The Best Sticky BBQ Chicken Wings Recipe (Homemade)

Let me show you how to make sticky BBQ wings using a tangy, homemade sauce that’s finger lickin’ good!

These wings are so good, you’ll want to grill them all summer long. And as we move into football season, they make a fantastic appetizer for the big game! 

My favorite part about these wings is the sweet, homemade BBQ sauce. No, we’re not doctoring up a bottle of barbecue sauce, we are making our own sauce from scratch!

And it’s such an easy recipe, you’ll wonder why you never made it from scratch before. 

Ingredients

The Dry Seasonings

• All-purpose flour. You could also use gluten free flour. 
• Paprika
• Salt
• Pepper

The Honey BBQ Sauce

• Ketchup
• Brown Sugar
• Honey
• Apple cider vinegar
• Hot sauce
• Dry mustard
• Kosher salt
• Cumin
• Smoked paprika

How to Make BBQ Chicken Wings

Coat the Wings in Dry Seasonings

First, coat the chicken wings in a mixture of flour, paprika, salt and pepper. Then, refrigerate the wings for at least 30 minutes.

This step helps the seasonings adhere to the skin. 

Make the Sauce

While the wings are chilling, whip up the sticky sauce on the stove.

Simply pour all of the sauce ingredients into a saucepan and mix them together. Then, bring the mixture to a boil over high heat.

Now, lower the heat and let the sauce simmer and thicken for a few minutes. Take it off the heat after 2-3 minutes. The sauce will continue to thicken as it cools. 

Grill the Wings

You will find grilling and oven-baking instructions in the recipe card below.

If you’re grilling your chicken wings, place them over indirect heat so that the skin won’t burn while the meat cooks. This means, turn one set of burners on and leave the other set off.

Grill the wings on the side of the grill where the burners are turned off.

Don’t worry, you’ll still get a nice, crispy skin on your wings.

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Coat the Wings in the BBQ Sauce

Now, take your hot wings and toss them in the homemade sauce.

If you are grilling them, you can also brush some sauce directly on to the wings during the last 5-10 minutes of cooking. 

Serving Suggestions

The first thing to serve these sticky wings with is napkins! And here are some other ideas: 

1. As an appetizer, serve these wings with crunchy vegetables like celery sticks and carrot sticks. The freshness of the raw veggies are a perfect balance for the delicious sauce on the wings.

2. As the main event, serve these honey BBQ chicken wings with other BBQ favorites like cornbread and southern-style coleslaw. 

3. As part of a game day spread, enjoy these wings with other snacks like fried pickles and nachos. 

Variations 

1. Oven Baked Wings: For an alternative to the grill, you can bake these wings at 425 degrees in your oven. Coat a baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray or a piece of parchment paper. Arrange the wings on the baking sheet in a single layer. Bake them for about 45 minutes.
2. Air Fried Wings: To make this recipe in your air fryer, arrange the wings in a single layer in the air fryer basket and cook for about 20 minutes at 400 degrees, flipping halfway through cooking. Cooking times will vary based on your air fryer. 
3. Vegetarian Option: Substitute chicken wings with cauliflower florets or tofu for a vegetarian version. Coat them with the homemade BBQ sauce for a flavorful, meatless alternative.
4. Boneless Wings: Skip the bones and cut lean chicken breasts into bite-sized pieces. Then, simply follow the instructions in the recipe card.

 

How do you make BBQ sauce stick to wings?

Here are the three best ways to get your sauce to stick to chicken:

1. Start with dry chicken wings. Pat them dry with paper towels as a first step. 

2. Use a dry rub. A simple flour and seasoning mixture will give the sauce something to cling to during cooking and help it stay put.

3. Baste the wings with the sauce in the last few minutes of cooking. The heat will help to caramelize the sauce and make it extra sticky.

Do you put BBQ sauce on wings before or after cooking?

For best results, put BBQ sauce onto wings either during or after cooking. 

If you start with dry wings and give them a nice dry rub, you should be able to toss the naked wings in sauce after they’re cooked and the sauce will stick nicely. 

But for maximum stickiness I recommend brushing the sauce directly onto the wings during the last 5-10 minutes of cooking. 

Storage and Reheating

Store your leftover BBQ wings in an airtight container in the refrigerator. They will stay fresh for 3-5 days.

The next time you want to enjoy them, the best way to reheat them is in a conventional oven. Warm the wings at 400 degrees for a few minutes to restore their original texture. 

When you make BBQ chicken wings recipe, I’d love to hear about it! Drop a rating or leave a comment below. Enjoy! 

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For more chicken wings recipes, try these:

• Sticky Sweet Ginger Soy Chicken Wings
• Baked Dry Rub Wings
• Super Saucy Daytona Wings