If you’re in the mood for something sweet and savory, check out my Smoked Honey Sriracha Wings. These tasty morsels are seasoned with my world-class AP rub and cooked until crisp. At the end of the cook, they’re smothered in a mouth-watering homemade glaze. I cooked these wings on the Gateway drum smoker, giving them old-school flavor.
Pitmasters worldwide will agree that the quest for the perfect wing never ends. Everyone’s idea of perfection differs, but I’d say this recipe is close. Serve these wings for your next game day, or bring them to a buddy’s bonfire. You’ll be the talk of the town!
My Smoked Honey Sriracha Wings come together in under 2 hours. They’re a great go-to when you want to smoke something delicious yet quick. I love these wings because they’re crisp without using a deep fryer. They’re a fabulous appetizer or main dish, depending on how fancy you feel.
The Ingredients
This recipe proves that you don’t need a lot of ingredients to make a killer hot wing. My Smoked Honey Sriracha Wings come together with less than 10 components, including the homemade sauce. Here’s what you need to add to your shopping list.
- Whole chicken wings. I cooked 5 pounds worth of whole wings, which yielded 14 wings. I prefer whole wings because they’re filling and juicer than wing tips. Chicken wings as an entire meal would be a dream come true for some people.
- Olive oil. Binders are a flexible part of smoking meat. My favorite options include mustard, olive oil, and duck fat spray. For this recipe, I kept things neutral by using olive oil. Olive oil helps the seasoning stick without altering the poultry’s natural flavors.
- Heath Riles BBQ Everyday Rub. This delicious AP rub is like salt and pepper on steroids. It includes a hint of garlic to take fries, veggies, meat, and popcorn to another level. Once you try it, you’ll never want to run out!
- Heath Riles BBQ Honey Rub. My sweet rub is a fabulous way to add honey to your recipes without extra char. This rub features a brilliant blend of garlic, honey, paprika, and other secret ingredients. I use this ingredient on chicken, ribs, salmon, and anything else that could use a little sweetness.
- Heath Riles BBQ Sweet BBQ Sauce. Good things take time, including this superb BBQ sauce. I took over 10 years to perfect this recipe with just the right amount of spice, sweetness, and ketchup. Use it on its own, or pair it with other ingredients to create a custom sauce.
- Salted butter. Melted butter adds silky smoothness to my honey sriracha sauce. This element makes the sauce thicker and adds richness. I use salted butter because it gives everything extra pizazz. If you only have unsalted butter on hand, that’s fine; just add a pinch of salt.
- Honey. You can’t have Smoked Honey Sriracha Wings without a taste of the real deal! A little honey gives the sauce that sticky-sweet texture. The sweetener caramelizes in the oven, giving the wings beautiful color.
- Sriracha. Sriracha is a fancier hot sauce with a kick of garlic. This ingredient is used liberally in many Asian recipes. It’s easy to see why! When paired with honey, the sriracha is toned down enough that anyone can enjoy these wings. Feel free to adjust the sriracha if you want a hotter or milder option.
- Soy sauce. A dash of soy sauce gives the sauce a well-rounded flavor. Go light on this ingredient, as it can be extremely salty.
The Smoker Setup
Here’s the main equipment I used for this cook. You can find more of my favorite grilling accessories in the Equipment and Tools section.
- Drum smoker. I cooked this chicken in my Gateway Drum Smoker. This fun setup smokes food in record time. Many pitmasters prefer drum smokers because they’re more straightforward than other grills. If you’re looking for a minimalistic approach to grilling, you’ll adore the Gateway Drum.
- Charcoal. I stoked the drum smoker with Royal Oak Charcoal Hardwood Pellets and Royal Oak Tumbleweeds. I love this brand because their product is high quality with no fillers. If you’re trying to reduce chemicals in your life, you need this charcoal. I use it for almost every cook with great results. You can also add a few pieces of cherry wood if you like.
The Process for Making Smoked Honey Sriracha Wings
You can find a detailed demonstration of this recipe in the video and recipe card at the bottom of this post. For now, here’s a quick rundown of how I cooked these delicious wings.
- Fire up the Gateway Drum. I stoked the Gateway Drum Smoker with Royal Oak Charcoal and a couple of Royal Oak Tumbleweeds. Then, I fired it up to a range of 275℉-300℉.
- Refrigerate the chicken wings. I removed the whole chicken wings from the package, placed them on a cooling rack, and refrigerated them for 2 hours. This extra step lets the skin dry, producing a crisp wing.
- Add binder and seasoning. I basted the wings with olive oil, then laid down a heavy base coat of Everyday Rub, followed by a dusting of Honey Rub. I let the wings sweat in for 5 minutes before repeating the process on the other side.
- Smoke the wings. Once the wings were seasoned, I laid them directly on the Gateway Drum and let them go for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, I rotated the cooling rack and let the wings cook for another 10 minutes.
- Make the sauce. While the wings cooked, I combined my Sweet BBQ Sauce with melted butter, soy sauce, sriracha, and honey until smooth. I melted the glaze over the stove until the mixture was homogenous.
- Flip the chicken. Once the wings cooked for 30 minutes, I flipped them. Then, I shut the pit and let them cook until they reached 185℉ internally. My wings had a total cook time of 50 minutes.
- Sauce and set. I removed the wings from the pit and sauced them on both sides. Then, the wings went back on the grill for another 5 minutes to set the glaze. I took the chicken off the pit and let them cool for 10 minutes before digging in.
The Results
The cooking time on my Smoked Honey Sriracha wings was just right. The glaze was tacky without being overly gummy. The sweetness of the seasoning shone through and added just a little heat on the back end. You won’t be able to get enough of this fun flavor combination!
Serving Suggestions for Smoked Honey Sriracha Wings
Since we’re using whole wings, you can add a side salad and have a complete meal. These wings would also taste great with my Woodfired Pepperoni Pizza.
Storing Leftover Smoked Honey Sriracha Wings
If you have leftovers, store them in the fridge for up to 4 days, or freeze them for up to 4 months.
Equipment and Tools
Gateway Drum Smoker, Royal Oak Charcoal Hardwood Pellets, Royal Oak Tumbleweeds, ThermoWorks Hi-Temp Silicone Brush, ThermoWorks Thermapen ONE, Nechtik BBQ Gloves.
