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This easy chicken wing marinade gives wings a sweet and salty flavor that soaks all the way through, using pantry ingredients you probably already have. Reserve a little of the marinade before it touches the chicken, and it thickens into a glossy finishing sauce. Bake, grill, or air fry them.
More ways to cook wings: Grilled Chicken Wings | Fried Chicken Wings | Crispy Baked Chicken Wings
Before You Get Started
Wings live or die on how you handle them between the marinade and the oven. These three make the difference.
- Pat the wings completely dry. Surface moisture is the enemy of crispy skin. After they come out of the marinade, dry them well and let them sit at room temperature for 20 minutes.
- Reserve marinade before the chicken goes in. Set aside ⅓ cup first. That reserved portion becomes your finishing sauce, and it never touched raw chicken.
- Give it at least an hour. One hour is the minimum for the flavor to get past the skin. Overnight is better, and up to 24 hours is fine.
recipe walk-through
How to Make Chicken Wing Marinade
See the recipe card below for full, detailed instructions
The marinade takes about two minutes to whisk together. Everything after that is mostly waiting, drying, and baking.
Step 1: Mix the marinade and reserve some
In a large bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, olive oil, brown sugar, lime juice, garlic, and 1 teaspoon each of cumin, salt, and paprika, plus ½ teaspoon black pepper. Remove ⅓ cup and set it aside in the fridge before the chicken goes anywhere near the bowl.
Fresh lime juice has the best flavor here, but bottled works. Lemon juice or apple cider vinegar will also do the job if that is what you have.
Step 2: Marinate the wings
Place the wings in a gallon size resealable bag or airtight container, pour the marinade over, and toss to coat.
Chill for at least 1 hour or overnight.
Step 3: Dry the wings and coat them
Pull the wings out of the marinade and pat them very dry with paper towels. All the flavor is already in the meat, so you are not losing anything.
Let them sit at room temperature for 20 minutes to dry the surface further.
Whisk together the flour, 2 tablespoons cornstarch, and ½ teaspoon each of cumin, paprika, salt, and pepper. Toss the dried wings in the mixture and shake off the excess. You want a light dusting, not a thick breading.
Step 4: Bake until crisp and browned
Preheat the oven to 450°F. Line a baking sheet with foil, set a wire rack on top, and spray the rack well with cooking spray. Arrange the wings in a single layer with space between them, putting the thicker drummettes around the outer edge and the flats in the center so everything cooks evenly.
Bake 20 minutes, flip, then bake another 15 to 20 minutes until browned and crisp. They are done at an internal temperature of 165°F.
Want them spicier? Add a pinch of red pepper flakes or cayenne to the flour mixture before you toss the wings.
Step 5: Thicken the reserved marinade
While the wings bake, pour the reserved marinade into a small saucepan. Whisk in the remaining ½ teaspoon cornstarch until smooth, then bring to a boil for 1 minute until it thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon.
Only use the marinade you set aside in step 1. The marinade the raw wings sat in gets thrown out.
Step 6: Toss and serve
Add the hot wings to a large bowl, pour the thickened marinade over, and toss to coat.
Garnish with chopped parsley and serve right away.
Grill, air fryer, and slow cooker
- Grill: Preheat to medium and cook over indirect heat for 15 to 20 minutes, flip, then another 15 to 20 minutes. Move them over direct flame for the last 5 minutes to crisp.
- Air fryer: Spray the basket, add the marinated and floured wings, and cook at 375°F for 10 minutes. Flip and cook 10 minutes more. My Air Fryer Chicken Wings has more tips if this is your go-to method.
- Slow cooker: Skip the flour step entirely. Cook the marinated wings on HIGH for about 2.5 hours, then broil them on a rack for a few minutes to crisp the skin.
More Wings: Once you have the method down, the flavor is the fun part. Check out all of my favorites in my Chicken Wing Recipes collection.
Serving
These come out sticky and sweet-salty from the soy and brown sugar glaze, so the one thing genuinely worth having on the table is something cool and creamy to cut through it. My Blue Cheese Dip is what I reach for, and it comes together in the time the wings are in the oven.
If the wings are the whole meal rather than one thing on a platter, add something bready to catch the extra sauce. Cheesy Garlic Bread or a batch of Mini Parmesan Garlic Knots both do the job.
For Game Day: Wings are usually the first thing gone, so I plan the rest of the table around them. See my collection of Game Day recipes for a full spread.
