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Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken Wings are the ultimate fall off the bone game day wings, slow cooked until tender then baked with a sticky homemade BBQ sauce. I first made these for a football Sunday when Jason wanted wings but the oven was full, and the slow cooker did all the heavy lifting. If you love our buffalo chicken tenders, these sticky BBQ wings are your next party must.
The slow cooker makes the wings incredibly tender, then a quick bake with homemade BBQ sauce gives them that irresistible caramelized, sticky finish.
Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken Wings Quick Look
- 🕒 Prep Time: 10 minutes
- 🌡️ Cook Time: 5 hours 40 minutes
- ⏳ Total Time: 5 hours 50 minutes
- 🍽️ Serving: 8 servings
- ⚡ Calories: 507kcal
- 🌶️ Flavor Profile: Sweet, smoky, sticky
- ✋ Difficulty: Easy, on par with our buffalo chicken tenders
Quick Answer
Layer seasoned chicken wings in the slow cooker with beer and cook until tender, about 5 hours on low. Whisk and simmer a homemade BBQ sauce, then transfer the wings to a baking sheet. Bake at 350 degrees, basting with the sauce, until the wings are caramelized and sticky.
Jump to:
- Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken Wings Quick Look
- Quick Answer
- Why This Recipe Works
- Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Key Ingredients
- Variations and Substitutions
- How to Make Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken Wings
- Recipe Tips & Tricks
- Serving Ideas and Suggestions
- Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken Wings FAQs
- Other Recommended Game Day Recipes
- Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken Wings
Why This Recipe Works
Click to see the technique science
- The slow cooker makes them tender. Low and slow cooking renders the wings fall off the bone tender before they ever hit the oven.
- Baking creates the sticky finish. A quick bake evaporates the cooking liquid and caramelizes the sauce into that craveable sticky glaze.
- Homemade BBQ sauce is better. A quick from scratch sauce with brown sugar and ketchup beats anything from a bottle.
- Beer adds depth. Cooking the wings in lager adds savory depth without any strong beer flavor in the finished wings.
- Hands off and crowd ready. The slow cooker does the work, so you can prep ahead and bake just before the party.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- The slow cooker does the work, making these perfect for game day and parties.
- They turn out fall off the bone tender with a sticky, caramelized BBQ glaze.
- The homemade BBQ sauce is easy and tastes so much better than store bought.
Key Ingredients
Here is what makes these slow cooker BBQ chicken wings so good. Simple ingredients, big flavor.
- Chicken Wings: Whole wings cut into flats and drumettes. Fresh or thawed frozen both work.
- Lager Beer: It tenderizes the wings as they cook and adds savory depth to the sauce.
- Brown Sugar and Ketchup: The sweet, tangy base of the homemade BBQ sauce.
- BBQ Seasoning: Seasoning every layer builds flavor right into the wings.
- Vinegar and Mustard: They balance the sweetness with tang for a classic BBQ flavor.
See recipe card for exact quantities.
Variations and Substitutions
These slow cooker BBQ chicken wings are easy to adapt.
- Spicy: Add cayenne or hot sauce to the BBQ sauce for a kick.
- Store bought shortcut: Use your favorite bottled BBQ sauce instead of homemade.
- No beer: Swap the beer for chicken broth or ginger ale.
- Extra crispy: Broil the wings for the last few minutes for crispier edges.
- Honey BBQ: Stir a few spoonfuls of honey into the sauce for honey BBQ wings.
How to Make Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken Wings
- Layer the chicken wings in the slow cooker, seasoning each layer with BBQ seasoning.
- Pour in the beer and slow cook on low for 5 hours or high for 2 to 3 hours until tender.
- Whisk the brown sugar, ketchup, vinegar, beer, mustard, and spices in a saucepan.
- Simmer the sauce until thick, then transfer the cooked wings to a foil lined baking sheet.
- Bake at 350 for 30 minutes, then flip and baste generously with the BBQ sauce.
- Bake, flipping and basting again, until caramelized and sticky, then serve with extra sauce.
Recipe Tips & Tricks
- Season every layer of wings in the slow cooker so the flavor is even throughout.
- Do not skip the bake, since it evaporates the liquid and caramelizes the sauce into that sticky glaze.
- Use a foil lined sheet for easy cleanup, since the sticky sauce can be messy.
- Baste in layers, flipping and brushing more than once for the stickiest wings.
- Broil at the end if you want extra caramelized, crispy edges.
- Reserve extra sauce in a bowl for dipping at the table.
Serving Ideas and Suggestions
These slow cooker BBQ chicken wings are made for game day. Pile them on a platter with extra BBQ sauce, ranch, or blue cheese for dipping and watch them disappear.
Serve them as part of a big appetizer spread with celery and carrot sticks, chips, and dips. They also make a fun main with fries and coleslaw.
Round out the party table with our grape jelly meatballs and a batch of buffalo chicken tenders for the ultimate game day feast.
Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken Wings FAQs
Yes. For these slow cooker BBQ chicken wings, you can swap the beer for chicken broth or ginger ale and still get tender, flavorful wings.
Baking is what gives these slow cooker BBQ chicken wings their sticky, caramelized finish. The slow cooker makes them tender, but the bake sets the sauce and evaporates the liquid.
