My secret to the best grilled chicken wings recipe is the Mediterranean-style marinade and grilling tips that guarantee maximum flavor in every bite! Serve them with cool tzatziki sauce! This is not your everyday wings recipe!
My Favorite Grilled Wings Recipe
The inspiration for this grilled chicken wings recipe comes from a Persian restaurant near where I live in the Atlanta area called Rumi’s Kitchen. Once I had this chicken, I knew I had to recreate the recipe at home.
These golden-hued wings are smoky, flavorful, and perfectly tender, all thanks to the bold marinade with onions, garlic, olive oil, and a winning combo of warm, earthy spices. To finish, I squeeze the juice of 1 or 2 grilled lemons all over the wings. Like I say in the video below, if you haven’t squeezed lemon juice over your grilled wings, you just have to try it!
I know this goes against tradition with blue cheese and saucy wings, but there is room for more than one type of grilled chicken wing in your recipe box. Pair this with cooling tzatziki, and your friends and family will be begging you to make more!
Good grilled chicken wings are not only tender with perfectly charred skin, but every bite should be infused with big flavor, and this recipe is a Mediterranean flavor party!
Chicken Wing Ingredients
The chicken wings marinade is onion-based with garlic, bold Middle Eastern spices like Aleppo pepper, and a little citrus.
It’s easy to make by simply blitzing one large onion and the rest of the ingredients in a food processor until everything is well blended. Onions contain proteolytic enzymes, which makes them ideal for tenderizing meat for grilling. Here are the ingredients you need:
- Onion: One large red onion for a slightly sweeter taste (but you can use yellow or white onions).
- Garlic cloves: Fresh garlic is a key ingredient to these grilled chicken wings.
- Extra virgin olive oil: Olive oil is a great carrier of flavor, and it will also help the wings gain that beautiful char all over.
- Lemon juice: I use freshly squeezed lemon juice in both the marinade and as a finishing touch on the wings.
- Spices: A combination of sweet paprika, coriander, cumin, Aleppo pepper (or red pepper flakes), nutmeg, and ground turmeric, which is responsible for the beautiful golden tinge.
- Chicken wings: You can use wings and drumsticks
- Kosher salt: I season the wings with a little salt just to enhance the flavor of the chicken.
How to Grill Chicken Wings
Making juicy, flavorful chicken wings has never been so easy. Not including the time needed to marinate, these chicken wings are ready in just 30 minutes.
- Prepare the marinade. Pulse all marinade ingredients in a large food processor until well combined into a thick marinade.
- Marinate the wings. Season the wings with Kosher salt, then place in a Ziploc bag. Add the marinade to the bag, seal it, and massage the bag to distribute the marinade. Lay the wings flat on a plate and refrigerate 2 to 4 hours (and up to 8 hours). Flip the bag over halfway through; this will ensure balanced flavor.
- Grill the wings. Heat a gas grill to 425°F and oil the grates. Arrange the wings over direct heat, cover, and cook for 15 to 20 minutes, flipping them every 5 minutes. Grill the lemons flesh side down.
- Serve. Serve the wings immediately and squeeze some of the grilled lemon on top!
How Long to Marinate Chicken Wings?
If you’re after the best flavor, allow the wings a good couple hours (and up to 8 hours) to marinate in the fridge (same goes for other cuts, like Grilled Chicken Drumsticks, by the way). The more time you leave them in the marinade, the more flavor you’ll get throughout the meat, but even 30 minutes makes a big difference.
Put the chicken wings in a large zip-top bag and pour the marinade all over, then zip the bag shut and massage the chicken to make sure it is well-coated with the marinade. Lay the bag of marinated wings flat on a tray and refrigerate for a couple of hours or until ready to grill.
How Long Do You Grill Chicken Wings?
In general, it takes about 20 minutes to grill wings over direct medium-high heat (or 425 degrees F) of a covered gas grill. It is important to properly heat your grill.
The amount of time it takes to properly cook chicken wings on the grill will vary according to the size of the wings and also the kind of grill used. Look for crisped skin with some good char. And before you remove the wings from the grill, check the temperature with a meat thermometer. Chicken is done when it reaches an internal temp of 165F.
Grilling Tips for Success
For juicy, tender wings that are perfectly charred, keep these tips in mind:
- Allow the grill to heat properly. The grates on the grill should already be hot before you add the chicken to the grill.
- Shake off excess marinade before grilling. As you pull the wings out, using a pair of tongs, give them a shake to get rid of excess wet marinade. This will help the meat develop a good sear as the wings cook.
- Keep the grill covered, but be sure to rotate and flip the wings every 3 to 5 minutes for even charring and to prevent burning.
How to Store Leftovers
Personally, I prefer to make just enough of these wings so that there are no leftovers, as these are definitely best straight from the grill.
However, any leftovers can be stored in the fridge, in an airtight container or a Ziploc bag. Cooked chicken wings will last for up to 3 days.
To reheat: Crisp them up in an air fryer at 350°F for 8 minutes, but air fryer power varies so check them at 5 minutes.
