Chili Lime Chicken Wings & Dipping Sauce
Posted: 02/19/2021
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Glazed with a sweet and tangy sauce, oven baked chili lime chicken wings are crispy and sticky, just the way they’re supposed to be! This recipe comes with its own sour cream dipping sauce, too!
Recipe Overview
Why you’ll love it: The wings are so tasty!
How long it takes: 50 minutes
Equipment you’ll need: mixing bowl, sheet pan with wire rack, oven, saucepan
Servings: 4 (3 lbs. wings)
Table of Contents
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While crispy chicken wings are pretty irresistible, the sauce on these wings makes them really special. Butter, honey, lime, garlic, and chili powder simmer while the wings bake; then this incredible glaze is slathered on the wings, and wow! Wait til you try them!
Serve chili lime chicken wings as an appetizer at your next big shindig or enjoy them for dinner time. They’re easy to make (you can even make them ahead) and everyone loves them.
Looking for a dipping sauce to serve with the wings? This recipe includes a great sour cream dip that’s perfect for dipping these wings. (Psst…the dip is great! You’ll want to use it for everything!)
About these wings
Oven baked chicken wings are prepared in a two step process. First, the wings are coated with seasoned flour and baked until they are crispy and thoroughly cooked.
You’ll notice that the recipe includes baking powder. The baking powder aids in the crisping process, drawing out excess moisture. Don’t, don’t, don’t substitute baking soda. It will give your wings a bitter nasty taste. If you don’t happen to have baking powder, just skip it. Your wings will still turn out fine.
Once the wings are baked, they get coated with a super good glaze. This is totally the best part! Either brush the sauce on or dump the wings and sauce in a big bowl and toss them around until each wing is coated.
Here’s where you have a choice: Either serve the wings freshly glazed, stick them back into the oven for 5 minutes, or run them under the broiler for a few minutes to set the glaze. This one’s totally up to you.
Broiling caramelizes the glaze ensuring that the wings are finger lickin’ good. If you choose to broil the wings, reserve a fourth cup of the glaze so you can brush just a little more on the wings after they come out of the broiler. We like them good and sticky!
Watch these tasty chili lime wings fly off the platter! Serve them garnished with a sprinkle of fresh cilantro, green onions, or parsley. And don’t forget the sour cream dipping sauce! And LOTS of napkins!
What You’ll Need
Wings
- Wings! We recommend either chicken wings or wing portions. You could also substitute chicken drumsticks if you prefer, keeping in mind that legs will take slightly longer to cook.
- Coating for the wings: You’ll use a flour coating for the wings, with baking powder and seasonings including garlic powder, chili powder, lime zest, salt.
Glaze
- For the glaze, you’ll need butter, honey, lime juice, lime zest, chili powder, garlic powder, and salt.
- If you like spicy wings, add a little cayenne pepper or red pepper flakes.
Dip
- For the dip you’ll need: Sour cream, lime juice, green onions, garlic powder, paprika, and lime zest.
Cooking Tip
You’ll notice that the flour mixture for the wings, the glaze, and the dip have many of the same ingredients. I recommend making them all at once. Get out a large bowl for the seasoned flour, a small saucepan for the glaze, and a small bowl for the dip. Measure out ingredients for each. It takes a little focus but it’s nice to get it all done at once. Refrigerate the dip until you’re ready to use it.
FAQs
Do you need to flip chicken wings when baking?
Baking them on a wire rack eliminates the need to flip them. If you don’t happen to have a wire rack that fits inside a rimmed sheet pan, it’s a good idea to flip them halfway through the baking time so that they bake evenly and crisp on both sides.
How do you know when chicken wings are done in the oven?
The best way to tell is by inserting an instant read thermometer into the meatiest part of the wing. The temperature should be at least 165° F. If you don’t have a thermometer, pierce a wing with a fork. The juices should run clear, not pink or bloody.
Do I put sauce on wings before or after baking?
Usually the sauce is put on after baking when the wings are crisp and dry. The sauce will stick to the exterior of the wings and coat them beautifully.
Make It Your Own
- Some like ’em hot! If you like spicy wings, add cayenne pepper or hot pepper flakes to the sauce. How much you add depends on how hot you like them. I’d start with a pinch and work up from there.
- Make them in your air fryer. Here’s the easy recipe. I love using an air fryer for wings.
- Prefer drumsticks to wings? Drummies are fine in this recipe but bake them a bit longer, about forty minutes.
- For an Asian style sauce, try these baked Spicy Asian Chicken Wings.
