Baked Honey Chipotle Chicken Wings
Sweet, smoky and slightly spicy baked honey chipotle chicken wings! These super crispy wings are baked, not fried. And with a delicious sauce, they are perfect for game day. Dairy free and gluten free.
Chicken wings make me feel like a bad wife. And super guilty.
My husband has been asking me for probably close to 5 years (i.e. almost as long as we’ve known each other) to make him homemade chicken wings.
And until now I’ve ignored that request. Bad bad bad.
Especially considering he really doesn’t make too many requests when it comes to what I cook. Hence the guilt.
And I really have no excuse. At the beginning I could blame it on my lack of culinary skills but even that doesn’t really hold up.
Because these baked honey chipotle chicken wings? Yeah, pretty darn easy.
Plus, they are finger lickin’ good. Super good. Awesome. You catch what I’m throwing your way, right?
Nice and crispy without any of the frying.
And the sauce. Oh the sauce. A little sweet, a little smoky. I could drink it with a spoon. But I didn’t, don’t worry. That would be a little much.
I can’t believe I’ve been missing out on these wings all these years. I guess that’s what I get for being so stubborn and ignoring one little request.
Punishment in the form of delicious crispy chicken wings.
Additional Chicken Recipes You Might Enjoy:
- Coconut Chicken Tenders
- Baked Honey Mustard Chicken Thighs
- Baked Rosemary Walnut Chicken Tenders
- Tortilla Chip Chicken
Did you make this recipe? Rate and review it down below! I’d love to hear from you.

Baked Honey Chipotle Chicken Wings
Sweet, smoky and slightly spicy baked honey chipotle chicken wings! These super crispy wings are baked, not fried. And with a delicious sauce, they are perfect for game day. Dairy free and gluten free.
Ingredients
For the wings:
- 1 ¾ pounds chicken wings*
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
For the sauce:
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter or dairy free butter, melted
- ¼ cup honey
- 1 to 2 tablespoons minced chipotle peppers in adobo sauce**
Instructions
To make the wings:
- Adjust the oven racks to the upper-middle and lower-middle positions. Preheat the oven to 250ºF. Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil and then set a wire rack in the pan.
- Pat the chicken wings dry with a paper towel and then transfer to a gallon sized zipper-lock bag. In a small bowl, mix together the baking powder and salt and then add this mixture to the bag. Seal the bag and then shake to coat.
- Arrange the wings in a single layer on the prepared baking sheet (skin side up).
- Place the pan on the lower-middle rack in the oven and bake for 30 minutes.
- Then move the pan to the upper-middle position, increase the temperature to 425ºF and bake for about 40 to 50 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through baking. The wings should be brown and crispy when done.
- Remove the pan from the oven and let cool for 5 minutes.
To make the sauce:
- Add the butter, honey and minced chipotle to a large bowl. Whisk to combine. Add the wings to the bowl and toss until well coated. Serve immediately.
Notes
*I buy chicken wings that are already halved at the joints and have the wingtips discarded. If yours are not, buy 2 pounds instead.
**If you are gluten free - be sure to check the ingredients on your chipotle peppers as some brands contain wheat.
Adjust the minced chipotle depending on how much spice you like. It will be more on the milder end of the spectrum if you add the 1 tablespoon (sweet with a smoky undertone). With 2 tablespoons, you get a good kick.
Chicken wing method from Cook's Country October/November 2013
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 8 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 399Total Fat: 29gSaturated Fat: 11gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 15gCholesterol: 93mgSodium: 649mgCarbohydrates: 19gFiber: 1gSugar: 9gProtein: 17g
Nutrition data shown is an estimate provided by an online calculator and is for informational purposes only. It should not be considered a substitute for a medical professional’s advice.
can I use chipotle chile pepper (grounded) instead ?
Hi Denise – yes, that should be fine. I would though just start with a little and then add more to taste as the amount needed may be different to give it the desired amount of kick!
Instead of honey, try mixing chipotle, cilantro, garlic, apricots w/some juice, and just a touch of molasses.
Hi Ashley,
Honey is great for a lot of dishes, especially pork and chicken. Porc au miele has to be our family favorite when visiting France. I have been experimenting with your Chicken Wings , the best reaction so far was with some chili peppers and with bbq sauce, really hot n spicy.
Homemade chicken wings! The men in my house would love these too!! 🙂
Sounds like my kind of punishment! This sounds like my boyfriend and lasagna…and now I’ve gone ages without lasagna because of it! This wings look so good 🙂
These are just the kind of wings I like- sweet and spicy!
There’s nothing better than homemade baked version of wings. Yum!
Love that these are baked! I’m scared to deep fry ( I know I’m a big baby lol!)
Mmm…. the thought of these has got me licking my fingers! Believe it or not, I’ve never tried making chicken wings like this, and these look so easy and tasty! I wonder if I’d have trouble finding the peppers in adobo sauce over in Europe though. I guess I could use some kind of hot pepper sauce instead?
