Honey Barbecue Chicken Wings

These sweet and sticky Honey Barbecue Chicken Wings are made in an air fryer.  They’re perfectly seasoned and they turn out juicy on the inside with a crispy exterior. They can be made in the oven, too!

Easy Air Fryer Honey Barbecue Chicken Wings

When I develop and share a recipe with you using a specific appliance, I like to offer other ways to make the recipe. I totally recognize not everyone has an air fryer, and I’m happy to let you know how to make these in the oven as well. How to make Air Fryer Chicken Wings: (Scroll down for full printable recipe.)

• Prepare Air Fryer – Preheat the air fryer to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Pat dry all the chicken wing pieces with a paper towel.
• Season – In a small bowl whisk together cornstarch, garlic, salt, onion powder and lemon pepper.
• Coat Chicken – Toss the chicken with seasoning mixture, ribbing into the chicken coating thoroughly. Spray wings with cooking spray on all sides.
• Arrange in Air Fryer – Place wings in the air fryer and cook for 9 minutes per side stopping to turn halfway through cooking. Depending on size of wings and the air fryer used, you may need to cook in batches. Do not overcrowd the air fryer.  (165°F internal temperature)
• Sauce – While wings cook, bring the barbeque sauce, honey, brown sugar, orange juice, ketchup, and soy sauce to a simmer in a medium sized saucepan. Simmer for 3-5 minutes or until thickened. Remove from heat and set aside.
• Combine – Toss chicken wings with honey barbeque sauce until coated. (You may also do this brushing onto the wings in the last 2 minutes of cooking to char)
• Serve warm.

How to Make the BEST Honey Barbecue Chicken Wings Recipe

• Ingredients you’ll need to complete this recipe: Chicken wings, cornstarch,  garlic powder, onion powder, salt, pepper, and cooking spray or an oil mister. You can use your favorite kind of cooking spray even a baking spray, if that’s what you have on hand. Next, we’ll talk about the ingredients for the sauce.
• Kitchen tools you’ll need: So, for this recipe you’ll need an air fryer, mixing bowls and measuring tools, paper towels and a small saucepan. If you’re opting to make them in the oven, replace the air fryer with a large baking sheet lined with heavy duty foil sprayed with cooking spray.
• You can change the flavor profile of these wings depending on the kind and flavor of barbecue sauce that you use. There are a ton of flavored barbeque sauces readily available, so if you prefer to use one that has some extra flavor, you certainly can. A thicker barbecue sauce works best as the base for the remaining ingredients.
• The sauce uses honey and brown sugar. Granulated white sugar could be substituted here, if needed. It may change the flavor slightly but it will still work. Do this only in a pinch.
• For the orange juice in the recipe you can use either fresh orange juice, or juice from a frozen concentrate. You could also use apple or pineapple juice, if that’s what you have on hand.
• Ketchup and Soy sauce: You could replace soy with teriyaki or even Worcestershire sauce.
• Storage: You can store these wings in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Cooked chicken is good for up to 3 days when kept well chilled. You can also freeze these wings for up to 1 month.
• It’s important to spray the wings with cooking spray or an oil mister. The cornstarch on the chicken wings can end up being a little grainy if you don’t soak the chicken wings with some cooking spray. To get a nice, crispy finish on the chicken, coat it well. It will mix with the oil to give you the delicious bite everyone wants in a fried chicken wing.
• Store Air Fryer Honey Barbecue Chicken Wings chilled in the refrigerator for up tp 3 days.
• Reheat gently in a 325°F air fryer just until heated through.

How to Make Honey Barbecue Chicken Wings in the Oven

These juicy wings can be made in the oven with equally delicious results. You’ll note the instructions are also printable with the recipe in the recipe card.

• Preheat oven to 400°F. Line a large baking sheet with foil sprayed with cooking spray.
• In a small bowl, whisk together cornstarch, garlic, salt, onion powder and lemon pepper. Toss wings with mixture. Place in a single layer on baking sheet without touching.
• Bake for 35-40 minutes, flipping halfway through, OR until skin is crispy and golden brown. Remove from oven. (Baking time depends on size of wings, adapt accordingly)
• Turn oven to 500°F (Broil)
• Meanwhile, in a large bowl whisk together barbeque sauce, honey, brown sugar, orange juice, ketchup, and soy sauce. Add wings, tossing until coated on all sides. 
• Return barbecue coated wings to the baking sheet in a single layer, without touching.
• Return to the oven and broil for for 6-8 minutes, OR just until sauce is bubbly and caramelized.Turn with tongs to achieve even char. Don’t walk away.
• Let stand for 5 minutes, then serve.

More Easy Chicken Recipes to Make

Other chicken recipes you may like to try:

• Air Fryer Southern Fried Chicken is finger lickign good.
• Baked Buffalo Wings for game day and tailgating.
• Asian inspired Sticky Sriracha Barbecue Chicken Drumsticks. 
• Greek inspired Air Fryer Chicken Thighs.
• Air Fryer Barbecue Chicken Breasts cook in minutes for a quick meal.
• Air Fryer Chicken Tenders from Skinnytaste.

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Helpful Kitchen Items:

• Air Fryer
• Mixing Bowls
• Oil Mister
• Tongs