Well the 2020-2021 football season is drawing to a close. As a rather backseat Denver Bronco’s fan (RIP), I have not been following the season that closely. Though I must say I have seen some great memes about the Bucks upsetting Packers. Guess it pays to be Tom Brady. That is all I feel qualified to say about that. Anyway, I digress. While I may not personally follow all the players, games, or stats, what I wait anxiously for every year is the Super Bowl party. The snacks, sharables, appetizers, and finger foods, its every foodies dream. While this year we’re not getting together for any big watch parties, we will still be creating a spread of our favorites here at home.

One of the most iconic game day specials has to be the hot wing. My fiance and I can throw down on a batch of these saucy, crispy, meat morsels. I often prefer a more asian style to my wing and he prefers a spicy buffalo. Since I created this spice rub we both agree that a little buffalo sauce is all that’s needed. This classic recipe is incredibly easy and has become my new go to because its just so darn good. It’s simple, easy, requires minimal ingredients, but creates a wing that is bursting with flavor and can be enjoyed plain or with your favorite sauce. This perfect dry rub really elevates the taste of the wing while still staying true to traditional flavors.

And before you start thinking that wings are only for game day or parties, just remember that they are also great for a fun dinner or snack throughout your week. We’re just finishing our January Whole30 (my finance’s first Whole30!!) and we’ve both made wings once or twice this month to spice things up. They are great to prep ahead and then reheat in the air fryer for a quick weeknight meal or protein packed snack.

So whether you’re looking to make these to have for a fun (abet messy) dinner or to knock to the socks off your party guests, they are sure to be a favorite for everyone. So without further ado let us get into the recipe.

Ingredients

Chicken Wings: I personally like to cut my wings into their smaller components of drumstick and wing regardless if I’m serving these up for a party or just a personal dinner. I also like to cut them because I prefer the wing while my fiancé prefers the drumstick. I know, we’re a perfect pair! But you can cook this however you prefer. Just use a sharp knife or even kitchen scissors to cut them. You want to make sure they are completely thawed and then patted dry before you season them.

Spices

Paprika – I personally love to use sweet paprika on these. It’s the perfect balancing flavor with the savory onion & garlic. But if you want to spice it up you can use a hot paprika or mix it half and half with cayenne pepper.

Onion Powder – This is the key spice to the dry rub. I recommend using the powder instead of the minced or dehydrated onion pieces, as this will provide the best consistency and even flavor distribution.

Season salt: I personally use Aldi brand, but any seasoning salt will do. If you are following a specific diet, just watch out for additives in your seasoning salt. I like to get one without added fillers. Also, be mindful that if you’re tossing your wings before serving, consider how much salt is in your wing sauce and reduce as needed. While I personally like my wings on the salty side, I use a lower sodium sauce and am very happy with how it tastes. However a good cold beer on hand can also alleviate this issue.

Baking Powder – You MUST, I repeat MUST use baking POWDER. DO NOT use baking soda as they are NOT interchangeable. The baking powder will help your wings crisp up and creates that crunch without any need for frying with oil. Healthy and delicious? You’re welcome! If you are doing strict paleo or Whole30 feel free to sub Arrowroot starch for this and spray with a little avocado oil before going into the oven to help everything crisp up perfectly.

Hot sauce: You can use your favorite wing sauce or hot sauce. I personally love plain Franks Red Hot. I do not add butter or oil to make wing sauce as this just adds to what I feel like are unnecessary calories and fats and I think it tastes just as good with the plain hot sauce. I also enjoy the New Primal Buffalo sauce. It comes in mild, medium, and hot. Medium is our favorite and it is very flavorful. It is thicker and closer to the consistency of a traditional wing sauce if that’s your jam. The medium is a perfect spice level for our family, some of whom do not tolerate the heat levels my fiancé and I prefer.

Cooking instructions

Rinse wings and pat them until they are very dry. You want to remove as much moisture as possible in order to get that perfect crispy texture. Excess moisture will make it hard for your wings to crisp up in the oven or air fryer.

Once wings are as dry as possible place them in a large mixing bowl. Add seasoning and mix well until the wings are all evenly coated.

For the Oven

Preheat oven to 450F. Place wings on a parchment line baking sheet. I prefer to use a rimmed baking sheets for this as the rim will prevent any juices released early in the cooking process from dripping into your oven.

You want the wings to be evenly spaced with 1-2 inches between each wing. This will ensure that the excess juices will cook off and you wings will not be sitting in moisture. Because again – moisture prevents that crispy finish we’re looking for.

To help them be even crispier you can spry a light coating of avocado oil over them.

Place wings in the oven on the lowest wrack. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until meat is pulling away from the drumstick bones and skin is crisp. There is no need to flip wings half way through as this just disrupt the heating process and will not help them get any crispier.

For the Air Fryer

Set Air Fryer to 400F. Set the timer to 40 minutes and allow to preheat for 5 minutes. I usually set the time to 40 minutes in order to allow for the cooking of multiple batches of wings without resetting anything. Also, I have a smaller air fryer that gets very hot, so you may need to adjust the cooking times based on your specific size and brand of fryer. Especially if you are using a Ninja foodie or Instapot air frying lid, you do not want to skip the preheating process and you may need to cook you wings longer before they are fully cooked and crispy. I have found that overall in the air fryer they need very little to no oil to get the desired results.

Preheating your air fryer for ~5 minutes allows everything to be hot when you put your wings in. There should be an immediate popping and sizzling sound when your wings hit the bottom.

Arrange wings evenly in a single layer. I find that 6-8 whole wings fit in my 4 quart fryer. But larger sizes will obviously fit more.

Cook wings for ~12 minutes, shaking half way though. As noted above, adjust cooking times based on your specific fryer and add times as needed until they are crisped to your liking and the meat is starting to pull away from the drumstick bone. For example, my fiancé has a Ninja Foodie and I’ve found that this usually requires approximately 18 minutes for the first batch and 15 minutes for subsequent batches.

Remove wings and place on a drying wrack to allow excess juices to run off. Repeat with remaining wings as needed.

To Finish

Toss all your wings in your preferred wing sauce (or sauces!) and sever immediately. Alternately you can serve the wings plain with dipping sauces on the side. This is my personal favorite, as the dry rub is just so dang good!

And that’s it. Simple, easy, and delicious. Try these for your next party or anytime you are just craving buffalow wings. You will not be disappointed!