These Crockpot Honey BBQ Wings are a total crowd pleaser! Crisp on the outside, tender inside, and smothered with sweet-and-sticky BBQ sauce, these wings will have them coming back for more. Thankfully, this easy recipe feeds a group without a lot of effort! You’ll want to do wings this way every time.
Chicken wings are often the first thing that comes to mind when it comes to party appetizers —especially for game day. What could be more welcome than tender, saucy wings, served up with a creamy dipping sauce?
These Crockpot Honey BBQ Wings aren’t only perfect for parties, they’re an easy family dinner choice too. Add some baby carrots and celery sticks, and maybe a simple side dish, and dinner’s done! You could even add these garlic parmesan wings or slow cooker buffalo wings if you want to have different options.
Either way, possibly the best thing about these honey BBQ wings is that they’re so easy to make. No need for deep-frying here. Instead, they spend just a handful of hours hanging in the Crockpot, then a few minutes crisping up in the oven along with a dip in a tangy sweet-and-savory honey BBQ sauce. Irresistible AND easy!
Why I LOVE this recipe!
- Full of flavor – A one-two punch of flavor makes these honey BBQ wings pop! First, they’re tossed in spices before they go in the Crockpot. Then, the cooked wings are covered in a sweet and savory sauce before serving.
- No deep frying – No oil splatters with this cooking method! Slow cooking makes the wings juicy and tender, then a quick finish in the oven crisps up the outside.
- Feeds a crowd – This recipe makes a couple dozen wings, enough for everyone to enjoy.
- Easy to keep warm – For action-packed game days or busy parties, these wings can be kept warm in the Crockpot so guests can help themselves to warm BBQ wings whenever they want.
Recipe Notes
This Crockpot Honey BBQ Wings recipe is as simple as promised! They’re mostly hands-off to make, which makes them equally as perfect for parties as for a family friendly meal.
In this section I am going to go through a few tips and tricks I use for how to make Crockpot Honey BBQ Wings to get the absolute best and most delicious results.
Make sure to scroll to the bottom for the FULL recipe card.
Ingredients + Substitutions
- Frozen chicken wings – Frozen wings go straight from the freezer to the Crockpot, which makes this honey BBQ wings recipe so easy! Fresh wings are fine if you prefer, but they will take less time to cook.
- Chili powder – This mix of spices and ground peppers adds flavor and a touch of heat.
- Smoked paprika – For smoky flavor that pairs perfectly with wings. If you don’t normally have smoked paprika on hand, some grocery stores sell spices in bulk so you can grab just the amount you need without having to buy an entire jar.
- Garlic powder – An easy way to add a note of garlic.
- Salt and black pepper – Freshly ground pepper has more flavor, so use it if you can!
- BBQ sauce – Buy your favorite bottled sauce at the store or make your own homemade BBQ sauce at home!
- Honey – Adds sweetness and stickiness to the sauce, perfect for wings. I like 1/2 cup honey to one cup BBQ sauce, but if you prefer sweeter wings, you can increase the amount of honey up to one cup.
Make sure to see the recipe card at the bottom of this post for the full quantities and ingredients list.
Recipe Variations
If you love this recipe as much as we do and want some quick ways to change it up for variety, these little tips will do the trick!
- Hot Honey BBQ Wings – Swap in hot honey for the honey to add more heat to your wings.
- Spicy Honey BBQ Wings – For extra spicy wings, double the chili powder and/or add up to 1/2 teaspoon of cayenne pepper to the mix.
- Honey Bourbon BBQ Wings – Add a tablespoon or two of bourbon to the sauce for a jolt of warm flavor.
- Boneless Honey BBQ Wings – Use boneless chicken bites. Just take care with the cooking time – you’ll want to reduce it a little because they won’t take quite as much time to cook.
Recipe Step by Step
I am going to highlight a few key steps in the recipe here, but make sure to jump down to the recipe card for comprehensive instructions on how to make Crockpot Honey BBQ Wings.
Combine the spices in a small bowl. Add the wings to your Crockpot, sprinkle with the seasoning mix, and stir to coat your wings.
Once your wings are cooked, use a slotted spoon pull out the wings. You’ll want to discard as much liquid as possible, getting the wings nice and dry so the sauce will really stick to them.
Whisk the BBQ sauce and honey together.
Toss the wings in the sauce to coat them. Lay them on your baking sheet, place the honey BBQ wings in the oven, and bake on the top rack until crisp.
Remove your wings from the oven and brush with more honey-BBQ mix for the sauciest wings.
Crockpot Honey BBQ Wings
Recipe Tips
- Mix the seasonings and sauce in a bowl first – By mixing the ingredients in a separate bowl, you’ll ensure they’re well-combined and will be evenly distributed when added to your honey BBQ chicken wings.
- Leave a little space when baking – You can pack a lot of wings onto your baking sheet, but be sure to leave a small margin of space around each one so that the air can circulate around them. This will help them get nice and crispy on all sides.
