When you want to up your grilling game, try my Grilled Dry Rub Chicken Wings. Crispy perfection with charred bits on the outside, tender and juicy on the inside. Seasoned with the best dry rub you’ll ever taste.
Perfectly seasoned with a simple blend of seasoning, my grilled dry rub wings are perfect for game day or anytime your friends gather to enjoy life and all the deliciousness it has to offer.
I know you’ll agree that this is the best chicken wing recipe you’ve grilled in a long time! With just a few minutes of prep, it’s an easy meal for a busy weeknight.
Ingredients
Let’s start by gathering the ingredients we need to make grilled dry-rub chicken wings. In Chef Speak, this is called the “Mise en Place,” which translates to “Everything in its Place.”
Not only does setting up your ingredients ahead of time speed up the cooking process, it also helps ensure you have everything you need to make the dish.
Made with simple ingredients
- chicken wings – Leftovers can be used up in my tasty smoked chicken wings recipe.
- brown sugar
- salt
- onion powder
- garlic powder
- chili powder
- smoked paprika
- ground cumin
- black pepper
If you like heat, add a little cayenne pepper to the seasonings. And if you’re not a fan of a particular flavor, leave that spice out of the mix. Cooking is all about making changes. It’s important to cook with ingredients that you and your family enjoy eating.
How do I split Chicken Wings?
Let’s talk about safety first.
Always use a cutting board to cut meats, seafood, or vegetables. That being said, always make sure your cutting board has been properly cleaned and sanitized between uses. Use your favorite household cleaner, and always wash the board twice.
*You can also place the once-cleaned cutting board into your dishwasher for a really good cleaning. This is super important when cutting any meat or seafood.
Cutting whole chicken wings is really simple. All you need to do is locate the joint and cut through it.
Hold one end firmly and securely while cutting through the joint carefully. I leave the wing tips on for some of the wing dishes I create but feel free to chop off the wing tip if you prefer. (If you do remove the wing tips, save them in a ziplock bag in the freezer for the next time you make chicken soup)
Chef Dennis Tip: If you keep the knife down low (directly on the joint) you’ll have less chance of cutting yourself.
What spices should I use for my Dry Rub?
A lot of what I do is my take on foods I’ve seen or eaten on my travels. These wings were recreated from a dishful of deliciousness I enjoyed on a recent adventure. I simply pulled out a few spices from my cabinet and started blending until I got the flavor profile just right.
Cooking is rocket science, and lots of times, it comes down to using ingredients that you like rather than exactly what the recipe calls for. I went through a few variations of spice combinations to come up with the one I eventually used for my dry rub, and hope you enjoy them as much as I did.
How to make Dry Rub Chicken Wings
- Mixing the seasonings together in a small bowl.
- Rinse the wings in cold water. Split them if necessary, then pat them dry with paper towels.
Rub the chicken wings on all sides with a generous amount of my spice rub. Feel free to use less seasoning, I like my dry-rubbed chicken wings bursting with spicy flavors!
- Place dry-rubbed wings on the grill allowing them to cook for 6-8 minutes. Turn wings occasionally to crisp them all over. They can cook longer if you like really crispy skin on the chicken wings. *Be careful not to burn in the wings, the sugar in the dry rub can cause the wings to burn.
- Move the chicken wings to indirect heat and continue to cook with the lid closed for another 8-10 minutes. Or until an instant-read thermometer reads an internal temperature of 165 degrees F.
I love the charred parts, as you’ll find most men do. Just serve green vegetables or a big salad along with them to add as a detox for the charring. Here’s a good article to read about foods that help detoxify the body.
You can reduce charing by placing a double sheet of aluminum foil on the grill. This can be used as early in the process as you like, but I would recommend getting a little color on them before placing them on the foil.
*You will still need to turn the wings often, even on the foil.
Can I cook dry rub chicken wings in the oven?
You certainly can. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F and place the prepared wings in a single layer on a baking sheet. Place the baking sheet on an oven rack placed in the top third of the oven. After 7-10 minutes, turn the wings over and return to the oven.
Turn the oven down to 350 and cook for another 10-12 minutes or until the wings have good color and the internal temperature of the chicken is at least 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
If you love oven-baked chicken, try my Crispy Chicken Legs Recipe.
Can I cook dry rub chicken wings in an air fryer?
It’s easy to make crispy air fryer chicken wings. Just place the dry rub wings in a non-preheated air fryer at 375°F and let them cook for about 20 minutes. The dry rub wings should be crispy on the outside and fully cooked through in the center.
Wouldn’t you love to sit down to this delicious plate of grilled dry rub chicken wings? After one bite I know you’ll agree these are the best dry-rub wings!
Serve these delicious crispy wings with celery sticks, bleu cheese dressing, homemade buttermilk ranch dressing or your favorite dipping sauce.
