How to Grill the Perfect Chicken Wings

Perfectly grilled chicken wings in a BBQ sauce.

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5 from 2 votes

How to Grill the Perfect Chicken Wings

If you enjoy chicken wings as much as I do, follow along and let me show you how to grill the perfect chicken wings.

Prep Time10

Cook Time40

Course: Appetizer, Main Course, Snack

Cuisine: American

Keyword: chicken wing tutorial, easy chicken wing recipe, grilled chicken, grilled chicken wings, grilled wings for beginners, grilling for beginners

Servings: people

Author: Maciek Zurawski

Ingredients

2 lbs Chicken Wings
2 tbsp Seasoning
1 tbsp Olive Oil
1/2 cup BBQ Sauce (optional)
1/4 cup Water (optional)

Instructions

How to prepare the Perfect Chicken Wings

Drying:
With a paper towel, pat the wings dry. Make sure to get all sides. Place the dry wings on a wire rack and in the fridge, preferably overnight, but at least 1 hour. The dry air will dry them off even more.
Lubing:
Remove the dry wings from the fridge and drizzle olive oil over them making sure to cover all sides. DO NOT drench them in oil either. A light coating is all you need.
Seasoning:
Generously season each wing. Be sure to get each side coated.

How to set up the grill

Clean the Grill:
For charcoal grills, remove any leftover ash from the prior cook. pellet grills make sure the grease tray is emptied. For gas grills, make sure you have enough gas.
Heat up the grill:
For charcoal grills, heat up the briquettes. Use a chimney to speed up the heating process. Fill the chimney with your choice of charcoal, light a fire starter at the bottom of the grill and place the chimney on top.
Set up the grill for dual zone grilling:
Once the charcoal is ashy, dump it into the grill. To create a dual zone heat set up on a charcoal grill, move the hot briquettes to one side of the grill. This will create a hot and cool side. Finally, place the grates on top.

How to grill the perfect chicken wings.

Start by placing the wings on the indirect heat side. Make sure to leave space in between each piece to allow air flow.
Close the lid and open up the top and bottom vents on a charcoal grill. The wider the opening on the vents, the hotter the grill gets due to the air flow. Make sure the top vents are directly over thechicken wings on the indirect side.
Leave the chicken wings on the grill with the lid closed for 20 minutes. Next, flip them and repeat the process.
Once the wings reach an internal temperature of 175-185 degrees Fahrenheit, move them to the direct side for a quick char. This will only takes 30-45 seconds per side, so do not walk away from the grill.
Remove the wings from the grill and let them rest for 5-10 minutes.

Sauce up the wings.

Make a homemade sauce or if using a store bought sauce, add it t small saucepan with the water and warm it up. It will thin the sauce and make it easier to coat the wings.
In a large bowl, pour the sauce over wings, and toss. Make sure to use a deep bowl to avoid any spills.
Plate up the perfectly grilled chicken wings and enjoy!

Notes

DO NOT wash the chicken after it's been removed from the packing. This will only add moisture. The cooking process will kill off any bacteria on the meat.

DO NOT drench the chicken wings in oil. Light drizzle is enough.

DON'T BE SHY on the seasoning. Some of the seasoning will either burn off during the grilling process or fall off.

Grill time will depend on the outside temperature. Grilling in freezing cold weather will impact and slow down the cook time and heat levels. Be sure to keep an eye on those wings and temps.

Grilling wings to a 175-185 degrees internally on high heat will not dry them out. Meat around the bone needs more time to cook for the fat to break down and tenderize the meat.

Nutrition