Game day at our house isn’t complete without a platter of impossibly crispy wings that disappear faster than touchdowns on the scoreboard. While everyone argues about the best wing joint in town, there’s something undeniably special about Hooters’ signature battered coating that sets them apart from the naked wings most places serve. That extra step of battering creates an ultra-crunchy shell that holds onto sauce like a champ.
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Why you’ll love this recipe
The secret to Hooters’ legendary wings lies in their unique battered coating. Unlike most wing joints that fry wings naked, Hooters coats each wing in a seasoned flour mixture before frying. This creates an incredibly crispy exterior that provides more surface area for sauce adhesion. The blend of whole wheat and all-purpose flour adds texture and flavor complexity that standard breading can’t match.
Ingredients you’ll need
For the Wings
- Chicken wings – Fresh wings provide the best texture; separate into flats and drummettes for even cooking
- Whole wheat flour – Adds nutty flavor and creates a heartier, more textured coating than regular flour alone
- All-purpose flour – Provides structure and helps create the signature crispy coating
- Salt – Enhances chicken flavor and helps draw out moisture for crispier results
- Paprika – Adds warm, smoky flavor and beautiful color to the coating
- Cayenne pepper – Provides heat in the coating that complements the buffalo sauce
For the Buffalo Sauce
- Unsalted butter – Creates the rich, silky base that makes buffalo sauce cling to wings
- Tabasco hot sauce – Delivers authentic buffalo flavor with the right level of heat and tang
- Brown sugar – Balances the heat and acidity while adding depth and slight caramelization
- Paprika – Enhances color and adds smoky warmth to complement the hot sauce
- Balsamic vinegar – Provides acidity and depth that rounds out the flavor profile
- Cayenne pepper – Amplifies the heat level and adds complexity to the sauce
- Chili sauce – Contributes body and additional flavor layers to the buffalo sauce
- Salt – Balances all flavors and enhances the overall taste experience
How to make Hooters wings
Frying up a batch of copycat Hooters wings is a straightforward process for anyone who’s deep-fried before:
- Combine flour, salt, and spices in a large bowl.
- Cut chicken into flats and drummettes.
- Coat the wings in the flour mixture and refrigerate for 90 minutes.
- Heat the oil in a pot or deep fryer to 375°F.
- Fry a few pieces of chicken at a time until they’re golden brown. Remove them from the oil, drain them, and repeat with the next batch.
- Melt butter in a small saucepan. Add the remaining wing sauce ingredients and stir until mixed.
- Place the wings and sauce in a large bowl.
- Toss the wings in the sauce until they are thoroughly coated.
Serve them immediately with your favorite dipping sauce. Bleu cheese dressing or ranch dressing are popular dipping sauces for wings.
While a dedicated deep fryer is the easiest way to create consistently good chicken wings, home cooks can also use a heavy-bottomed pot and a deep-fry thermometer to ensure the temperature stays in the proper range.
Recipe variations
Those who want a truly authentic Hooters experience should use the buffalo wing sauce recipe above, but home cooks can swap it out for whatever sauce they prefer. Some ideas include barbecue sauce, honey mustard, teriyaki or sweet and sour sauces, or various dry rubs. With perfectly spiced breading, they’re even delicious “naked” without any sauces or rubs.
What to serve with Hooters wings
For a traditional appetizer-style snack, serve your freshly fried Hooters wings with crunchy, refreshing veggies like celery sticks or carrot sticks. Or, make it a more substantial meal by pairing them with French fries or a fresh, green salad.
Storage & Reheating Instructions
- Refrigerator Storage: Store in airtight containers for up to 1 week in the refrigerator
- Reheating Method: Reheat in a 350°F oven for 8-10 minutes until heated through and crispy. Never use a microwave as the coating becomes soggy
- Freezing: Freeze cooked wings for up to 2 months. Thaw completely before reheating in the oven
Love Hooters? Check out these copycat recipes!
Ever wonder how to make Hooter’s food at home? Here are some of their most popular recipes so now you can make them yourself.
- Hooters Fried Pickles – This is a family favorite.
- Hooters Wing Sauce – Perfect for these chicken wings!