Recipe FAQ’s
Definitely before is the preferred method of using this wing seasoning. But you can always add a little more using a shaker to apply the seasoning after cooking if you like.
The natural moisture in the wings will attract the seasoning, allowing you to get a good coating on the wings.
You can dry the wings with paper towels and add a light coating of oil to the wings before the seasoning, but this step isn’t really necessary.
You can let the rub marinate on the wings for up to 8 hours, but 30 minutes should be more than enough time to let the seasonings penetrate the wings.
More Chicken Wing Recipes You’ll Love!
Dry Rub Chicken Wings
Ingredients
- 2 pounds chicken wings split at first joint. *remove wing tip if desired
- ¼ cup packed brown sugar
- 1 ½ teaspoon sea salt
- 1 ½ teaspoon granulated onion
- 1 ½ teaspoon granulated garlic
- 1 ½ teaspoon chili powder
- 1 ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Measure all ingredients into a small mixing bowl and thoroughly mix to fully incorporate spices.
- Rub the chicken wings on all sides with a generous amount of the dry rub.
- Preheat the grill to medium high heat (350º-400ºF)
- Place dry-rubbed wings on the grill allowing to cook for 6-8 minutes. Turn wings occasionally to crisp them all over. They can cook longer if they don’t look crisp enough.
- *Be careful not to burn in the wings, the sugar in the dry rub can cause the wings to burn.
- Move the chicken wings to indirect heat and continue to cook with the lid closed for another 8-10 minutes.
Cindy says
Can I add baking powder to crisp the skin more, without charring them?
Chef Dennis Littley says
You sure can.
KATHLEEN JORDAN says
Made this recipe exactly as written and I must say it is fantastic!! I have tried so many different recipes before and none could compare to this one.
Chef Dennis Littley says
I’m happy to hear you enjoyed the wings! Its one of my favorite summertime recipes.
Allison says
This got a “really good” from my 16-year-old chicken wing expert. We do a lot of grilling, smoking and sous vide, and this rub + grilling is definitely one of the best ones in our rotation.
Chef Dennis Littley says
That’s high praise from a 16 year old! Thank you!
Wayne says
I feel like it’s time for me to leave a review. I’ve been making these wings since 2020. Crowd pleaser every time. Thanks Chef Dennis!
Chef Dennis Littley says
you’re welcome Wayne, and thanks for taking the time to leave a comment.
Brie says
These are great. Very easy and a crowd pleaser. Thank you Dennis love your site.
Chef Dennis Littley says
Thanks for the great review and comment Brie, I’m very happy to hear you enjoyed the wings!
Terri Pierracos says
OMG this is amazing! I have tried this recipe both on the barbecue and in the Air Fryer. These are the best wings I have ever tasted and I have tried many recipes! In the Air Fryer I sprayed the wings with cooking spray and used the Chicken setting for 28 minutes. They are better than the oven, so crispy and delicious! This is now my go to chicken wing recipe. I love how healthy and tasty they are! Thank you for this great recipe!
Brienne says
Hi chef!! As you know we love this.. do you think it would work on ribs? Or do you have any other suggestions.
Thanks !
Chef Dennis Littley says
Hi Brienne
the rub would work on ribs, but ribs need to be cooked much longer over indirect heat or in the oven. I have a dry rub recipe for ribs, that is really good -> https://www.askchefdennis.com/grilled-baby-back-ribs/
Bloome says
Listen! These were amazing. I substituted the salt for lawry’s seasoned salt and that’s it. Popped these babies right in the air fryer and they were crispy and delicious! I couldn’t stop eating. I’ll be adding some kick to them next time. Thanks for sharing this recipe!
Janet DeLeon says
Tried your rub this eve. And OMG, I didn’t even deviate or add to it. It was sooooo delicious, I was be saving this for more wings. Thank you for sharing
Tina T says
Hello,
Before starting I would like to know what I can add to give the receipe some hotness Please!
Chef Dennis Littley says
you can add more chili powder, siracha dry spice, chipotle, cajun seasoning, or any other type of chili spice you have on hand.
Natalie says
Oh wow, this looks fantastic. I love the spices you used here. What a lovely flavor combo. I’m super excited to give this a try. We’re having a bbq this weekend 🙂
Colleen says
I only like dry rubs for chicken wings – and this was an interesting combination with the brown sugar which does add a bit of ‘wet’ but also serves to give the ‘grilled’ effect. I made mine in the oven, and they took about 45 minutes at 400 – but I swear my new oven has a problem with the thermostat. I ended up turning it to broil for less than 5 minutes at the end – and got the charred look from the brown sugar. The wings were moist and flavourful – without a lot of heat – which I liked because I could taste all the flavours of the spices along with the chicken. This is an excellent recipe and I have tried a few. This one will become my staple. Thank you Chef Dennis.
Joanne says
These were finger licking good!! Sweet, savory, and easy to make! 😋 My fiancé loved them. I saved this recipe to make again!