How to Smoke Chicken Wings
Smoking chicken wings is an incredibly tasty way to prepare them. You’ll get crispy, charred, smoky, gooey goodness in about 2 hours.
It’s still BBQ season for me because I live in Canada and it’s always BBQ season here. Besides, I don’t live at the neck or even the elbow of any forest.
This is also known as barbecue season to some of my American folks. I’m not sure which Americans use the term “barbecue” but I suspect you’re the same Americans who refer to pop as soda.
These will be perfect for watching the baseball playoffs or the Superbowl, which I know hasn’t arrived yet, but with Rihanna announced as this year’s cast, the Superbowl meal celebrations can begin now.
Also, if you’re planning your Superbowl menu, be sure to add these Antojitos, which are an exact replica of Montanas courtesy of a loose-lipped Montana executive. And of course my chili.
I am going astray here. I’m extremely prone to daydreaming about food holidays, so if I get off course at any point in this post and start talking about Christmas cookies, just give me a nudge.
SMOKE your chicken wings. Just do it.
What you need
Christmas cookies.
Just kidding.
All you need is a smoker (or a BBQ and a small smoker box like this one) and some dry rub.
You can buy a dry rub at the grocery store or make the Kansas City Rub I use. I make a big WHACK out of it and use it all summer.
instructions
➡ HOW TO PROTECT YOUR GRILL OR SMOKER
Smoked ribs require 2 hours of smoking and 1 hour of marinating beforehand.
TOTAL TIME 3 hours
SMOKING TEMPERATURE 225F – 250F
- Drizzle your choice of oil over your wings and mix so they are coated.
- Sprinkle with dry rub. Toss them around to make sure they’re fully coated.
- Place the wings in a bag and refrigerate for at least an hour to marinate.
- While your wings are marinating, turn on your smoker. (No, there wasn’t snow on the ground when I made these wings, but I wanted to point out that you can barbecue like a real Canadian in the winter.)
a notice: Keep an eye on your smoker or grill. They aim for a temperature of 225-250 F. It’s much easier to raise the temperature than lower it when it gets too high.
- Add a fist-sized piece of wood to the coals for this smoke. I like apple and pecan, but also all other woods because I really can’t taste any difference whichever wood I use.
- After an hour of marinating and once the smoker is at 225F and your log is smoking, place your wings on the grill and close the lid. You will now smoke for about 2 hours. Keep the temperature between 225 and 250F. You don’t have to turn them over.
A NOTICE
Killing two birds with one stone. Or a bird and a pig with a smoker.
To make this a FEST, place the ribs on the grill at the same time as the wings. The wings are ready a few hours earlier than the ribs, giving you a handy BBQ day snack before the main smoked ribs event. The link to making ribs with a really good sauce recipe is below.
variations
You don’t just have to stop rubbing. If you want to change things up a bit…
- Spicy – Add chili flakes to your rub mix
- Sweet – Drizzle your ribs with honey when they’re almost done.
- Cheeky – There’s no reason you can’t toss these in your favorite wing sauce like Frank’s Red Hot Sauce once they’re cooked.
gear
smoker
Smoke ribs in a smoker
Do this exact recipe and technique on every smoker. I have a charcoal bayou stick incense, but of course you can make them on whatever type of smoker you have.
grilling
Smoke wings on a BBQ or charcoal grill
You CAN cook these on a charcoal grill or a propane grill. All you have to do is cook them with indirect heat and add smoke using a small metal smoker box and some nice apple wood shavings.
Indirect heat means the wings do not go over burning elements or charcoal. They should be sideways away from direct flame. They are only cooked by the surrounding heat.
- Soak your wood chips for 30 minutes.
- While the chips are smoking, heat up your grill with the coals on one side of the grill only. If using propane, simply turn on 1 burner. Remember you want low indirect heat.
- Drain the wood chips and place in the smoker box. Place the box over the fire side of your grill, close the lid and after 10 minutes check if the wood is smoking. Keep looking for smoke. (You can also place your smoker box directly on top of the lit charcoal or propane burner if it suits)
- Once the wood is smoking, place your marinated wings on the cool side of the grill.
- Close the lid and keep the temperature as low as possible. 225 – 250F is ideal.
- Check the wings occasionally. The wings should be cooked and smoked to perfection in about 2 hours.
A NOTICE: It can be difficult to keep a grill at such a low temperature, so if you can only keep it at 275 or 300F, the wings will be ready in well over 2 hours.
storage
Don’t worry. You don’t need to know how to store these.
top tip
You know when I told you above that you could add some chili flakes or a dash of honey to the rub towards the end of cooking? Add to both of these things and get ready for one of the best wings you’ve ever had.
Smoked Chicken Wings
Yield:
As many as you want!
Preparation time:
5 minutes
Cooking time:
2 hours
Extra time:
1 hour
Total time:
3 hours 5 minutes
Smoke them when you have them. Smoked chicken wings are ready in 2 hours, stay moist on the inside and have a gooey crisp on the outside.
instructions
- Drizzle your choice of oil over your wings and mix so they are coated.
- Sprinkle with dry rub. Toss them around to make sure they’re fully coated.
- Place the wings in a bag and refrigerate for at least an hour to marinate.
- While your wings are marinating, turn on your smoker. No, I didn’t do this in the winter, but I wanted to point out that you can grill like a real Canadian in the winter.
- After an hour of marinating and once the smoker is at 225F, place your wings on the grill and close the lid. You will now smoke for about 2 hours. Keep the temperature between 225 and 250F.
K. I’m going to eat a piece of lasagna now. I’m not sure what holiday this might be associated with, but I’m sure there is.