Popular hot wing recipes
- Wingstop Garlic Parmesan
- How to Make Good Lemon Pepper Wings
- Pluckers Wings
- Garlic Buffalo Wings and Things
- Air Fryer Chicken Wings
- Honey Habanero Wings
- Juniors Chicken Wings
- Best Boneless Buffalo Wings
- How to Make Buffalo Wings on the Grill
There’s more! Take a look at my easy appetizer recipes and famous copycat casual dining restaurant recipes.
Share this Hooters recipe with your friends. Pin it to Pinterest or share it on Facebook. Everyone will love it!
Hooters Wings – Easy Copycat Recipe
Ingredients
Wings
- 5 pounds chicken wings cut into two pieces the drumette, and the wing portion
- 2 cups whole wheat flour
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- 2 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Wing Sauce
- 1 1/2 cup unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup Tabasco Sauce
- 3 tablespoons brown sugar
- 3/4 teaspoon paprika
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
- 3/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 2 tablespoons chili sauce
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, mix flours, salt, paprika, and cayenne pepper together, and blend well.
- Cut chicken wings into drumettes and flappers. Wash and drain chicken.
- Coat chicken in flour mixture; refrigerate chicken wings for 90 minutes.
- Make the sauce while the wings are refrigerating. Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Once it is melted remove it from the heat. Add the remaining sauce ingredients and stir until well combined.
- When ready to deep fry chicken wings, heat oil to 375°F. Place chicken pieces in hot oil, but do not crowd. Fry chicken wings until golden brown. Remove from oil and drain on a wire rack over a rimmed baking sheet.
- When all wings have been fried, place them in a large bowl. Add wing sauce and toss to coat the wings with sauce. Use a fork or tongs to place chicken pieces on a serving platter. Serve immediately and with lots of paper towels.
Great recipe, honestly tasted just like Hooters breading. I threw the wings into a second dose of the flour mix after refrigeration to make sure the breading was nice and thick. Can’t wait to use this recipe and make some Hooters shrimp! Thanks for your continued efforts!
Is there to make the wings mild instead of spicy??
You can increase the amount of butter in the sauce, and decrease the amount of hot sauce.
I make my own sauce. I’ll melt one stick of butter then add one bottle of Louisiana Hot Sauce plus the juice of one lemon. I bring this to a rolling boil and that’s it. I like to use peanut oil for frying. I like to let the wings sit in buttermilk for a dew hours. Then, I’ll coat the wings, spread them out on some parchment paper and let them sit in the fridge overnight. Maybe a little bit extra work but the results really pay off. At least, that’s what the “eaters” tell me.
We love wings and Hooters definitely has some tasty ones. Now we can enjoy them at home!
I’ve never tried Hooters hot wings. They do look delicious
I use “Hooters” breading found in the baking isle by the bread crumbs with the hooters wing sauce found by the BBQ and hot sauce.
I have seen it for sale too.
I don’t own a fryer,could I use over?
I use a large saucepan with oil on the cooker top. Use a slotted spoon to drop wings/drumsticks in and to take them out again.
If you can find cotton seed oil its cheaper and better than peanut oil
Great tip, I never tried cotton seed oil before.
i used olive oil and cooked for 10 minutes
Excellent, AMAZING recipe. I made this for my family, and they keep begging for more and more! Thanks!
Use equal parts butter and Frank’s Hot Sauce. This is excellent on the wings!
Frank’s Red Hot sauce is my favorite!
My wife and I have been doing this for 10 years! Franks now makes a Buffalo Wing Sauce but I still heat it up in a small pot on the stove and add the butter.
Also, if it’s a little too spicy for your liking, add a little milk in there to tone down the heat.
I didn’t know you could add a little milk to the dish to make it less hot. Great suggestion Casper.
I use a mixture of bloody mary mix and Franks. The bloody mary mix has all of the ingredients used in traditional buffalo wing recipes, celery salt ect.
Hooters Hot wing sauce, purchased at any good food store.
I love these chicken wings! they are so exilirating! Ecpecially the fact that i can maek them at home and i don’t have to go to hooters!
Hey! great recipe! it was really fun making this with my family, and enjoying our creation watching an episode of star wars 🙂 really got my stomach going.