Slow Cooker Chicken Wings

Crispy chicken wings from a slow cooker? Yes! These Slow Cooker Chicken Wings cook low and slow, becoming fall-off-the-bone tender, then get baked to crispy perfection. Toss wings in your favorite sauce for the ultimate appetizer or game day snack!

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Slow Cooker Chicken Wings

Whenever my family and I go out to dinner, my kids love to order chicken wings.

We used to just eat them when we dined out, but now that I’ve been making them in a slow cooker, we’re eating them all the time!

Making wings in a slow cooker is a game-changer! They’re so easy to make and the whole family loves them. I can’t wait for you to try them!

What makes slow cooker chicken wings great?

You can leave them unattended while you do other things.
They’re healthier than the deep-fried wings you get at restaurants.
Because they’re sauced at the end, you can customize the flavors – those that want spicy wings can use a spicy sauce, those that want mild can have mild.
After they’ve cooked in the slow cooker, we bake or broil them to our desired level of crispiness. They get super crispy without frying!

Ingredients needed for this recipe (scroll down to recipe card for complete instructions):

Fresh or frozen & defrosted chicken wings
Salt & pepper (optional)
Your favorite wing sauce

How to make slow cooker wings:

Making slow cooker wings is as easy as adding the wings to your slow cooker. I like to sprinkle them with salt & pepper, but that’s optional. Cook them for 3-4 hours on low.

In the photo above, the wings are cooked, but as you can see, the skin is still soft. That’s why we’re going to transfer them to a baking sheet and get them nice & crispy!

You can either spray non-stick cooking spray on the baking sheet or use parchment paper.

I find that they stick to foil, which makes them hard to remove, so I don’t use foil. Bake or broil your wings until crispy. (complete instructions on recipe card below)

The great thing about this recipe is that the wings are sauced after they’re done cooking. That means you can separate the wings for different sauces if desired.

After your wings have baked/broiled, add them to a mixing bowl and toss with your favorite sauce.

You can use different bowls to make different flavors of wings. For example, teriyaki in one bowl and spicy buffalo in another.

Have an air fryer? Check out these air fryer boneless wings made with chicken breast pieces!

How to serve slow cooker wings

These wings can be enjoyed after coming out of the oven, or they can be kept in the slow cooker on the “warm” setting for up to 4 hours. Minimize taking the lid off to help keep wings at a safe temperature.

These wings are great served with carrot sticks and celery with either blue cheese dressing or ranch for dipping.

What kind of sauces are good for chicken wings?

Buffalo wing sauce
Teriyaki sauce
Garlic parmesan
Lemon pepper
BBQ sauce

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I use frozen chicken wings?

I recommend using fresh or frozen & defrosted chicken wings.

The USDA states that it is not safe to cook frozen meat due to the fact that it can take too long to reach a safe internal temperature.

Do I need to add liquid to the slow cooker?

No. The chicken wings will release juices and no other liquid is necessary.

The wings will be sauced after they come out of the oven.

Looking for more slow cooker appetizers? Here are some favorites:

Slow Cooker Marinated Olives
Slow Cooker Spicy Korean Meatballs
Slow Cooker Jalapeno Popper sliders (shown below)

NOTES:

Depending on their size, there are approximately 15-19 wings in a 3 lb. bag of frozen chicken wings.
The servings amount shown on the recipe card (4 servings) is assuming each person will have about 4 chicken wings.

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