Baked Teriyaki Chicken Wings (Easy Recipe)

These teriyaki chicken wings are so finger-licking good you’ll never believe they’re baked, not deep-fried.

Perfectly crispy and mouthwateringly juicy, these are the most addicting wings you’ve ever tried.

Easy Baked Teriyaki Chicken Wings Recipe

What makes this chicken wing recipe stand out from all the others is the teriyaki sauce.

It’s sticky sweet and packed with umami. Others just can’t compete!

The zippy pineapple juice, salty soy sauce, pungent garlic, and ginger take the chicken up a notch. 

The best part is the homemade sauce calls for pantry staples. Well, that and you bake the wings instead of fry.

So you can easily make a batch for game days, holidays, appetizers, or dinner.

Ingredients 

• Chicken Wings or Drumettes – I like to buy a big bag of party wings that include drumettes and wings. That way, you get more options. But feel free to use one or the other.

• Water – Water ensures the marinade seeps into all the little cracks on the wings, making them more flavorful.

• Soy Sauce – It’s not teriyaki without soy sauce! It adds a rich, umami and salty flavor. Remember, there’s no need for added salt when soy sauce comes to the party.

• White Sugar – Sugar makes the teriyaki sauce light and combats the saltiness of the soy sauce. It also makes the wings finger-lickin’ sticky. 

• Pineapple Juice – Without the pineapple juice, the sauce will be flat. And we use pineapple specifically for its signature fruity-tart zing that’ll bridge the flavor gap between salty and sweet. 

• Vegetable Oil – For the marinade – not for the deep fryer. It helps the teriyaki sauce stick to the chicken wings. 

• Fresh Garlic – Nothing beats freshly minced garlic! It’s savory, robust, and essential to the flavor profile.

• Fresh Ginger – Just like garlic, it’s not teriyaki sauce without fresh ginger. And while powdered or pureed ginger works in a pinch, nothing beats the bright flavors from freshly minced ginger root. 

How to Make Teriyaki Chicken Wings

This recipe is as easy as 1-2-3!

1. Prepare the marinade.

The first step is easy peasy – just mix the ingredients until smooth!

Mix the water, oil, white sugar, pineapple juice, vegetable oil, and spices in a bowl until the sugar dissolves. 

2. Coat the chicken.

Toss chicken wings in the marinade until evenly coated. Then cover them, and let them sit in the refrigerator for at least one hour (overnight is best). 

3. Bake the chicken wings.

Take the chicken out of the marinade, and shake off the excess. You can even pat them a bit (with kitchen paper) to ensure no sauce pools under the wing.

Bake the wings in a greased baking pan or cookie sheet for 1 hour in an oven set at 350 degrees Fahrenheit (175°C).

Flip the wings halfway through to ensure they cook evenly. Then serve with extra sauce for dipping.

That’s it!

Tips & Tricks for the Best Teriyaki Chicken Wings

When a recipe is that easy, it’s pretty hard to go wrong. That said, here’s a few tips and tricks to guarantee perfect wings every time!

• Don’t speed up the marinating time. The longer the chicken soaks in the teriyaki sauce, the better. And while I said “at least an hour” I suggest no less than three for the best results.

• Add extra flavors to the marinade. Things like sesame oil or sesame seeds add a nice nutty flavor. For a sweeter sauce, add mirin, orange juice, rice vinegar, or apple cider vinegar. Garlic lovers can even go wild with extra garlic.

• Taste as you go. The marinade is safe before it hits the chicken. So taste it to make sure it’s sweet/savory/salty enough.

• Make extra marinade for dipping. For messy, finger-licking chicken wings, prepare a separate batch of teriyaki sauce. You can pour it over the baked wings or serve it as a tasty dipping sauce.

• Repurpose the leftover marinade. The same teriyaki sauce you used for the marinade contains bacteria from the raw chicken. So cook it first by boiling and simmering. That way, you can use it for dipping.

How to Store Teriyaki Chicken Wings

I love having leftover chicken wings on hand. They freeze well and make for an easy lunch, dinner, snack, or party appetizers. 

You can also store leftover wings in the fridge for a quick meal.

To Store: Place the cooled wings in an airtight container and refrigerate. Enjoy within 3 days.

To Freeze: Let the wings cool. Next, place them in a freezer-safe bag or airtight container, label, then freeze. For a large quantity, layer them with parchment paper so they don’t stick together. The wings will last in the freezer for up to 3 months.

To Reheat: Place the wings on a baking sheet. Bake them for about 6 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit. The internal temperature should reach 165 degrees Fahrenheit. (Check out this post for the best ways to reheat chicken wings.)

To Thaw: Thaw frozen chicken wings overnight in the refrigerator. For a quicker method, place the sealed freezer bag in a bowl of cold water. Dump and replace the water every 30 minutes until the chicken is no longer frozen.

More Chicken Wing Recipes You’ll Love

Jamaican Jerk Chicken Wings
Honey Sriracha Chicken Wings
Lemon Pepper Chicken Wings
Crockpot Buffalo Chicken Wings
Wingstop Garlic Parmesan Wings