If you love grilling as much as I do, you’re going to love my Grilled Dry Rub Chicken Wings! I especially love those extra charred bits.
I love the wing seasoning I use for my dry rub wings. It’s a blend of garlic powder, onion powder, chili powder and other favorite seasonings.
My dry rub wings are perfect for game day or anytime your friends gather to enjoy life and all the deliciousness it has to offer.
What do I need to make Dry Rub Chicken Wings?
The list of ingredients isn’t really long and you may even have most of the spices already in your cabinet.
I always like to gather my ingredients before cooking any dish in my kitchen. It makes the process go more smoothly and ensures I have everything I need to make the dish.
Here you see the split chicken wings and bowls of the spices needed for the dry rub. Feel free to add your own special touch to the seasonings. If there is a spice you don’t particularly like, leave it out.
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 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 wingtip, 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.
How do I decide what spices to use for Dry Rub Wings?
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.
If you’re not sure about the flavors, make half a batch my way and try your own seasoning blend on the other half. Who knows maybe you’ll find a tasty compromise or enjoy them as is.
Pat the seasoning into the wing to get an overall coverage of the wings with the seasoning. Feel free to use less seasoning, I like mine bursting with flavor!
The next step is to place them on your preheated grill (medium-high heat) and cook for about 20 minutes. Turn the wings often to avoid burning them. The brown sugar in the seasoning mixture will caramelize and burn faster than you think.
That being said 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 doubled sheet of tinfoil 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 Wings in the oven?
You certainly can. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F and place the prepared wings on a cookie sheet. Place the cookie 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?
Yes, you can. Place the 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 wings?
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 tsp sea salt
- 1 ½ tsp granulated onion
- 1 ½ tsp granulated garlic
- 1 ½ tsp chili powder
- 1 ½ tsp smoked paprika
- 1 ½ tsp ground cumin
- ½ tsp 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.
Nikka Shae
My hubby loves chicken wings and your recipe looks amazing too! I will have to try it!!
Amy H
Oh my! Those chicken look delicious! I haven’t tried using rubs with my chicken.
Catalina
I am drooling over these wings. Now I know what I will make for dinner tonight!
Kelli A
Dry rub chicken wings are my hubby’s favorite way to eat wings. Wings are his favorite to begin with, but this recipe is right up his ally! Will definitely show him!
Lisa Favre
My husband would be oh-so grateful if I made these wings for him. He absolutely adores wings and this recipe looks top notch!
Lynndee
We love chicken wings, but we haven’t tried them grilled yet. But we do love grilling and we’re enjoying the remaining of the grilling season as much as we can. We have to try your recipe soon!
Jeni Hawkins
This is so easy to prepare. It is something I’d prepare for some special occasions in our house. Looks like it has explosive flavors and taste.
Ruth I
Oh I love this recipe! I think wing is one of the tastiest part, so excited to try this!
Pam
These look so good! I love a good dry rub, and chicken wings are always delicious.
Rena
Yum! I usually prefer a wet sauce but this past summer had some dry rub ribs in Charleston. They were the best I’ve ever eaten! When it gets closer to Thanksgiving will do a post on brining the turkey. Can’t decide if I should or shouldn’t.
Victoria
Those look delicious. We love grilling and chicken so it’s the perfect combo. I’m going to share the recipe with my SO, though, because he does all the grilling lol.
Rachel
I have never made chicken wings. This looks like a doable recipe.
Gloria | Homemade & Yummy
YES….dry rub wings are the best. Even better when they are cooked on the grill. These are perfect as part of the Game Day menu. I think hubby will be grilling these all winter long.
Amber Myers
Oh my gosh, yes. I just love wings. These look incredible! I’ll have to make them during our next Netflix show marathon.
Tasheena
My son is a huge fan of wings. I know he would love this recipe. Looking forward to giving it a try.
Sarah Bailey
OK now these look like they would taste absolutely amazing! I love a good meal of chicken wings and this rub sounds incredible – adding some really amazing flavours to the meal.
Kelly Moran
Wings are my son’s absolute favorite! His birthday is in a few weeks and I will definitely be giving this dry rub a try! Sounds delicious!
Lian
These wings look fabulous! I love eating dry rub wings. They would be amazing to eat on Game Day!
Alli Smith
I always put together a dry rub when I grill ribs or smoke a Boston Butt. I’ve never thought to use a dry rub for chicken wings. I’m looking forward to trying your recipe. Yum!
robin rue
Those chicken wings sound SO good. I am going to have to try this dry rub! My fam will love it.
Barbara Lappala
I made these on the the grill last night Loved Them! Definitly a show stopper
.