We make Smoked Chicken Wings a lot. Probably too much! They are great for a party, for dinner, or just a snack. We don’t put sauce on them, between the rub and the smoke they have more than enough flavor. But, if sauce is your thing, slather away! Smoking wings adds another dimension to your standard bar-food wing.
A few years ago, we were at my dad’s favourite bar (QB’s Sports Bar in Burlington, Ontario). It’s a sports bar, so often, we would stop in, get a large fries, a few pounds of wings, and a pitcher of beer. They had recently added smoked chicken wings to the menu. We decided to try them, and I’ve been hooked ever since!
I have done these on both our gas Weber Genesis Grill, and our Kamado Joe Smoker. You definitely get a more intense smokiness if you use a smoker, but I wouldn’t knock the Weber gas grill version. Either way, you want to use a lighter smoke wood. These little wings will be overpowered if you pick hickory or mesquite. I kind of like applewood or maple for this, but use what you like.
Grill Set Up
If you’re using a gas grill, you want to be able to cook the wings with indirect heat. We used a pellet smoker tube when did smoked wings on the gas Weber grill (see our BBQ Tools post for details on the tube). If you don’t have a pellet tube or smoke box, don’t worry. Just take some tinfoil, put some wood chips in it, wrap it up, and poke holes in it. Put the foil right over the deflectors, and wait for it to start smoking. Only turn on one side of the grill, and place the wings on the side that isn’t turned on. We have used the mesh sheets over the grill, but you don’t have to. It can be easier both to turn the wings and clean up though.
In our charcoal Kamado Joe, we used the ceramic deflection plates to keep the heat even. I haven’t tried them with the SloRoller yet, but I would imagine it just intensifies the flavor.
Rub
You can really use any rub you like on these. Just remember that you’re trying to get the smoke flavor. When we smoke wings, we’ve found that a simple rub is best. It lets the smoke and chicken shine through. Watch the salt ratio though. If you’re using a gas grill, you can get away with more salt. If you have a ceramic or offset smoker, they might turn into little salt bombs. My sister loves them that way, so…that might be your thing. We just find the more intense the smoke, the less salt you need.
| This recipe is part of our BBQ Apps Week! |
Smoked Chicken Wings
Ingredients
- 2 doz Chicken Wings
- 1 Tbsp Olive Oil
- 2 Tbsp Your Favorite Wing Rub
Garlic Dry Rub
- 1 Tbsp Kosher Salt
- 1 Tbsp Coarse Ground Pepper
- ½ Tbsp Garlic Powder
Spicy Dry Rub
- 1 Tbsp Chili Powder
- 1 Tbsp Sweet Smoked Paprika
- 2 tsp Brown Sugar
- 1 tsp Cumin
- 1 tsp Garlic Powder
- 1 tsp Onion Powder
- 1 tsp Cayenne
- 1½ tsp Salt
- 1½ tsp Pepper
Lemon Pepper
- 1½ Tbsp Lemon Pepper (no salt or additional seasoning added)
- ½ Tbsp Kosher Salt
- ½ tsp Onion Powder
Instructions
- Clean and divide wings if necessary (we usually buy party wings which are already split and tips removed)
- Place wings in a ziploc bag, you may need more than one depending on the size of the wings and bag
- Add olive oil to each bag and squish around to evenly distribute over wings
- Sprinkle wings with your favorite rub, we like to go lighter on the seasoning, but coat as you see fit!
- Heat your smoker to 225° – 250°F and cook the wings over indirect heat for 2 hours or until the internal temperature is 165°
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