Storage Tips
How to Store and Reheat Chicken Wings
Refrigerate: Store leftover wings in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Reheat: Use an oven, toaster oven, or air fryer to bring the skin back. Air fry at 400°F for 5 to 7 minutes. Skip the microwave, which turns the skin soft.
Make ahead: The wings can marinate up to 24 hours in advance, which makes this an easy one to prep the day before a party.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use frozen chicken wings?
Fresh wings give the best texture, but frozen work fine. Thaw them completely in the fridge first, then pat them dry before they go into the marinade. Marinating still-frozen wings means the flavor never gets past the surface.
What if I can only find whole wings?
Split them yourself. Lay the wing flat and cut through the joint between the drumette and the flat, then cut off the wing tip. The joint gives way easily once you find it. Split wings cook faster and more evenly than whole ones.
Do I have to use the flour?
No, but the skin will not crisp up as much. The flour pulls fat from the marinade and the skin to the surface, which is what creates the crunch. To make these gluten free, skip the flour and swap the soy sauce for tamari.
How many wings should I make per person?
For an appetizer, plan on 3 to 4 wings per person. If wings are the main event, plan on 8 to 10 per person.
More Chicken Wing Flavors to Try
- Garlic Chicken Wings
- Salt and Pepper Chicken Wings
- Crispy Baked BBQ Chicken Wings
- Korean Chicken Wings
- Huli Huli Chicken Wings
Chicken Wing Marinade
Ingredients
Marinade
- 2 ½ pounds split chicken wings
- 1/3 cup soy sauce
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 3 tablespoons light brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 1 teaspoon cumin divided
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt divided
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika divided
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper divided
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1/2 teaspoon cornstarch for thickening the marinade
Chicken Seasoning
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- Chopped parsley for garnish
Instructions
- In a large bowl, whisk together soy sauce, olive oil, brown sugar, lime juice, garlic, 1 teaspoon each of cumin, salt, and paprika, and ½ teaspoon black pepper. Remove ⅓ cup of the marinade and refrigerate it separately before adding the chicken.
- Place the wings in a gallon size resealable bag or large airtight container. Pour the remaining marinade over and toss to coat. Refrigerate at least 1 hour or overnight.
- Preheat the oven to 450°F. Line a large baking sheet with foil, set a wire rack on top, and spray the rack liberally with cooking spray.
- Remove the wings from the marinade and pat them very dry with paper towels. Let them sit at room temperature for 20 minutes to dry the surface. Discard the marinade the raw wings sat in.
- Whisk together the flour, 2 tablespoons cornstarch, and ½ teaspoon each of cumin, paprika, kosher salt, and black pepper. Add the dried wings and toss to coat, shaking off any excess.
- Arrange the wings on the wire rack in a single layer with space between them, drummettes toward the outer edge and flats in the center. Bake 20 minutes, turn, and bake another 15 to 20 minutes until browned and cooked through to 165°F.
- While the wings bake, heat the reserved marinade in a small saucepan. Whisk in the remaining ½ teaspoon cornstarch until smooth and bring to a boil for 1 minute until thickened.
- Add the hot wings to a large bowl, pour the thickened marinade over, and toss to coat evenly. Garnish with chopped parsley and serve immediately.
Notes
- Reserve the marinade first. Set aside ⅓ cup before the raw chicken goes in. Never use the marinade the wings sat in as a sauce.
- Marinating time: 1 hour minimum, overnight for deeper flavor, up to 24 hours.
- Drying matters most. Pat the wings very dry and let them air dry 20 minutes before coating. This is the difference between crispy and soggy skin.
- Light coating only. You want a thin dusting of the flour mixture, not a thick breading.
- Gluten free: Swap the soy sauce for tamari and skip the flour. The skin will be less crisp.
- Lime substitutes: Lemon juice or apple cider vinegar work in place of lime.
- Doneness: Wings are cooked through at an internal temperature of 165°F.
- Grill: Indirect heat at medium, 15 to 20 minutes per side, then 5 minutes over direct flame to crisp.
- Air fryer: 375°F for 10 minutes, flip, then 10 minutes more.
- Slow cooker: Skip the flour, cook on HIGH about 2.5 hours, then broil briefly to crisp.
- Storage: Refrigerate up to 5 days. Reheat in an air fryer at 400°F for 5 to 7 minutes.
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer Kristin Maxwell of “Yellow Bliss Road” is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. For accurate calorie counts and other nutritional values, we recommend running the ingredients through your preferred online nutritional calculator. Calories and other nutritional values can vary depending on which brands were used.
Looks delicious