Yes, just thaw them first. Frozen wings release too much liquid if cooked from frozen, which keeps these slow cooker BBQ chicken wings from getting sticky.
Yes. Slow cook the wings and make the sauce ahead, then do the final bake and baste just before serving for the freshest, stickiest wings.
Absolutely. You can use your favorite bottled BBQ sauce in place of the homemade sauce for these slow cooker BBQ chicken wings to save time.
Store leftover slow cooker BBQ chicken wings in the fridge for up to 4 days. Reheat in a 350 degree oven or air fryer until hot to keep them sticky, not soggy.
Planning a game day spread? Add our grape jelly meatballs next.
Love BBQ chicken? These smoked chicken legs are a cookout favorite.
Craving comfort food? Make our Ritz cracker chicken.
Round out game day with our pulled pork sandwiches, a saucy, shareable BBQ favorite.
Add our BBQ chicken pizza to game day next to a platter of wings for a smoky, saucy spread.
After these BBQ chicken wings, stand a whole beer can chicken on the grill for a showstopping cookout.
Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken Wings
Ingredients
- 4 pounds whole chicken wings cut into flats and drumettes, tips removed
- 2 tablespoons bbq seasoning
- 12 ounces lager beer
For the sauce:
- 1 ½ cup light brown sugar packed
- 1 ¼ cup ketchup
- ½ cup white vinegar
- ½ cup lager beer
- 2 teaspoon yellow mustard
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
Instructions
- Place chicken layered in the slow cooker set on low heat. Between layers, evenly season with bbq seasoning.4 pounds whole chicken wings, 2 tablespoons bbq seasoning
- When you have layered all the wings, slowly pour in the beer. Let cook for 5 hours on low or 2-3 hours on high.12 ounces lager beer
- When wings are cooking, place the brown sugar, ketchup, vinegar, beer, mustard, paprika, salt, and pepper in a saucepan and whisk until combined.1 ½ cup light brown sugar, 1 ¼ cup ketchup, ½ cup white vinegar, ½ cup lager beer, 2 teaspoon yellow mustard, 1 teaspoon paprika, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- Place the pan over medium heat, stirring until the brown sugar dissolves, 1-2 minutes. Let the mixture come to a boil for 3 minutes and continue to stir constantly, making sure it doesn’t boil over.
- Take the sauce off the heat and let cool until ready to baste chicken wings.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a large baking sheet with foil.
- After the wings have slow-cooked, place them on the prepared sheet tray in a single layer.
- Let them bake for 30 minutes, so most of the cooking liquid from the slow cooker evaporates.
- Turn wings over with a tong, and brush with the bbq sauce. Let them cook for 10 minutes.
- Take wings out again and flip, basting in more sauce. Let cook for an additional 10 minutes or until caramelized and sticky.
- Serve with any leftover bbq sauce in a small bowl on the side for dipping.
Notes
- We like to use a lager for this recipe, we have included some suggestions above but any beer can be used.
- These game day snacks can easily be doubled to serve more people.
- You can use fresh or frozen chicken wings, if using frozen let defrost.
- You can use whole chicken wings and break down or you can buy wingettes.
- These delicious wings can be cooked on low or high depending on your time frame.
- Use your favorite bottle of bbq sauce.
Nutrition
Love This Recipe?
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Honestly, the end result tastes absolutely nothing like ketchup itself so do keep that in mind. The only thing MAYBE you could substitute would be regular tomato sauce but I don’t think it will be nearly as good or taste the same. So sorry, I wish I had a better answer!
These do look amazing but I hate ketchup and there is a whole lot of it in this recipe. Do you think I could use something else?
Dana,
I’ll be making these for the next 49er game. They look amazing.
My hubby will love these! Pinned and am featuring at Family Fun Friday!
Monica
http://www.happyandblessedhome.com/category/family-fun
These look delicious…I love my slow cooker and this would be perfect for a party thanks for sharing!
Jen
Thanks so much for sharing these on The Wednesday Roundup (2 long weeks ago). I can’t wait to try them. Don’t forget to come by today and grab your badge of honor (feature button) because these are BEING FEATURED!!! YaY! TheWednesdayRoundup
Excellent! That is just the info I needed. Thanks again!
This is the size packet I get: http://www.perdue.com/Products/details.asp?id=444&title=PERDUE%AE%20Fresh%20Chicken%20Wings,%20Value%20Pack I’m not sure exactly how many pounds, so sorry! I hope you enjoy them!
How many pounds of wings is the 1 large package of wings? These look so yummy! Thanks!!
Yum! These look delicious!
Definitely! To me sometimes wings can be a little chewy, cooking then low and slow guarantees a super moist and tender wing!
This recipe looks amazing. The great thing about cooking them in the slow cooker, is you know they are cooked all the way through! Thanks for sharing such a yummy recipe, I can’t wait to try these!
My husband is obsessed with wings so I have to try these! They look amazing!
Saw a post about this recipe on FB and got here as fast as I could. I can’t wait to try this one, especially since it can be made in the slow cooker, making it just that much easier!
These look great! =)
Thanks for sharing this recipe.