Make-Ahead Ideas
While they won’t be quite as crispy, you can make a bunch of chicken wings ahead. Buy a big package, bake the wings, cover them with the sauce , as directed, but don’t broil them. Cool the wings down, wrap, and refrigerate for up to 3 days, or freeze for up to a month.
The sour cream dip can be made up to three days in advance. Refrigerate in a tightly covered container. Stir well before serving.
Reheating Suggestions
For refrigerated leftover wings: Reheat in the microwave, or see method below, reducing baking time slightly.
For frozen cooked wings: Line a large baking pan with foil for easy cleanup. Arrange the frozen wings in a single layer and bake, uncovered, in a preheated oven (400°F) for 13-16 minutes or until heated through (140-145°F).
More Finger-Licking Recipes
Forget the forks, some foods are just made to eat with your fingers! I mean, can you imagine eating wings with a fork? Try:
- Air Fryer Chicken Nuggets
- The Best Cauliflower Nachos
- BBQ Chicken Sweet Potato Nachos
- Pickle Roll Ups with Ham (Pinwheels)
- Candied Bacon
- Crostini — find out how to make crostini and what to top them with
- Bacon Wrapped Dates or Bacon Wrapped Water Chestnuts
- Cool Ranch Popcorn Recipe (like the Doritos!)
- Popcorn Snack Mix {full of surprise ingredients}
- Air Fryer Chickpeas
Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me @rachelcooksblog on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest!
main dish servings
Glazed with a sweet and tangy sauce, oven baked chili lime chicken wings are crispy and sticky, just the way they're supposed to be!
Ingredients
For the Wings/Coating
- 3 pounds chicken wings, with tips trimmed off, or chicken wing portions
- ¾ cup all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon lime zest
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
For the Sauce
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1 teaspoon lime juice
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon lime zest
- Cayenne pepper, or red pepper flakes, if desired (see note)
For the Dip
- 1 cup sour cream
- 2 tablespoons lime juice
- 2 green onions, sliced
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon lime zest
- ½ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F. Pat the chicken wings dry with a paper towel. Combine flour, baking powder, garlic powder, chili powder, salt, lime zest in large bowl. Add the wings in batches (3 or 4 at a time) and toss to coat.
- Arrange the chicken wings on a wire rack lightly sprayed with cooking spray, set into a large rimmed sheet pan.
- Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until crisp and the internal temperature reaches at least 165° F.
- Meanwhile, combine the sauce ingredients (butter, honey, lime juice, chili powder, garlic powder, lime zest, and salt) to a small saucepan. Cook over medium high heat, stirring frequently, until the honey has melted and the sauce is starting to bubble and thicken.
- Stir together the dip ingredients and refrigerate until ready to use.
- When wings have finished baking, put them in a large bowl, pour the sauce over, and toss until the wings are coated with sauce.
- OR: Brush each wing with sauce. Reserve about ¼ cup of sauce to brush on after broiling.
- Place the wings about 6 inches away from the broiler. Turn the broiler to high and cook for 2-3 minutes or until the wings start to caramelize. Don’t walk away– they can burn very quickly!
- Brush with the remaining sauce.
- Serve hot, garnished with green onions or parsley, if desired. Serve sour cream dip on the side.
Notes
- Nutrition information includes wings, sauce, and dip.
- These are mild wings. If you would like to add some heat, add cayenne pepper or red pepper flakes to the sauce (to taste).
- Make them in your air fryer. Preheat the air fryer to 400°F. Arrange wings in a single layer on the rack. You’ll have to do them in batches. Fry for 9-10 minutes, flipping once. Keep cooked wings warm in a low oven (200°F), arranged on a wire rack in a sheet pan so they stay crispy.
- Prefer drumsticks to wings? Drummies are fine in this recipe but bake them a bit longer, about forty minutes.
Nutrition Information
Serving: 4wings, Calories: 657kcal, Carbohydrates: 32g, Protein: 38g, Fat: 41g, Saturated Fat: 15g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 7g, Monounsaturated Fat: 15g, Trans Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 173mg, Sodium: 1190mg, Potassium: 485mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 11g, Vitamin A: 1027IU, Vitamin C: 7mg, Calcium: 172mg, Iron: 3mg
This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.
Jared K Smith says
Update. This recipe is a keeper in our house hold. The glaze and the dipping sauce. 100% recommend.
Rachel Gurk says
So glad to hear it was a hit!
denise says
party at home time (with just the family)!
Rachel Gurk says
Yes, definitely!