Crock Pot chicken wings eliminate the mess and oil of deep fried chicken wings while creating the perfect game day snack!
Using a slow cooker means these Buffalo wings come out perfectly tender, fall off the bone and are loaded with flavor!
Served up with carrots and celery sticks and cooling ranch dressing, these will be the first thing gone at your party!
Repin these Buffalo Wings Here
I am so excited to have partnered with Litehouse to bring you this belly warming recipe.
No game would be complete without a plate of Buffalo wings!
Hot wings are pretty much a game day staple and we always serve them up with celery, carrot sticks and plenty of Litehouse Homestyle Ranch dressing to cool our taste buds!
To start, these Crock Pot chicken wings are tossed with a flavorful Buffalo sauce and cooked low and slow.
Once tender, a quick broil before serving helps to crisp the outside and caramelize the sauce.
I love a good chicken wing recipe but what I don’t love is deep frying and the smell and mess that oil leaves!
I find cooking wings in the slow cooker is SO much easier than traditional deep frying (and no splatter or oil to deal with), especially if I’m serving a few other appetizers (like our favorite Jalapeno Popper Dip) during parties or on game day!
Buffalo wings are typically served with a dip for added flavor or to cool your mouth from the spice! We love the flavor and consistency of Litehouse Homestyle Ranch Dressing (although I do love their Chunky Blue Cheese dressing too).
Litehouse Homestyle Ranch dressing has a great fresh flavor and is loaded with fresh herbs and vegetable flavors, making it the perfect dip. It has a nice thick consistency, we use it to dip everything from hot wings to veggies (and even pizza crust)!
You can find it in the refrigerated produce section of your local grocery store.
Not only does it taste delish, it helps cool the heat of these slow cooker chicken wings and contains no artificial colors, flavors, or preservatives. I love making appetizers smothered in Buffalo sauce but always serve them with ranch to keep the heat at the perfect level!
When you dine out, Buffalo chicken wings are traditionally deep fried then tossed in a sauce to coat them. This recipe takes all of the deep frying out of the equation, which means less oil and less mess!
I normally just purchase a premade Buffalo sauce but you can easily create your own Buffalo sauce at home with just two ingredients. Simply combine 2 parts hot sauce to 1 part melted butter. Stir to combine (easy right?).
You can add whatever sauces or marinades you’d like to create things like slow cooker teriyaki chicken wings, but my all time favorite are definitely these buffalo hot wings.
How long does it take to cook chicken wings in a crock pot?
Chicken wings take a bit longer to cook in a Crock Pot than they would if you were to deep fry them, but you will end up with the most tender wings. These chicken wings take about 2.5-3 hours on high (cooked from frozen) making them perfect to put into the slow cooker before your guests arrive.
I would suggest using a meat thermometer inserted into the meaty section of the wing. Once it reads a temperature of 165 degrees, your wings are done and ready. Make sure your thermometer does not hit the bone when checking the temperature, as your thermometer will not read correctly.
Can you cook frozen chicken wings in a slow cooker?
The short answer is yes, a slow cooker is an easy and great way to cook chicken wings from frozen! I almost always cook them from frozen (but you can use fresh in this recipe as well).
Cooking your chicken wings from frozen will create more liquid in your slow cooker. Once cooked, I remove them from the cooking liquid (which I discard), brush with a little bit more marinade and give them a quick broil.
After broiling, I place these crock pot chicken wings back into the slow cooker to keep warm so my guests can enjoy them throughout my party! (This is a perfect way to keep wings hot if you’re taking them to a potluck as well)!
These crock pot chicken wings are always gone so quickly, my family and friends couldn’t believe that they were this easy to make!
I always have trouble not eating the whole batch, they are so deliciously tangy and melt-in-your-mouth tender. Don’t forget the ranch dip!
Crock Pot Chicken Wings
Equipment
Ingredients
- 4 pounds chicken wings fresh or frozen
Buffalo Wing Sauce
- 1 ½ cups Buffalo sauce plus additional for finishing
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- ½ onion diced
- 4 cloves garlic minced
For Serving
- Carrot Sticks
- Celery Sticks
- Litehouse Homestyle Ranch Dressing and Dip
- Chives for garnish
Instructions
- Combine Buffalo wing sauce ingredients and set aside.
- Place wings in a 6qt slow cooker and cover with Buffalo wing sauce. Stir to combine.
