Grilled Buffalo Wings with Homemade Hot Sauce
Pulling a basket of Buffalo wings out at a summer cookout gets the same reaction as walking into your favorite sports bar on game day. These grilled chicken wings come off the grate with crispy, charred skin and meat that stays juicy all the way to the bone, coated in a homemade hot sauce sharpened with jalapeño, garlic, and Worcestershire. You skip the deep fryer entirely, which means less mess, less oil, and wings that actually taste like chicken instead of batter. Serve them at a backyard party, a casual dinner, or whenever the grill is already fired up.
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Prep time: 10 minutes (plus 30 minutes to 2 hours marinating) Cook time: about 25 minutes on the grill (plus 20 to 30 minutes to simmer the sauce)
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These grilled Buffalo wings deliver all the tangy, buttery heat of the classic bar appetizer without the deep-fried mess. The wings marinate in a homemade hot sauce built on Frank’s Original Red Hot, butter, Worcestershire, fresh garlic, and jalapeño, then grill over direct heat until the skin is crisp and lightly charred.
Unlike shortcut versions that just melt butter into bottled sauce, this recipe simmers the sauce first. That step mellows the vinegar bite, infuses the aromatics, and thickens everything into a glossy coating that clings to the wings instead of running off.
The result is a summer-friendly wing that works as party food, cookout main, or casual weeknight dinner. The grill does most of the work while the sauce does the heavy lifting on flavor.
Why this recipe works
Two things drive the quality here. First, the fat in the butter carries the flavor compounds from the garlic, jalapeño, and Worcestershire into every bite. Capsaicin, the heat molecule in hot sauce and peppers, is fat-soluble, so a butter-based sauce hits the palate evenly instead of flashing and fading. Second, grilling crisps the skin through the Maillard reaction and adds real char flavor on top of the sauce, which is something a deep fryer cannot replicate. Finishing in a bowl of reserved (unused) sauce gives the wings a fresh, sharp coating that a marinade alone cannot match, because sauce that heats with the meat dulls and thickens as it cooks.
Recipe Ingredients
To make this grilled chicken wings recipe, you’ll need:
- Frank’s Original Red Hot Sauce – Provides the classic Buffalo tang and the baseline heat that defines the flavor.
- Garlic – Adds savory depth and sharpens the sauce beyond a basic butter-and-hot-sauce mix.
- Jalapeño peppers – Layer in fresh, green heat and a little vegetal brightness.
- Butter – Rounds out the sauce, mellows the vinegar edge, and helps the coating cling to the wings.
- Worcestershire sauce – Contributes umami and a touch of tang, deepening the finished sauce.
- Chicken wings – The main protein, grilled until the skin crisps and chars.
- Vegetable oil – Greases the grill grates so the wings release cleanly.
How to cut whole chicken wings into drumettes and wingettes
If you bought whole wings, you will break each one into three pieces before marinating. A whole wing has a drumette (the small drumstick-shaped section attached to the bird), a wingette or flat (the middle section with two thin parallel bones), and a tip (the pointy end). Lay the wing flat on a cutting board and bend each joint back to find the natural gap between bones. Cut straight through the soft cartilage at each joint with a sharp knife or heavy kitchen shears, rather than trying to saw through bone. Save the tips in a freezer bag for your next pot of chicken stock, or discard them.
How to Make Grilled Chicken Wings
To make the Wing sauce:
- Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium-low heat.
- Once the butter melts, stir in Frank’s red hot sauce, jalapeno peppers, and the Worcestershire sauce.
- Reduce the heat to low and simmer, occasionally stirring, until the sauce thickens slightly, about 20 – 30 minutes.
- Remove the sauce from the heat.
To make the wings:
- Place the chicken in a large bowl or large plastic bag with one cup of buffalo sauce. Stir to coat the wings with the sauce. If using a bag, seal the bag and shake to coat the wings.
- Marinate the wings in the fridge for at least 30 minutes, but no more than two hours.
- Meanwhile, preheat the gas grill to 400 degrees. If you are using a charcoal grill, be sure to heat it to 400 degrees.
- Rub oil on the grill grate or use a spray to prevent the chicken from sticking.
- Drain the chicken from the marinade and put the wings on the grill. Throw out the leftover marinade.
- Cover the grill and cook for about 25 minutes, turning a few times.
- Toss the cooked wings in the sauce (not the used marinade) and serve.
Recipe Variations
Not everyone loves the heat of Buffalo sauce, and that is okay. With this grilled wings recipe, you can use just about any sauce as a marinade. Here are a couple of alternative marinade recipes you can try:
- Lemon-Garlic Chicken Wing Marinade. Combine a cup of Italian dressing, a third of a cup of lemon juice, three tablespoons of minced garlic, and a tablespoon of honey.
