10 Grilled Chicken Wing Recipes Perfect for Your Next Backyard Barbecue

This collection of grilled wings run from sweet heat to off-the-charts spicy.

By
Anna Thomas Bates
Anna Thomas Bates
Anna Thomas Bates
Editor
Anna Thomas Bates is a food editor.
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The Serious Eats Team
The Serious Eats Team
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Updated July 30, 2024
A large plate of grilled cajun chicken wings on the right hand side of the image. On the left side is a smaller blue plate with three chicken wings on it and a glass holding a glass of a golden-colored beverage.

Serious Eats / Eric Kleinberg

Grilled chicken wings require some skill to cook to crispy, flavorful perfection. This collection of grilled chicken recipes has sauces and spice rubs that run from a gentle sweet glaze to a fiery spice. We'll also teach you how baking soda can help you achieve the crispest skin, and how to utilize direct and indirect heat on your grill for perfectly cooked wings, every time. Let's get to it!

  • Grilled Turkish-Style Chicken Wings

    A platter of grilled Turkish chicken wings with a small bowl of sauce on a gray plate, placed on top of a striped cloth napkin.

    Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik

    An improved setup for skewers brings these grilled wings closer to the heat, while a marinade based on Turkish hot pepper paste infuses them with flavor.

  • Hawaiian Huli Huli Grilled Chicken Wings

    Hawaiian huli huli grilled chicken wings on a wooden board with grilled pineapple wedges, snipped scallions, lime wedges, and a bowl of fresh sliced jalapenos.

    Serious Eats / Morgan Eisenberg

    Sticky, sweet, smoky, and tangy, these chicken wings get their flavor from an easy-to-make Hawaiian marinade. They're grilled until tender and brushed with glaze, and they're as great for a barbecue as they are for game day.

  • Grilled Cajun Wings

    A large plate of grilled cajun chicken wings on the right hand side of the image. On the left side is a smaller blue plate with three chicken wings on it and a glass holding a glass of a golden-colored beverage.

    Serious Eats / Eric Kleinberg

    A highly seasoned skin gives these wings an earthy and spicy coating, while the sauce has a complexity that goes beyond the standard Buffalo. They're grilled over indirect heat until blistered and crunchy, then tossed in a simple sauce of butter, Louisiana-style hot sauce, and Worcestershire.

  • Grilled Spicy Chicken Wings With Soy and Fish Sauce

    A white rectangular platter of grilled spicy chicken wings with fresh cilantro.

    Serious Eats / Shao Z.

    With great savory depth from a marinade, these wings are easy to prep, requiring only an overnight soak in soy sauce, fish sauce, Shaoxing wine, and spices for maximum flavor.

    Continue to 5 of 10 below

  • Grilled Sweet and Spicy Chicken Wings

    A white plate of grilled sweet and spicy chicken wings.

    Serious Eats / Joshua Bousel

    These wings are coated with a rub, cooked over indirect heat with apple wood chunks, and finished with a sweet and spicy barbecue-honey glaze. There's a lot going on here, including a succulent smoky meat, peppery rub, and a sticky sauce that starts sweet and leaves a pleasing, lingering heat.

  • Grilled Hoisin-Glazed Chicken Wings

    A platter of hoisin-glazed grilled chicken wings with a sprinkle of sesame seeds and scallions.

    Serious Eats / Joshua Bousel

    These sweet and savory wings are grilled over indirect heat to crisp the skin, then brushed with a hoisin, honey, and soy sauce glaze that gets set with a quick fire over direct heat.

  • Grilled Honey Chipotle Wings

    A close-up of grilled honey chipotle wings with fresh cilantro.

    Serious Eats / Joshua Bousel

    Here, cooking the wings over high heat caramelizes the sauce, tempering the spiciness and bringing out the sweetness of the honey.

  • Grilled Habanero Barbecue Wings

    A close-up of habanero barbecued chicken wings on a grill rack.

    Serious Eats / Joshua Bousel

    Rubbed wings stay juicy and get a nicely browned skin after 30 minutes of cooking, at which point barbecue sauce is applied and allowed to caramelize. These are coated with a roasted habanero sauce, because a touch of heat on a smoky wing just makes it all the better, right?

    Continue to 9 of 10 below

  • Grilled Sriracha Hot Wings

    Grilled wings with sriracha sauce on a platter with fresh cilantro.

    Serious Eats / Joshua Bousel

    To double up the Sriracha awesomeness, these wings are first brushed with a rich Sriracha-based sauce during the last minutes of grilling. After that coating bakes in, they are tossed with the remaining sauce, creating two layers of hot garlic goodness, ensuring every bite is full of flavor.

  • Jerk Chicken Wings

    A close-up of grilled jerk chicken wings on a grill.

    Serious Eats / Joshua Bousel

    The essence of jerk is the amazing mixture of herbs, spices, and chiles, and when it comes to wings, the marinade-to-chicken ratio tips well in favor of the jerk. That means more heat and more spice, with just enough juicy chicken to temper the seasoning to the perfect amount.

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