cook time is 2 hours, there is minimal work to be done because you can set it and forget it – that is, until your house smells so good you can’t stop thinking about those wings. (If you don’t already have a slow cooker, what are you waiting for? We recommend this one.)
Crisp Up The Wings
When they’re done cooking in the slow cooker we take the wings out and broil them on a sheet pan to crisp up. Since the slow cooker can’t deliver crispy wings on its own, you really don’t want to skip this last step. It only takes about 5 minutes with the broiler on high.
The end result is fall-off-the-bone tender meat with a crispy, crunchy outside layer.
What About The Sauces?
For this recipe, I make a quick homemade Buffalo sauce with hot sauce, butter, a bit of vinegar and Worcestershire sauce, and some extra seasonings. This gets poured over the wings in the slow cooker as well as brushed on them before broiling.
The buffalo sauce has a nice kick to it but isn’t overpowering, though you can add more heat to it if you want by using additional cayenne pepper.
Don’t forget a dipping sauce. These crockpot wings pair perfectly with ranch dressing or blue cheese dip.
More Chicken Wing Recipes
We’ve figured out the best ways to cook wings with a variety of methods. Try one of these great recipes next time.
Slow Cooker Chicken Wings Recipe
There’s nothing like “set it and forget it” recipes when you’re throwing a party, and Slow Cooker Chicken Wings are where it’s at when you’re craving chicken wings but have no time to watch them.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 2 hours
- Total Time: 2 hours 15 minutes
- Yield: 8 servings 1x
- Category: Appetizer
- Method: Slow Cooker
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 4 lbs. fresh whole chicken wings, cut into flats and drumettes. Discard tips or use for a stock. (Here’s how to cut them.)
- 3/4 cup hot sauce (I like Frank’s RedHot)
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter
- 1 Tbsp. distilled white vinegar
- 1/2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
- 1/4 tsp. garlic powder
- 1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper (or more if you like a kick)
- 1/8 tsp. salt
Instructions
- Spray slow cooker with non-stick cooking spray. After cutting the wings into flats and drums, place them in the slow cooker.
- Add the remaining ingredients to a small saucepan to make the Buffalo sauce. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until all the ingredients are blended together and the sauce is bubbling, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and pour over the wings in the slow cooker.
- Place the lid on the slow cooker, turn on high and cook for 2 hours (or on low for about 3-4 hours) or until wings are fully cooked to an internal temp of 165°F.
- Prepare baking sheet by placing a cooling rack on top. When the wings are fully cooked transfer the wings to the prepared cooling rack/baking sheet. Brush buffalo sauce from the slow cooker onto the wing pieces.
- Place the baking sheet in the oven and broil on high until the wings are nice and crispy, about 3-4 minutes. Turn wings over and broil an additional 2 minutes on the opposite side. Watch them carefully so they don’t burn!
- Remove from oven, brush with additional sauce if desired, and enjoy with ranch or blue cheese dressing/dip.
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This post originally appeared in January 2019 and was revised and republished in August 2024.
I’m going to try this tonight. Just had a question. Do they need to be cut up or can you place the full wings in uncut? Thanks!
Erik, you can actually leave them uncut. Wings are thin enough that it won’t matter at all.
This recipe is amazing!! Tried it with regular chicken wings and it was a monster hit with a cousin who is beyond insanely picky about his chicken–he made it a point to tell me twice that I needed to make this lots more often. Sooo… I’m trying it again tmw, but experimenting with chicken legs this time. Thank you so much for posting this!
You’re welcome, Phoenix! So glad it was a hit, and please let us know how it works out with the legs. 🙂