Breaded Chicken Wings

Breaded chicken wings are simple and delicious—and you don’t need a deep-fryer to pull them off. These tasty wings crisp up to golden-brown perfection after just 30 minutes in the oven.
Breaded Chicken Wings Recipe photo by Taste of Home

Breaded chicken wings are a standard in diners, sports bars, restaurants and homes around the world. If you’d like to make them yourself but you’re looking for an alternative to the grease and cleanup, try wings baked in the oven. In our recipe for baked chicken wings, a perfectly seasoned bread crumb coating gets nice and crispy in the oven while locking moisture in the chicken. There won’t be a dry wing in the batch!

These wings taste so good, you won’t need a dipping sauce. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t dip. In fact, we always recommend a good dip or two or three! Check out our favorite chicken wing sauce recipes to take the dish over the top.

Breaded Chicken Wings Ingredients

  • Whole chicken wings: When you buy the whole chicken wings, you end up with a perfect mix of the two types of chicken pieces. As a bonus, you also get the wing tip, a collagen-rich section that’s great for making chicken stock. To reduce the prep time, you can look for “party wings” instead. These wings are already cut into the drumette and wingette (or “flat”).
  • Bread crumbs: Some breaded chicken wing recipes use flour as the coating, but we found that a coating made with bread crumbs will crisp up better in the oven. For an extra-crunchy result, use panko bread crumbs.
  • Seasonings: Onion powder, basil, garlic salt and paprika give the breading mixture a depth of savory flavors.
  • Egg: The bread crumb mixture needs a little help to adhere to the chicken, so we dip the wings in a mixture of egg and water. If you prefer, you can swap in buttermilk.

Directions

Step 1: Separate the wing sections

Preheat the oven to 425°F. Use a sharp knife to separate the wings into three parts: the tip, the wingette and the drumette. Remove and discard the wing tip sections.

Step 2: Prepare the bread crumb and egg mixtures

In a shallow bowl, combine the bread crumbs, onion powder, basil, garlic salt and paprika. In another shallow bowl, whisk together the egg and water.

Step 3: Bread the chicken wings

Dip the wing pieces in the egg mixture. Then coat them in the bread crumb mixture.

Step 4: Bake the chicken wings

Place the breaded chicken in a greased 15x10x1-inch baking pan. Bake until the juices run clear, 30 to 35 minutes, turning once.

Editor’s Tip: To be sure your chicken pieces are cooked through, be sure to cook them to at least 165°, using a food thermometer to confirm.

How to Serve Breaded Chicken Wings

Chicken Wings served on a plate with dips TMB Studio

All of the best party appetizers are served with a sauce, and that’s true for wings, too! Try serving these wings with lemon-pepper butter or one of the sauces from our fried chicken wings recipe. The buffalo sauce is classic, but we also love the spicy Thai and barbecue sauces. When it comes to dipping sauces, you can never go wrong with homemade ranch, blue cheese or honey mustard.

It’s easy to turn chicken wings into a meal—even for special occasions like Father’s Day dinner. Serve the wings with classic sides like coleslaw, french fries, baked sweet potato fries or your favorite macaroni and cheese recipe.

Recipe Variations

  • Use other chicken pieces: This breading would taste great on chicken tenderloins, drumsticks or thighs. Just keep in mind that each type of chicken cooks at a different rate, so adjust the time accordingly. Use a thermometer to make sure you reach the ideal temperatures for cooked chicken: 165° for white meat and 175° for dark meat.
  • Make them in the air fryer: To make air-fryer chicken wings, preheat the air fryer to 300°. Working in batches, arrange the wings in a single layer on a greased tray in the air-fryer basket. Air-fry the chicken for 15 minutes. Then increase the air fryer temperature to 400°. Cook until the chicken juices run clear and wings are golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes, turning once.

How to Store Breaded Chicken Wings

Store leftover wings in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to four days. They won’t be as crispy after they sit in the fridge. To restore some of their crisp exterior, skip the microwave, and reheat the wings in the oven or air fryer.

Breaded Chicken Wings Tips

Chicken Wings served on plates with vegetablesTMB Studio

How do you cut chicken wings?

To separate the chicken wings, you’ll need a sharp knife and a cutting board. Cut between the wing tip and the wingette to remove the tips. You can use your finger to locate the joint. If you have trouble finding it, wiggle the two pieces back and forth to help you find the sweet spot where the two bones meet. Then find the joint between the wingette and drumette. Slice between them to separate the two.

How can you make sure the coating sticks to the chicken wings?

If your coating tends to fall off while cooking, there are a couple of tricks to help it stick. First, gently pat the bread crumb mixture onto the wings when dredging. After the wings are coated, arrange them on a baking sheet. Then pop them into the refrigerator for 30 minutes before cooking to let the crumb mixture set up.

How can you make extra-crispy breaded chicken wings?

To make your wings extra crispy, add 1 teaspoon baking powder to the crumb mixture. We use this secret ingredient to make crispy oven-fried chicken wings because it pulls the moisture out of the chicken skin, helping them brown and crisp up more effectively.

Another way to make crispy oven-baked wings is with an oven-safe cooling rack. Set the rack in the baking pan so the wings are elevated. This allows for better circulation of the hot oven air and crisps up all sides of the wings. If the wings are cooked and you still feel like they’re a little short on crunch, put them under the broiler. Keep a close eye on them, and they’ll brown up in about a minute.

Breaded Chicken Wings

No one can pass up seconds of these golden brown goodies from field editor Nancy Schmidt of Center, Colorado. Basil, garlic and onion flavor the crumb coating that covers the tender wings. —Nancy Schmidt, Center, Colorado
Breaded Chicken Wings Recipe photo by Taste of Home
Total Time

Prep: 15 min. Bake: 30 min.

Makes

20 servings

Ingredients

  • 10 whole chicken wings
  • 2/3 cup dry bread crumbs
  • 1 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1 teaspoon dried basil
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon paprika
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 tablespoon water

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 425°. Cut chicken wings into three sections; discard wing tips. In a shallow bowl, combine bread crumbs, onion powder, basil, garlic salt and paprika. In another shallow bowl, whisk egg and water. Dip wing pieces in egg mixture, then coat in bread crumb mixture.
  2. Place in a greased 15x10x1-in. baking pan. Bake until juices run clear, 30-35 minutes, turning once.

Nutrition Facts

1 piece: 67 calories, 4g fat (1g saturated fat), 23mg cholesterol, 93mg sodium, 3g carbohydrate (0 sugars, 0 fiber), 5g protein.