These Paleo Chicken Wings with Honey Garlic Chili Sauce are an irresistible snack or appetizer!
Juicy wings are glazed in a hot and sweet sauce, then baked in the oven until crispy.
This is the best Paleo chicken wing recipe and it also happens to be gluten-free and dairy-free.
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Paleo Chicken Wings
Chicken wings are a great finger food for all sorts of parties or even dinner.
And while they come in lots of flavors, a lot of those flavors are not Paleo-friendly.
So I had to create Paleo-friendly versions without grains, dairy, refined sugar and other inflammatory ingredients.
There’s my Sticky Baked Apricot Wings and Honey Mustard Wings, both of which I love.
But these Paleo Chicken Wings with Honey Garlic Chili Sauce hit all the flavor targets: sweet, spicy, crispy, sticky, juicy and, of course, garlicky.
First, we pat them dry with paper towels. The drier they are, the crispier they’ll get.
Next, we coat them in a Paleo-friendly baking powder. This helps draw the moisture out so it can evaporate, creating crispy skin without drying out the wings.
Plus Paleo baking powder is easy to make, as you’ll see below.
They’re baked until dark golden brown (I didn’t want to bother with deep frying so these wings get baked in the oven to achieve that crispy texture) and then glazed in a simple, 3-ingredient sauce.
The sauce consists of honey for sweetness, a chili sauce such as sambal oelek for a spicy kick, and garlic powder for that extra garlic goodness.
These wings are so good you might want to double the recipe!
What you need to make Paleo Chicken Wings
Ingredients:
- 2-2.5 pounds chicken wings (drums, flats or a combination)
- 1.5 teaspoons fine sea salt
- Paleo baking powder:
- 2 tablespoons cream of tartar
- 1 tablespoon baking soda
- 1.5 teaspoons arrowroot flour/starch or tapioca flour/starch
- 1/4 cup chili garlic sauce, such as sambal oelek (most grocery stores carry it in the Asian section)
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1.5 teaspoons garlic powder
Equipment:
- a large mixing bowl
- measuring spoons (<– these are my favorite because they fit into spice jars)
- a measuring glass
- 2 small mixing bowls
- a pastry brush or spoon
- a whisk
- a large mixing bowl
- cooking tongs
- a baking sheet
- aluminum foil
- optional: an oven safe wire rack that fits in the baking sheet
How to make Paleo Chicken Wings (with step-by-step photos)
Step 1
Heat the oven to 450°.
Step 2
Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil (add the wire rack on top of the foil, if using).
Step 3
In a small mixing bowl, make the Paleo baking powder by mixing together the cream of tartar, baking soda and arrowroot (or tapioca).
Step 4
Pat the chicken wings dry with paper towels – this is very important! The wings need to be as dry as possible to get crisp in the oven.
Step 5
Add the wings to a large mixing bowl and add 2 teaspoons of the Paleo baking powder (save the rest for another use) and the salt.
Toss the wings until evenly coated.
Step 6
Line up the wings on the foil (or wire rack), skin-side up, making sure they’re not touching or too close together.
Step 7
Bake the wings for 20 minutes.
Step 8
Remove the pan from the oven and flip the wings so they’re skin-side down.
Bake for another 20 minutes.
Step 9
Remove the pan from the oven and flip them one more time so they’re skin-side up again.
Bake for 5 minutes, bringing the total baking time to 45 minutes.
Step 10
While the wings are baking, make the sauce by whisking together the chili sauce, honey and garlic powder in a small bowl.
Step 11
Once the wings have had their 45 minutes of baking, brush or spoon the sauce onto the skin side of the wings.
Bake for another 3-5 minutes – keep an eye on them to make sure the honey doesn’t burn. The amount of time will vary by oven.
Step 12
Once the wings look bronzed and crispy, remove the pan from the oven. Let the wings cool until you can handle them, then dig in!
You can dip the wings in any remaining sauce.
Serve with lots of napkins.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yep! Chicken wings, by themselves, are Paleo, just like other chicken parts. Eating Paleo is all about consuming healthy, natural sources of protein, fats, fruits and vegetables. Chicken wings easily fit within these guidelines.
What would make them not Paleo is if they’re coated in non-Paleo ingredients such as flour, dairy, etc. For more information on which ingredients are considered Paleo, click here.
Yes! If you’re not able to make Paleo baking powder, regular baking powder will work just fine. Just know that it contains cornstarch, so don’t use it if you don’t tolerate corn.
You can use pure maple syrup instead of honey.
If your chili sauce already contains garlic, you can reduce or omit the garlic powder.
These wings are best enjoyed within a few hours of when they’re made. Once they’re refrigerated, they lose their crispness.
If you do have any leftovers, you can broil them for 3-5 minutes, keeping an eye on them to make sure the honey doesn’t burn. They won’t get back to their original crispness but they’ll still be good.
I don’t recommend freezing them. Due to their irregular shape, it would be very easy to get air pockets in the container with them, which would lead to condensation and moisture.
Also, they would lose their crisp texture and become somewhat tough and chewy.
Other recipes you might like:
- Sticky Baked Apricot Wings
- Honey Mustard Wings
- Veggie-Wrapped Pigs in Blankets
- Bacon Pineapple Guacamole
Paleo Chicken Wings with Honey Garlic Chili Sauce
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons cream of tartar
- 1 tablespoon baking soda
- 1½ teaspoons arrowroot flour/starch or tapioca flour/starch
- 2-2½ pounds chicken wings (drums, flats, or a combination)
- 1½ teaspoons fine sea salt
- ¼ cup chili sauce, such as sambal oelek
- ¼ cup honey
- 1½ teaspoons garlic powder
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 450°.
- Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil (optional step: add a wire rack on top of the foil).
- In a small mixing bowl, make the Paleo baking powder by mixing together the cream of tartar, baking soda and arrowroot (or tapioca).
- Pat the chicken wings dry with paper towels – this is very important! The wings need to be as dry as possible to get crisp in the oven.
- Add the wings to a large mixing bowl and toss with 2 teaspoons of the Paleo baking powder (save the rest for another use) and the salt.
- Line up the wings on the foil (or wire rack), skin-side up, making sure they're not touching or too close together.
- Bake the wings for 20 minutes.
- Remove the pan from the oven and flip the wings so they're skin-side down. Bake for another 20 minutes.
- Remove the pan from the oven and flip them one more time so they're skin-side up again. Bake for 5 minutes (total baking time is 45 minutes).
- While the wings are baking, make the sauce by whisking together the chili sauce, honey and garlic powder in a small bowl.
- Once the wings have had their 45 minutes of baking, brush or spoon the sauce onto the skin side of the wings. Bake for another 3-5 minutes – keep an eye on them to make sure the honey doesn't burn. The amount of time will vary by oven.
- Once the wings look bronzed and crispy, remove the pan from the oven. Let the wings cool until you can handle them, then dig in! Serve with any extra sauce and lots of napkins.
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