Honey BBQ Slow Cooker Chicken Wings

• servings: 8 servings
• active time: 10 minutes
• total time: 2 hours 10 minutes

Ingredients

1 tablespoon brown sugar

2 teaspoons season salt

2 teaspoons onion powder

2 teaspoons garlic powder

1 teaspoon smoked paprika

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 teaspoon chili powder

1 cup BBQ sauce (I used original recipe)

1/2 cup honey

2 tablespoons hot sauce (I use Frank's original)

3 tablespoons apple juice or apple cider

4 pounds chicken wings, patted dry

2 tablespoon cornstarch (optional for thickening the sauce)

Directions

Mix spices

In a small bowl, combine the dry rub ingredients.

Prep

Pat the wings dry with paper towels. This step will help the spices to adhere to the wings when seasoning them.

Place wings in the slow cooker and season

Place the chicken wings in the slow cooker and sprinkle the spice mix over the wings. Toss to make sure the wings get well coated.

Mix bbq sauce

In a small bowl, whisk together the barbecue sauce, honey, hot sauce and juice until well combined.

Slow Cook

Pour the sauce over the wings and toss until the chicken is well coated. Cover and cook for 2 hours on high or 3-4 hours on low.

Serve or broil

After the cooking time is over, the chicken wings should be fully cooked and ready to eat. You can transfer the wings to a serving plate or bowl and keep warm. Follow instructions for thickening the sauce. For crispy wings follow the broiling instructions.

Thickening the Honey BBQ sauce (optional)

Thickening the sauce

After removing the wings from the slow cooker, make a slurry by combining the cornstarch with 2 tablespoons of water. Pour the slurry into the slow cooker and mix well. Pour cornstarch mixture into the Honey bbq sauce and mix to combine. Cook on high for 10 - 20 minutes or until the sauce reaches your desired thickness.

To crisp up the wings:

Prep

For crispy skin, set an oven rack 5-6 inches below the broiler. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and place a wire rack on top. Spray the wire rack with cooking spray.

Broil

Arrange the slow cooked chicken wings on a single layer on the wire rack, leaving some room between the wings so they are not touching. You will need to work in batches. Place the wings under the broiler and broil for 2-3 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from the oven and carefully flip the wings with kitchen tongs. BROIL the second side for 2-3 minutes or until the wings are crispy and golden brown. Transfer the crispy wings to a serving bowl.

Serve

You can return the wings to the slow cooker and gently toss them with the honey bbq sauce until they are well coated, then transfer them to a serving bowl or you can transfer the wings to a serving bowl and pour some sauce on top. Serve with additional sauce on the side.

Nutrition

• Calories: 420 kcal
• Total Fat: 19 g
• Saturated Fat: 5 g
• Cholesterol: 94 mg
• Sodium: 1130 mg
• Total Carbohydrate: 37 g
• Total Sugars: 31 g
• Protein: 23 g