It seems like there is a bit of a chicken wing shortage right now in the US, which is a bummer because chicken wings are my absolute favorite way to kick off football season. If you can get your hands on some fresh chicken wings, add these pickle brined chicken wings to your list to try ASAP!
Why Brine Chicken Wings?
Brining, or adding meat to a salty liquid, is a popular way to keep meats juicy and give them some extra flavor. I don’t worry too much about drying out chicken wings because they have a lot of fat, but brining them quickly is a great way to make sure they are extra juicy and give them a salty flavor throughout the wing.
When you use pickle liquid to brine chicken wings, you have to be a little more careful because you don’t want the chicken wings to actually pickle. So a quick brine of about 30 minutes works great for the tiny chicken wings and the end result doesn’t actually taste like pickles, it just tastes very savory and delicious.
Well, the chicken wings might have a tiny hint of pickles, but you wouldn’t pick it up unless you knew there was pickle juice in the brine. Instead, the result is basically like a brined chicken: juicy, tender, seasoned perfectly.
Spice Mix for Wings
Okay, before we get to wings, let’s talk rubs. This is a pretty basic one. Nothing fancy. If you want it spicy, use a spicy chili powder or add some cayenne to the mix. If you just want it a little spicy and very savory then leave out the spicy elements. The recipe I listed above makes enough for 3 pounds of wings.
If you don’t have time to mix this spice mix together, you can use any dry rub you have in your pantry or, honestly, just salt and pepper on the wings is pretty darn good.
Since these aren’t a sauced wing though, it does help with flavors to take the time to make a good dry rub so I would try to make it happen if you can.
Pickle Brining Chicken Wings
Brining the wings in pickle juice couldn’t be easier. Drain off the juice from a medium jar of pickles and pour it in a bag with wings.
It’ll look like a science experiment, but it’s not. It’s a kitchen experiment.
Most Important Step Alert: After your wings brine for an hour or so (at least 30 minutes), this is the most important part. Dry them off REALLY well. But, don’t rinse them with water. Pull away as much juice as you can though with paper towels.
You don’t want to rinse the wings as that will rinse off too much of the salty coating on the wings and also rinsing chicken is a step that isn’t necessary and can help spread bacteria. So just dry them off a bit and then proceed!
Once the pickle chicken wings are dried off a bit, toss them in a bowl with some neutral oil and the spice rub. You can use a liberal amount of spice rub on these chicken wings. You want them pretty evenly coated.
How to Bake Chicken Wings
If you wanted to fry these wings, I would skip the dry rub as it can burn a bit in the fryer. You could fry them after you dry them off and then toss them with a sauce if you want.
Personally, I find baking the wings to be easier and these wings work really well as a baked wing.
To bake the wings, after you toss them in the dry rub, lay them out on a few baking sheets and they are ready for the oven!
I like to bake mine for about an hour at 375 F. Don’t worry about turning them or anything. Just let them go. And yes, you could do my low and slow method with these. That would be very delicious as well.
When they come out, serve them up with some ranch or blue cheese plus the usual sides (plus a few pickles obviously).
Can you make these chicken wings in advance?
Wings work great if you make them in advance. You can bake them even a day or two eary and then just pop them in a lower heat (325˚F) oven to reheat them until they are warmed through and crispy on the outside. YUM.
Your crew is going to love these pickle chicken wings. If you have a friend with an excellent palette, they might be able to pick up the pickle juice, but otherwise your secret is safe with me.
Pickle Brined Chicken Wings
Equipment
Ingredients
- 3 pounds chicken wings
- 24 oz. pickles, juice only
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon black pepper
- 2 teaspoons chili powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 2 tablespoons neutral oil
- Ranch or blue cheese, for dipping
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 °F. Add raw chicken wings to a bag with pickle juice. Let sit for at least 30 minutes or up to a few hours. Overnight might make them too pickled…
- Drain off pickle juice and dry wings very well. Don’t rinse the wings.
- Add spices to a small bowl and stir together.
- Drizzle dried chicken wings with neutral oil. Then rub liberally with the spice rub.
- Lay out wings on baking sheets lined with foil.
- Bake for 55-60 minutes until cooked through and crispy in parts.
- Remove wings, let cool briefly, and serve with ranch or blue cheese dressing.
Jared
Yup,
I’ll be making these on Super Bowl Sunday. Will be the perfect snack to chow on while watching my Eagles beat the Pats. Thanks Nick!
Catherine Lee
I really want to make these! I have a pickle jar near outta pickles. I’m thinking of BBQing them though since we are on the road with no oven. Think they’d bbq ok?
Nick
I think that would work fine! Just do indirect heat on pretty low for 45-60 minutes. Good luck!
Catherine Lee
Thank you for the tips! Will let you know how it goes:)
Lori
This recipe looks delicious, just wondering what type of pickles are your favorite for this recipe.
Amy
I meant to make these last night and got totally sidetracked! Is it okay for them to marinate in the picking juice longer than an hour (…like, say… 24 hours?) :)
Amy
I meant to make these last night and got totally sidetracked! Is it okay for them to marinate in the pickle juice longer than an hour (…like, say… 24 hours?) :)
Nick
Hey Amy! 24 hours might be a bit long… I worry they would actually, well, pickle! Ha! I think you could do them overnight though. Good luck!
Amy
Appreciate the quick response! Maybe I’d better start from scratch then – thank you!
Emily
This pickle juice idea is fascinating! I bet it tastes great.
Sheena
These are absolutely AMAZING!! I love how the pickle taste came through! I added a bit of garlic, cumin, smoked paprika, and chipotle to the rub. THANK YOU! This recipe is a keeper :)
Nick
So glad you liked them Sheena! I’m making some this week for sure. :)
Adam
Really like this recipe! Thanks!!!
Jan Jacobson-Kahl
can these be made ahead of time and frozen, then just warmed up on bbq.
Nick
Hey Jan, I’ve never tried that… I have reheated them from the fridge to either the oven or the grill but I’ve never frozen and reheated them… sorry I can’t speak to whether or not they would reheat well from the freezer!
Kevin
I made these tonight. They are my wife’s and my new favorite wing. I didn’t have onion powder so I used garlic powder and added 2 tablespoons of brown sugar to give it that sweet heat flavor. I intended to grill them but the weather did not cooperate. I did the oven method for about 45 minutes and then finished under the broiler flipping them once to get them a little crispness.
Nick
Awesome! So glad you liked them Kevin!
Gigi
Hi Nick
I want to fry these, do i season my flour with these seasonings..after the pickle juice marinade?
Kevin G Savage
Added a jar of jalapeno juice to this. DOUBLED the recipe. Added 1 tallboy Coors Banquet and left sit overnight with the rest of the recipe. LOVED THEM. I was surprised at first with no garlic. But makes sense. BIG THANKS for sharing!
Nick
Love the Jalapeno juice idea! Thanks for the comment Kevin!
Julie Hannon
My go to recipe. Perfect every time!
Jamie
After a 40 min bribe, There was a distinct odd taste from the baked wings that just didn’t work. They were edible but not enjoyable. Maybe less time brining is necessary. Maybe I do need to rinse them carefully. But it was definitely peculiar and not what I expected!