celery sticks, carrot sticks, and ranch or blue cheese dressingfor serving (optional)
Instructions
Place chicken wing pieces (3-4 lbs.) in slow cooker crock. Drizzle with olive oil (2 tablespoons) and add spices (2 teaspoons kosher salt, 1 teaspoon black pepper, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, 1 teaspoon chili powder). Stir to coat each chicken piece evenly.
Cook on low for 2.5-3 hours (or until internal temperature of wings is 165 degrees F).
In the bottom of a large bowl, melt the butter (2 tablespoons). Stir in the hot sauce (1/2 cup) and ketchup (1/4 cup) to make the buffalo sauce.
Use tongs to remove the cooked chicken wings from the slow cooker to the bowl with the buffalo sauce. Toss to coat evenly.
Place the wings on a foil-lined rimmed baking sheet skin-side up. Brush or drizzle tops with extra buffalo sauce from the bottom of the bowl. Broil for 5-10 minutes or until sauce has thickened and caramelized a bit and the skin on the wings crisps up (this step is optional but highly recommended for optimal sauce-sticking and skin texture).
Serve with celery sticks, carrot sticks, and ranch or blue cheese dressing if desired.
Notes
You can use frozen wings for this recipe. Make sure the wings aren't all attached together and follow the instructions as written, adjusting the temperature to high on the slow cooker instead of low. Check internal temp to make sure they're 165 degrees F after they are done cooking.
Use another kind of sauce if you like, such as BBQ sauce, teriyaki sauce, sweet and sour sauce, store-bought buffalo sauce, etc. Just follow the instructions and instead of mixing the buffalo sauce in a bowl, toss the wings with another kind of sauce, broil, and serve.
Store leftover wings in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-3 days.
To use drumsticks instead of wings, follow the same instructions except increase the cooking time to 3-4 hours on high or 5-6 hours on low.