North American

Serving

Buffalo Wings

Name: Buffalo Wings
Total time: 45 min
Yield: 5 servings
Cuisine: North American
Ingredients: 2 lbs chicken wings (split into flats and drumettes); 1/2 cup Frank's RedHot original sauce; 1/3 cup unsalted butter; 1 tbsp white vinegar; 1/2 tsp garlic powder; 1/2 tsp celery salt; oil for frying

Deep-fried chicken wings coated in a spicy vinegar-based cayenne pepper sauce.

45 minutes

Serves 5

Appetizer/Snack

16 min prep

25 min cook

Contains common allergens

celery Dairy

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Good to know

Crispy

Matched from this dish's own ingredients and timing. Browse more: crispy recipes

Instructions

6 steps

1
Pat the chicken wings completely dry with paper towels to ensure maximum crispiness. Let them sit at room temperature for 15 minutes.
2
Heat 3 inches of neutral oil in a large Dutch oven to a steady 375°F (190°C).
3
Carefully fry the wings in small batches for 10-12 minutes until they are deep golden brown and the skin is extremely crispy. Maintain oil temperature between batches.
4
While frying, melt the butter in a small saucepan over low heat. Whisk in the hot sauce, white vinegar, garlic powder, and celery salt until smooth and warm.
5
Transfer the hot, fried wings to a large bowl. Pour the warm buffalo sauce over them and toss vigorously to coat every crevice.
6
Serve immediately with a side of cold celery sticks, carrot sticks, and chunky blue cheese dressing for dipping.

Buffalo Wings — plated and served — Serving moment. How Buffalo Wings looks plated and ready to eat — a representative photo, not a step in the recipe.

Listahan Family Score™

64/100

Works for many families

Allergen-friendly 80

Kid-friendly 35

Weeknight-easy 54

Budget-friendly 72

Great leftovers 87

Pantry-friendly 71

Score reflects how well this recipe fits a typical busy household. In the app, your Family Score is personalized to your household's allergens, kids, and pantry.

Nutrition

per serving

530

Calories

46 g

Protein

3 g

Carbs

37 g

Fat

Estimated per serving. Actual values depend on the brands and portions you use.

Listahan cooking guide

Chef notes & practical guide

Technique notes, ingredient swaps, serve-alongside ideas, storage guidance, and equipment for this recipe.

Cultural context

Buffalo wings were invented in 1964 at the Anchor Bar in Buffalo, New York, when Teressa Bellissimo tossed leftover wings in hot sauce and butter as a late-night snack for her son and his friends. The combination of deep-fried chicken skin, cayenne-forward hot sauce, and cold blue cheese dressing became a bar-food template that spread nationwide through the 1970s and 1980s sports-bar boom. The Frank's RedHot brand became so synonymous with the style that many cooks treat it as the canonical ingredient rather than just one option.

Listahan note

This version puts the focus on truly dry wings before frying and on building the sauce separately so the butter-to-hot-sauce ratio can be adjusted to taste without guessing.

Technique cues

Drying the wings thoroughly before frying is the single biggest factor in crispiness; even 30 minutes uncovered on a rack in the fridge makes a real difference.
Frying in small batches keeps the oil temperature from dropping below 350 degrees F, which is where wings start absorbing oil instead of shedding it.
Toss the wings in the sauce immediately off the fryer while the skin is still crackling hot; waiting even a few minutes lets steam soften the crust before the sauce hits.

Kitchen flow

Parallel prep: Mix the hot sauce and butter and keep it warm while the last batch of wings finishes frying.
Make-ahead: Wings can be fried ahead and held on a wire rack in a 200 degrees F oven for up to 30 minutes before saucing.
Leftover move: Reheat leftover wings on a wire rack in a 400 degrees F oven for 8 minutes to re-crisp the skin, then re-toss in fresh sauce.
Cleanup rhythm: Let the frying oil cool completely, then strain it through a fine-mesh sieve to reuse once more; wipe the sauce pot while still warm.

Ingredient brief

Role, handling, and swap guidance for each key ingredient.

chicken wings (split into flats and drumettes)

Main protein

Purpose: Splitting the wings exposes more surface area to the oil, which produces more crispy skin per bite.

Handling: Pat completely dry with paper towels and let rest uncovered at room temperature for 15 minutes before frying.

Adaptation: Boneless thigh pieces work for a boneless version; reduce fry time to 6-8 minutes and expect a denser texture.

Frank's RedHot original sauce

Heat and acid base

Purpose: Frank's has a vinegar-forward profile that keeps the sauce bright rather than just spicy, which is why it became the Anchor Bar's original choice.

Handling: Warm the sauce slightly before whisking in the butter so the emulsion holds longer.

Adaptation: Any cayenne-based Louisiana-style hot sauce works; avoid Tabasco-only blends, which are too vinegary and thin.

unsalted butter

Emulsifier and richness

Purpose: Butter transforms the hot sauce from a sharp acidic liquid into a glossy, clinging glaze that coats the skin evenly.

Handling: Cut into small pieces and whisk into warm hot sauce off the heat; high heat will break the emulsion.

Adaptation: Vegan butter works for a dairy-free version; the sauce will be slightly less glossy but still coats well.

celery salt

Background seasoning

Purpose: Celery salt echoes the celery sticks served alongside and adds depth without a distinct celery flavor.

Handling: Combine with garlic powder and toss with wings before frying for an even base seasoning.

Adaptation: Omit or replace with plain kosher salt if unavailable; the flavor difference is subtle.

Technique notes

The standard Buffalo ratio is 1 part butter to 1.5 parts hot sauce; lean toward more butter for mild, more hot sauce for traditional heat.
A wire rack set over a baking sheet under the fryer station catches drips and keeps the workspace cleaner during batch frying.
Blue cheese dressing is the traditional accompaniment, not ranch; using ranch is a regional variation that purists in Buffalo will notice immediately.

Ingredient swaps

Dairy-free option: Use vegan butter in the sauce and serve with a dairy-free blue cheese or avocado-based dip instead of traditional dressing.
Oven method: Bake wings on a rack at 425 degrees F for 45-50 minutes, flipping once; not as crispy as fried but significantly less oil.
Lower-heat option: Use half the hot sauce and add 1 tablespoon honey to the butter for a mild sweet-heat glaze that works for spice-sensitive eaters.

Serve alongside

Classic celery and carrot sticks with blue cheese dip
Simple coleslaw with apple cider vinegar dressing
Waffle fries or thick-cut potato wedges
Pickled cucumber slices
Ice-cold American lager or pale ale
Lemonade or sparkling water with lime to cut the heat

Serving suggestions only — check pairings for your household's allergens.

Storage & reheating

Refrigerate cooked wings without sauce in a sealed container for up to 3 days.
Reheat on a wire rack at 400 degrees F for 8-10 minutes until the skin re-crisps, then toss in fresh sauce.
Freeze unsauced fried wings up to 1 month; reheat from frozen at 400 degrees F for 15 minutes before saucing.

Equipment

Large Dutch oven or deep, heavy-bottomed pot for frying
Instant-read or clip-on oil thermometer
Wire rack set over a rimmed baking sheet
Spider strainer or slotted spoon for pulling wings from the oil

Make this household-aware

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