Smoked Chicken Wings

If you are looking for a great appetizer for the next game day get together you need to try out this recipe for smoked chicken wings. The wings are packed with flavor, turn out very tender and juicy, and have a crispy bite through skin. They are sure to be a hit with friends and family.

Chicken wings have to be one of my favorite appetizers. Anyone who has tried cooking them knows you want the meat to turn out tender and juicy while making sure the skin does not turn out rubbery. I have cooked wings a few different ways but my favorite method is smoking them. It just adds another layer of flavor to this already delicious meal. Another reason I love them is they are so versatile. You can easily change up the rub and sauce you use while still following this exact recipe and completely change the flavor profile.

When looking in the store for wings you can usually find them already broken down into flats and drumsticks. If you don’t mind a little more prep time you can usualy save yourself a little money and buy whole wings and separate the pieces yoruself. If you buy whole wings you will simply use a sharp knife and make a cut at the bend between the flat and the drumstick and then another slice in the other bend to remove the tip. There is really no meat on the tip. You can choose to save them for something else or throw them away but I would not bother cooking them for wings.

Cooking Basics

Once you have your wings broken down into the flats and drumsticks the prep is pretty simple. The night before place your wings on a rack skin side up and leave them uncovered in the refridgerator to allow the skin to dry out a little before cooking the next day. This helps ensure you have crispy bite through skin. If you don’t have time to do this step then just make sure to at least pat dry all yrou wings to get rid of extra moisture before you start prepping them.

When you are ready to throw the wings on the grill the last thing we have to do is add your rub. Feel free to use your favorite. I just discoverd a new rub called Honey and Heat that I got in my monthly package from Grill Masters Club. I have been using that of late whenever I make chicken. The company that makes it is called Bob’n Mutha’s so I am pretty sure it is a Maine based company. Coat all sides of your wings in the rub and you are ready to fire up the pit.

You will want to preheat your smoker or grill to 250 to start this cook. The wings will be cooked on indirect heat. If you are using a grill you will need one that has multiple zones to acheive this. Basically you will turn on the burner on one side of the grill to get up to temperature but you will be putting the wings on the side of the grill where the burners are not on to allow them to cook more slowly. If using a smoker just make sure the sear plate is closed and you will be cooking with indrect heat. Chicken wings are smaller pieces of meat so they will not take a very long time to cook. If you have a wire rack handy that can be used for cooking I find it easier for handling to place them on this. If not just throw them directly onto the grill. The wings will cook until they hit an internal temperature of 160.

At this point it is time for the sauce and to finish off the skin. Turn your smoker / grill up to 425 for the rest of this cook. This will ensure the skin gets crispy. Feel free to use your favorite type of wing sauce if you have one. I love making my own bbq sauces to use but if I am in a hurry I usually go with Sweet Baby Rays or Stubbs. I will be adding posts every now and then for different sauce recipes in case you are interested in trying out your own. There are plenty of recipes already out online as well if you would like to try this. Using a brush you will apply the sauce to the wings and then continue to cook. Let the wings cook for 5 minutes on one side then flip them over and cook for another 5 minutes on the other side. By this time your wings whould have hit an internal temperature of 165 degrees. Once this happens they are ready to come off the grill.

Final Thoughts

• Sauces - The thing I love about wings is you can change up the flavor of them very easily by just changing the sauce you choose ot use. My daughter loves wings and hates spice so I usually try to go with bbq sauce but you can use this exact recipe with your own concotion for sauce and kick it up a notch if you want.
• Rubs - I love the sweet and heat combination with chicken but there are a ton of different rubs to experiment with. If you find one that you really enjoyed drop me a comment and let me know. I am always interested in trying out different rubs.
• Crisp Skin - If you have ready any of my other posts about turkey or chicken getting the skin crispy is always the toughest part to get right. Using the tips I mentioned you should not have any problem.

Recipe