- Cook on high for 2 ½ - 3 hours for FROZEN wings or on low 3 hours for FRESH wings.
- Once cooked and wings have reached 165°F, remove from the slow cooker and place on a foil lined pan (discard liquid).
- Preheat broiler to high. Brush with additional Buffalo sauce and broil until lightly browned/crisp about 5 minutes per side.
- Serve with celery, carrots, extra buffalo sauce and Litehouse Homestyle Ranch for dipping.
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Snack
Cuisine American© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
Like our recipes?
Follow us on Pinterest!
Repin this Easy Slow Cooker Recipe
More Recipes You’ll Love
Oven Baked Buffalo Cauliflower
One Pot Shredded Chicken in Buffalo Sauce
I am excited to have partnered with Litehouse to bring you this belly warming recipe. While I was compensated for this post, all thoughts and opinions are my own. Working with great brands I love allows me to keep bringing you the great recipes you love!
My man friend LOVES Buffalo chicken wings, so I decided to try this recipe (it looked easy enough!). It did not disappoint. The only change we made was browning them on the grill instead of under the broiler. It worked great. Thank you for the recipe.
Looking forward to trying these recipes
I can’t wait for you to try them Teresa!
These sound perfect for an upcoming party. I was wondering if I can make them in advance, then freeze them & reheat the day of the party? How would you do that? I need to make them several weeks in advance so I’m not in the kitchen too much on the party day.
I haven’t tried it so I can’t say for sure but that should work just fine Betty.
Thank you. Great. I did have to make some substitutions on the sauce by adding “It’s a Good Hurt” Fuego, Hot Garlic Pepper to the other sauce ingredients because i did not have enough buffalo sauce. A little spicier, but great.
I was wondering if you can send all these amazing recipes to my email address. I do not have any of the ways to get them.
To receive our newsletters to see more quick and easy recipes, you can sign up here or scroll down to the bottom of the post and you will see a signup box.
I made a last minute decision to make wings and your recipe came up first in my search that seemed tasty with good reviews. They came out perfect prepared as you described and although I enjoy blue cheese the ranch won out leaving everyone wanting more wings than were cooked. Thanks for providing this recipe.
YUM! Making for Sunday for sure. Do you know how long it would take in an Instant Pot? Thanks!
I haven’t tried it so I can’t say for sure Rachel. If you try it I would love to hear how it turns out!
I may not get a reply in time, but I’m curious what the sugar, garlic and onions add that sauce/butter alone adds? When we cook then the traditional way, we only toss them in sauce and butter. My guys like spicy. I think they would all be horrified if the wings turned out sweet.
And I think it’s ridiculous how people get so upset and offended if you use ranch. I’m not ashamed to say I do. We are a split family. Some only eat blue cheese, but I cannot stand it. Anyways, just putting that out there.
Excited to see how they turn out. Thanks for sharing.
They add flavor to the wings as they cook, we do not find them sweet. You can certainly skip the sugar if you’d like. I love blue cheese, my husband loves ranch so we have both too!
easy. tastes wonderful
How long can you keep them in slow cooker to stay warm once you take out of broiler?
They should be okay for 2-4 hours on warm in the slow cooker. As they are left longer the sauce may dry a little but will still be delicious. Enjoy Charlene!
can i do these “naked” and add sauce later?
I have only tried the recipe as written John so I can’t say for sure, but I don’t see why not!
VERY tasty wings. Better than Buffalo Wild Wings
I’ve made these, following your recipe, a dozen times. I’ve got some in my slow cooker right now. They are fabulous every time, juicy, meat falling off the bones. I hate frying anything, so your method is perfect, and we all love it. Thank you!
Can you air fry them for a short time instead of broiling them
That is a great idea Pam! I think they would crisp up perfectly in the air fryer at 400°F for 3-4 minutes.
How would you adjust cook time for 2 pounds? Thanks!!
Hi Will, I would check the internal temperature of the wings to make they sure hit 165°F after about 2.5 hours on low. They may need more additional time after this!
I want to get a jump start on a cookout – could you please tell me if I could do the crock pot portion of the recipe and the oven the next day?
Hi Kristen, we have never tried making the crockpot portion the day ahead but it sounds like it should work well. We would love to hear how it turns out for you. Enjoy your cookout!
Do you broil on low or on high
Hi Jill, as listed in step 5 we turn the broiler to high. Enjoy your wings!!