- Honey Soy Chicken Wing Marinade. Combine a cup of honey, a half cup of soy sauce, a third of a cup of apple cider vinegar, a third of a cup of Shaoxing wine or dry sherry, two tablespoons of minced garlic, and a tablespoon of sesame oil.
Note: There is no need to cook these marinades before using them. But please do not use any marinade that touches raw chicken as a sauce for cooked wings.
To thicken any unused marinade to make a sauce, heat it in a saucepan and sprinkle in a few pinches of cornstarch. Simmer on low for a minute or two while whisking. Toss the sauce with a few cooked wings at a time to coat.
Storage & reheating instructions
- Refrigerator Storage: Store in airtight containers for up to 4 days. The sauce may separate slightly, which is normal.
- Reheating Method: Reheat in an air fryer at 350°F for 4 to 5 minutes (8 to 10 minutes from frozen), or in a 350°F oven covered with foil for 10 to 15 minutes. For crisper skin, remove the foil for the last few minutes in the oven.
- Freezer Storage: Freeze cooked wings in a freezer-safe container for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then reheat.
Best Chicken Wing Recipes
- Asian Wings
- Boneless Buffalo Wings
- Smoked Dry Rub Chicken Wings
- Garlic Buffalo Wings
- Garlic Parmesan Wings
- Hooters Buffalo Wings
- Lemon Pepper Chicken Wings
- Plucker Wings
- Sweet and Spicy Chicken Wings
Can’t get enough chicken wings? You have got to see this list of over 60 wing recipes.
Love Buffalo Flavor? Try These Recipes
- Buffalo Cauliflower
- Buffalo Chicken Dip
- Copycat Domino’s Buffalo Chicken Pizza
- Buffalo Chicken Thighs
- Buffalo Meatballs
Check out more of my easy chicken recipes and the best appetizer recipes here on CopyKat!
Plus you’ll get great new recipes from us every week!
Grilled Buffalo Wings with Homemade Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups hot sauce Frank’s Original Red Hot Sauce recommended
- 4 teaspoons chopped garlic
- 2 jalapeno peppers sliced
- 6 tablespoons butter
- 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
- 3 pounds chicken wings cut into two pieces (you may want to cut off the wing tips)
- vegetable oil for the grill
Instructions
- In a small pot, combine the hot sauce, garlic, jalapeño peppers, butter, and Worcestershire sauce over low heat.
- Simmer for about 30 minutes, stirring to combine until the butter melts.
- Place the chicken wing pieces in a large container.
- Pour 1 cup of the sauce over the chicken, and marinate for at least 30 minutes. Reserve the remaining sauce.
- Heat the grill to approximately 375°F to 425°F.
- Pour about 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil on a paper towel, and rub the oiled towel over the grates to lubricate the grill.
- Remove the wings from the marinade, allow the excess marinade to drip off, and discard the used marinade.
- Place the wings on the grate in a single layer so they’re not touching (if needed, cook them in batches).
- Cover the grill and cook, flipping the wings occasionally with tongs, until they’re no longer pink at the bone and the skin is slightly charred in spots, about 25 minutes total.
- When all of the chicken wings are done, place them a bowl, drizzle with the remaining sauce.
- Serve with ranch or blue cheese dressing if desired.
Notes
- Pat the wings dry before adding them to the marinade. Surface moisture keeps the skin from crisping on the grill.
- Two-zone grilling works even better. Sear over direct heat for color, then slide the wings to indirect heat to finish cooking without burning the sauce.
- Do not skip the full 20 to 30 minute sauce simmer. The flavors marry, and the texture shifts from watery to glossy.
- Always toss in the reserved sauce, never the used marinade, which held raw chicken.
Can I just use BBQ? My Grandchildren don’t like anything hot? Thank you
I think that would work fine!
Hi Stephanie,
The Grill I have is not your basic grill. I have a gas fire griddle (flat top grill) Would your recipe here, am I able to cook this Recipe on my flat top griddle ? Thanks
I think it should work ok. I would drizzle on the sauce when they are almost done, I think the grill may be hard to clean if you do it too soon.
I don’t marinate mine first, but I do boil them from about 20 minutes. This way it cleans some of they grease off and cooks them through. As soon as I place them on the grill, I brush the hot sauce over them. Once one side gets a little brown, I flip and baste again. I keep doing that until no more sauce is left, or I get really good carmelazation on both sides. I don’t toss them in sauce afterwards … I don’t like my wings with sauce running down my hands/arms. Also, in my hot sauce, I also add garlic, but add also add ground Ancho pepper. Gives a little heat but add more flavor.
I’m a huge wings fan, and these look delicious. Thanks for the recipe!
Thank you! What are your favorite types of wings?
Garlic Parmesan tossed with Texas Pete Buffalo Sauce.
I am going to have to look for Texas Pete Buffalo Sauce. I love Frank’s Red Hot Sauce so much I never try anything else.