Hmmm yeah I’m not sure how hard they would be to find! But I think you could definitely use some other kind of hot sauce – you may just have to adjust the amount to your taste!
I think I spy some chicken wings that need to be on my superbowl cooking list!! These look ahmazing, Ashley! And baked? EVEN BETTER. 😀
I don’t eat meat, but this looks like a great marinade for tofu! So glad I found your blog!
Thanks Jordan! The sauce was probably my favorite part – I’m not a huge chicken wing person but the sauce totally made them!
Yum, these look absolutely divine! Love the sound of chipotle and honey- so will have to give these a go 🙂
I’ve never made wings at home…I need to change that, because I know my family would go crazy for these. Yum!
I don’t make wings that often, but when I do, I remember why I love them so much. And perfect for game night, even if the team I’m rooting for doesn’t win 🙂
i’ll have to pass this recipe along to my husband! he loves wings and i’m pretty much not a fan at all….so he cooks his own for games & such. guess i lucked out! this sauce does sound good though!
Chicken wings are definitely a great easy meal, and it’s so much healthier to make them at home and they taste just as good if not better! I bet you husband was happy with these 🙂 Love those mugs too and they look gorgeous in the photos!
I’m sure he’s more than forgiven you now! Of course, I’m betting that request will come weekly 😉
You got that right! haha I had another request tonight after he saw that I posted them : )
These wings look awesome Ashley! My husband can eat wings all the time if he could and in the summer he’ll grill them but in the winter he always asks me to fry them. I’ve tried a few recipes that are baked and he keeps telling me they’re not the same lol. Adding baking powder and moving the pans up sounds like a great idea – I’ve never tried that and maybe that will fool my husband haha. The sauce sounds amazing with the chipotle peppers too 🙂
Yes! I love being tricky like that! haha
Justin and I love wings! He’s grills them quite often during the summertime! He makes ones that are a sweet and sour flavor, which are so tasty. Now, we’ll have to give your recipe a try!
Yum! And perfect timing with the “Big Game” right around the corner! Your husband must have been pretty happy (although under his breath he probably was saying “about time..”) hahaha. Just one question that has me intrigued… why the baking powder?
haha pretty much exactly what he said. According to Cook’s, it helps break down proteins in the skin, draws moisture to the surface and accelerates the browning process. It really works – they were so crispy!
Oh, my husband will love these! Love the sound of the sauce!
OK you talked me into it! I hate chicken wings and my husband is always asking me to make them. If you can do it I can do it, and it sounds like a perfect thing to make for Super Bowl Sunday!
I’m not the biggest fan either! Oddly enough, these I actually enjoyed lol Go figure.
I just had a bit plate of wings this weekend, I love them. I can’t wait to give your recipe a try, I know it would be delicious! (Sorry if you are receiving this comment twice, it timed out the first time).
…ehehe..I have a couple of those requests that I can’t seem to find “time” to reply to. Anyway…I’m glad you liked the wings. They look fantastic! 🙂 ela
I love Honey Chicken wings and get them a lot from the deli counter of my grocery store. But of course, they are SO much better homemade and this recipe looks delicious and simple. Thanks for that! Perfect for game day!! Pinned!
Sweet and spicy..these wings look lipsmackingly delicious, Ashley.
I adore the combination of chipotle peppers in adobo sauce and honey – these wings sound like they might be totally addicting!
Haha! My husband has been asking me since we started dating to make him fried chicken and I STILL haven’t. Maybe these will make up for it! They looks so good Ashley! And I love how they are a non fried version.
Me too – I’m not really into frying at home. There’s just something about it I don’t like!
That’s some super awesome punishment right there…wings! I never used to like chicken legs or wings at all, and they’ve grown on me over the past two years (probably due to the fact that I have two in my family that LOVE them!). I’m going to have to pin these to try — baking them sounds like a great idea. Happy Monday, Ashley! 🙂
I seem to have grand plans to make wings for my husband but haven’t in ages either…why is that?! Wings are definitely on the brain, particularly watching the games last night. I have been really curious about the baking powder method. Clearly, it works wonders because these wings are definitely finger-lickin’! Your husband must have been very happy. : )
Yes, he was! Although now he keeps asking for more : )
Hi Ashley – I made wings with this method tonight for the Super Bowl. I think it was more exciting than this game! Anyway, it worked great!! The wings are so crispy and my husband thinks he would not have known they were baked if I hadn’t told him! I made buffalo and honey-barbecue ones and I’ve got to try your sauce one day. Thanks for sharing! I have a feeling there will be wings a whole lot more often in our house. : )
Yay! That’s awesome – I’m so glad that your husband enjoyed them!! haha I think the food was more exciting in our house too than the game yesterday : )