Spicy Cranberry Baked Chicken Wings
A delicious baked chicken wings recipe in only seven ingredients? Yes, please!
What is game day without the chicken wings? My spicy cranberry-glazed chicken wings are the ultimate game day snack. With just 7 ingredients, this easy oven-baked recipe minimizes grocery shopping and maximizes your time spent watching the game with friends. Perfect for gatherings, these wings are not only fun to eat with your hands but also deliver a delicious burst of flavor that’s sure to impress your guests.
I call this glaze a “spicy cranberry glaze” because of the addition of the cayenne pepper, which is beautifully balanced by the sweetness and tartness of cranberry sauce. Enjoy a hassle-free cooking experience and a tasty treat that's ideal for sharing during those thrilling game day moments!
What’s the difference between a glaze and a sauce?
This recipe includes a glaze, which is thicker and more syrupy than a sauce. Glazes are used to create a shiny, sticky coating on food and are applied towards the end of cooking or right before serving to give a glossy finish and a concentrated flavor. In this case, my spicy cranberry glaze is applied in sections, with half the cranberry mixture coating the wings before marinating in the fridge for 30 minutes. When it comes to flavor, sometimes more is more!
Glazes can be brushed or spooned over the food and then cooked or broiled to create a caramelized, shiny finish.
This spicy cranberry glaze is ideal for your wings to create a shiny finish and can be used to complement other types of meat too. It’s also really good on pork! At the end of this recipe, it is important to remember to turn the broiler to medium-high and baste the wings again. At that point, you’ll broil them for 2 to 3 minutes until they are crispy and beautifully caramelized. This final step ensures your wings are not only flavorful but also visually appealing, making them a standout dish for your next game day party!
How to Pick the Best Chicken Wings: Look for Party Wings
Look for chicken wings that are sold as “party wings.” Party wings are simply whole chicken wings that have been trimmed to remove the tip so you have just the wingette and drumette.
How to Trim a Chicken Wing into a Party Wing
If you can’t find party wings at your local store, don’t worry—simply purchase whole chicken wings and trim the tips yourself at home. To do this yourself, just use a sharp knife or kitchen shears to cut off the end, and you’ll have perfectly ready-to-cook wing sections. This little bit of prep work takes almost no time at all—so you won’t lose a moment watching your favorite team!
In case you’ve never done this before, here’s some more information from my friend, Chef Terri Milligan:
A whole chicken wing is divided into three sections: the tip, a flat wingette, and a drumette. The drumette is the largest part and it’s called “drumette” because it looks like a small chicken leg (also known as a drumstick). There’s one main bone in the drumette and a lot of meat, so this is the easiest part of the wing to eat. To make your whole wings into party wings, just trim off the tips!
More Game-day Recipes
Spicy Cranberry Baked Chicken Wings Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 can (14 ounces) whole-berry cranberry sauce
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper (or more to taste)
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 lime
- 4 tablespoons chopped cilantro leaves (divided)
- 16 chicken wings (about 1¾ pounds)
Instructions
- In the bowl of a food processor, combine the cranberry sauce, cumin, cayenne pepper, and salt. Zest and juice the lime. Place in the food processor along with 2 tablespoons of the cilantro. Pulse briefly to combine. The sauce will not be completely smooth.
- In a large mixing bowl, toss the chicken wings with half the cranberry mixture. Cover loosely with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Spray lightly with nonstick pan spray.
- Place the wings, skin side up, on the prepared pan. Do not overcrowd. Bake in the preheated oven for 35 minutes. Using a teaspoon, baste the wings several times during baking with the reserved sauce.
- Remove the pan with the wings from the oven. Turn the broiler to medium-high. Baste the wings again. Broil for 2 to 3 minutes until crispy.