- Stick to the recommended cooking time – The wings will be easier to handle if you don’t cook them for longer than recommended. They become more delicate and tend to fall apart if cooked for longer in the slow cooker.
- For always-warm wings, serve from the Crockpot – To keep your wings warm for whenever your guests are ready to eat, discard the liquid from your Crockpot, then clean and dry it. Add the finished wings back in and set the Crockpot to warm.
Recipe Short Cuts
If you need to make this recipe, but are extra short on time, here are a few ideas that can help make this recipe even faster!
- Use parchment paper – Cover your baking sheet with parchment paper before adding the wings for easy clean-up.
- Start with for frozen wings – The wings can go straight from the freezer into your Crockpot. So easy!
- Mix your spices and sauce ahead of time – For super-fast prep, have your spice mix and honey BBQ wing sauce ready. If you’re prepping more than a couple of hours in advance, keep the sauce in the refrigerator until you’re ready to use it.
What to Serve with Crockpot Honey BBQ Wings
Since this easy recipe has the delicious flavors of barbecue, it will pair well with many of your favorite classic American side dishes. You can serve these wings as a meal or as an appetizer for a party, potluck, or watching football!
Choose one or several of these side dishes to create a wholesome, well-rounded dinner. There are both classic options and some healthy options to keep it light.
Dipping Sauces
Side Dish Ideas
- Easy Rotini Pasta Salad
- Italian House Salad
- 3 Minute Instant Pot Corn on the Cob with Garlic Butter
- Deviled Egg Potato Salad
Appetizer Pairings
Crockpot Honey BBQ Wings Leftovers
If you have leftovers after making this recipe, then it is your lucky day! They save and reheat well, and can make the start of another delicious dish.
To save leftovers, separate into meal sized portions and then place in an airtight container and store:
- in the refrigerator for 3-4 days
- in the freezer up to a month
Leftover Recipes
- BBQ Chicken Salad – Remove the meat from the bones, chop it up, and serve it up in a salad! Make it a BBQ chicken style Cobb salad or toss it in with any salad you like.
- BBQ Chicken Pizza – Mix in the tender wing meat in with these BBQ Chicken French Bread Pizzas for an extra dose of BBQ chicken flavor.
- BBQ Chicken Macaroni & Cheese – Elevate mac and cheese by topping it with shredded pieces of leftover honey BBQ chicken. The creamy, cheesy pasta is the perfect counterpoint to the bites of spicy-sweet tender chicken.
Recipe FAQ’s
How long to cook wings in crockpot?
If cooking from frozen, cook wings on high for about 3.5 hours, or low for about 4.5 hours. If cooking fresh wings reduce cooking time to high for 2.5 hours or low for 3.5 hours. Cooking wings longer will make them fall apart tender and harder to eat by hand.
Do I have to put the wings in the oven after the crockpot?
The wings are much tastier if you bake the sauce on. While they are fully cooked in the crockpot, if you just toss them in the sauce without baking, they will be much more lightly flavored, so I highly suggest following the steps and baking in the sauce after slow cooking.
What is the most popular dipping sauce for wings?
Blue cheese and Ranch dressing are the two most popular dipping sauces for wings. Other popular sauces are honey mustard and sweet and sour sauce.
Are frozen wings precooked?
This will depend on the brand, but most frozen wings are not precooked. Check the details on the front of the packaging to verify if your frozen wings are precooked.
More EASY Chicken Recipes
If you enjoyed this recipe, I really hope you will take a moment to grab a few more easy recipes for another busy night!
You can check out all of my easy chicken recipes here, or see a few of our readers favorite recipes below.
- Saucy Buffalo Chicken Tenders
- Ranch Chicken Bites
- Pulled BBQ Chicken Sliders
- PERFECT Baked Chicken Tenders
Crockpot Honey BBQ Wings
Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 4 pounds chicken wings, fresh or frozen
For the Honey BBQ Wing Sauce
- 1 cup BBQ sauce
- ½ cup honey
Instructions
- In a small bowl, combine the chili powder, salt, paprika, garlic powder, and black pepper. Mix.
- Place the chicken wings (frozen) in the crockpot and sprinkle with the seasoning mix, stirring to get the winds coated evenly on all sides.
- Place the lid on, and cook frozen wings on high for 3.5-4.5 hours, or low for 4.5-5.5 hours. Or cook fresh wings 3-4 hours on high, or 4-5 hours on low.
- Once done, preheat the oven to 425˚F, remove the wings from the crockpot and place in a large bowl.Tip: The drier the wings are the better the sauce will stick, so try to remove as much of the liquid as possible when transferring them into the bowl.
- To make the BBQ wing sauce, whisk together the BBQ sauce and honey, then pour them over the wings and toss them to coat.
- Lay the wings on a baking sheet and cook in the oven on the top rack for 15-18 minutes. Then, brush with additional sauce from the bowl you mixed the wings in and serve hot.
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