I really don’t want to hear about how fried wings are better. I know that. Everyone knows that.
If you genuinely love food and don’t care about fat, isn’t everything better when cooked in a vat of oil? The answer is yes. It’s always yes. Donuts, Funnel cakes, french fries, mozzarella sticks, onion rings…and yes, even chicken.
But let’s set that empirical fact aside and say that we actually DO care a little about our health and we DON’T want to fry everything…and remember this is a BBQ site, not a Crisco fan page. If we accept that, then I think you will accept these wings are absolutely delicious.
The part that makes chicken wings delicious is the sauce. The sauce matters more than any other step. Don’t argue, this again just needs to be accepted as fact. This buffalo sauce recipe is generously shared by one of my extremely talented SLABS a’ Smokin teammates, Forrest. He knows chicken wings like no one I’ve ever met. He’s competed and done well, so trust me when I tell you this sauce is worth a try.
I started with a simple marinade of olive oil/salt/pepper. I let them set in there for a couple hours, but you could do as little as 30 minutes or not at all. if you wanted a more flavorful, complex marinade then check out this recipe for Marinated and Grilled Chicken Wings.
Then I moved to smoking, as I always do. I personally think adding the smokey flavor profile to wings changes their deliciousness in an unbeatable way. But I may be biased. I used a mix of hickory and apple and loved the results.
How to Set Up The Weber Kettle
Fill a charcoal basket with lit Kingsford charcoal and use your tongs to place the charcoal on the left side of the grill.
Add either chunks or chips of your wood on top of the lit charcoal. If you are using chips then 1 Cup is plenty. Do not soak the wood.
Arrange the chicken wings on the right side of the grill and close the lid making sure that the top vent is over the wings.
The wings closer to heat cook quicker so you need to rotate them about every 15 minutes so they cook evenly.
It will take the wings about 75-90 minutes to crisp up and reach an internal temperature of 190F.
The last step is tossing them in a bowl of delicious buffalo sauce. The recipe from Forrest is shared below. Take it and make it your own if you want, but I’m telling you it’s competition quality as is.
Add some ranch or blue cheese dressing if you want…perhaps some veggies (for show, because you obviously don’t want to fill your stomach with veggies when you have delicious wings to eat), and you’ve got a beautiful dish that will be the hit of any party.
Smoked Chicken Wings on a Weber Kettle
Ingredients
- 1 package Chicken Wings
For Marinade
- 1/4 c Olive Oil
- Salt & Pepper to taste
For Buffalo Sauce
- 1 stick butter
- 1 - 12 oz bottle of Frank's Hot Sauce
- 3/4 c Honey
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1/2 tsp chili powder
- 1/4 tsp paprika
Instructions
- Combine marinade ingredients in a ziploc bag and add wings. Let set for at least 30 minutes, up to several hours.
- Set up grill for indirect cooking. Add hickory and apple chips for smoking.
- Place wings on grill, away from heat. Smoke at 250-300 for 60-90 minutes until golden brown and 185 internal temp.
- While smoking wings, combine sauce ingredients in pot and bring to a simmer. Place wings in bowl, add sauce, and mix.
1. Brine em for a few hours,
2. Set up yer charcoal grill for indirect heat, (add some pecan pieces for smoke),
3. Put em on the grill indirect,
4. Let em go for about an hour
Perfect smoked wings every time.
Why don’t you soak the wood chips
I do not soak wood chips because I feel like I get better flavor from clean burning wood instead of a damp smolder.
I would also like to know the aswer to this question please
Bs fried wings are better. I.prefer.them slow smoked or even baked. Either way let soak and toss them to marinate for a good half hour after cooked. After marinated throw them back.on the grill to crisp and char a little. Your sauce will never penetrate a fried chicken wing like that.
Hi- Just wondering if I read your comment right. Did you mean to say to marinate them for a good half hour AFTER cooked? Then back on the grill, etc.? I just want to make sure I understand what you’re saying. Marinate before AND after or just after? Thank you!
I was referring to the brine/marinate step BEFORE you cook the wings.