What to Serve with Chicken Wings
I know you’re thinking you gotta have sauce for grilled wings! And while there is nothing wrong with serving these with your favorite BBQ sauce, they go so well with Tzatziki, the cool Greek yogurt and cucumber sauce, or my fast and easy Mint Yogurt Sauce or this Creamy Dill Sauce, which I typically use for salmon, but it goes great with these wings.
You can complete the BBQ party by adding a couple of summer salads like watermelon and feta salad, grilled lettuce salad, black bean and corn salad, potato salad or Greek salad.
More Mediterranean Chicken Recipes
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Juicy Grilled Whole Chicken, Mediterranean-Style
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Meat and Poultry
Easy Persian-Style Barbecue Chicken Thighs
Ingredients
For the marinade
- 1 large red onion, quartered
- 8 garlic cloves
- 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
- juice of 2 lemons
- 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
- 1 teaspoon coriander
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon Aleppo pepper (or 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes)
- 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
For the wings
- 2 1/2 pounds chicken wings
- Kosher salt
- 2 lemons, halved
Instructions
- Make the marinade: In the bowl of a large food processor fitted with a blade, combine the onion, garlic, olive oil, lemon juice and spices. Pulse until well combined into a thick marinade.
- Season the wings: Season the chicken wings well with Kosher salt and put them in a zip top bag. Pour the marinade over and zip the bag shut. Massage the bag a bit to distribute the marinade.
- Marinate: Lay the bag of wings flat on a large plate or tray. Refrigerate for 2 to 4 hours, turning the bag over once midway through.
- Warm up the grill. Heat a gas grill to 425°F and lightly oil the grates.
- Grill. Shake off excess marinade, then arrange the wings over direct heat. Cover the grill and cook the wings for 15 to 20 minutes, turning over every 5 minutes, until they are fully cooked through. Grill the lemons, flesh side down.
- Enjoy. Serve the wings immediately with the grilled lemons. And squeeze the lemons all over to your liking. Add your favorite sauce for dipping (I like the coolness of Tzatziki yogurt cucumber sauce).
Video
Notes
- Visit Our Shop to browse quality olive oils and spices used in this recipe.
Nutrition
Our Favorite
Aleppo Pepper
Mildly spicy, tangy, and fruity, these chile flakes are a versatile way to enhance almost any dish with rich, complex flavor.
Thank you for this great recipe! I was trying to copycat this Mediterranean wings from one of my favorite local restaurants (Delbar if anyone is in Atlanta) and this turns out to be very similar. I took away the onion and added a spoon of Zaatar
Thanks so much for the great review, Sylvia!
So easy and so so good !
So I ALWAYS try to copy recipes as they are written or else you’re not really using the recipe. I had to substitute allspice for nutmeg since we were out. But this was bursting with great flavor and slightly more mild than I expected. My only issue is using a marinade vs my typical dry rub. I just can’t beat the crisp skin on a dry rubbed wing. Sooo.. I’m going to save this recipe and use it as a dry rub, omitting the EVOO and lemon juice and adding 2 tbsp of cornstarch (secret ingredient to crisp up the skin). I plan to top with lemon after cooking and trying a Tzatziki sauce like you recommend. Maybe increase the pepper flakes as well. Thanks for sharing a gem of a recipe!
I’m wondering if I can freeze uncooked marinated wings so I have them on hand what do u think
Hi, Joan. We’ve never tried that before, so it’s a bit hard to say. The only thing that makes me hesitate to recommend this is that sometimes, the lemon in the marinade can affect the texture of the meat over time. You might just have to do a bit of experimenting here. If you do, please stop back and let us know how it turned out! We’d love to know!
I want to make this but I don’t have a grill. How else can I make these where they will turn out just beautiful and delicious?
Hi, Misty. You could always bake them. We actually have a baked wings recipe you could use as a guide: Greek Baked Chicken Wings . You won’t get the crispiness you would on the grill, but they will still be delish!
Without doubt, the best ever marinade. Not just for wings, but any chicken, or fish. Thank you for sharing the recipe.
It came out amazing. Looked almost as good as picture. The entire family loved it. The marinade is the key. Don’t skimp on it and marinate as long as possible.
Can i use pork ribs for this recipe?
Hi, Rizza! We have not tried that before, but I don’t see why not.
Hi, I tried this recipe today and I can’t thank you enough for such an amazing recipe. It’s easy, packed with flavour and a crowd pleaser. Keeping this recipe for long! Thank you so much 🙏
I made this but with chicken legs instead and it was a family winner and now a new favorite!!!
used this recipe for a block party a couple years ago and sooo many of my neighbors asked for the recipe 🙂 requested and obliged for the next year… plus a bunch of times for a weeknight dinner on chicken breasts. it has become my favorite go-to. little effort for the marinade with big results on taste. thank you
So glad to hear this! Thanks for taking the time to comment and review!
I am so happy I came across your recipes, I have a hard time eating most foods as my stomach condition will not tolerate them, however I have found that 95% of your recipes I can eat with no issues, so blessed and thankful you shared!!
Hi, Teri! Thank you so much for the kind words! We’re happy to hear you’ve found so many dished on the site that work well for you. It’s always motivating to know that the recipes we share can make a positive impact on someone’s life! I hope we can continue to provide you with many more recipes that are a good fit in the future!
My family have declared these the BEST chicken wings they have ever had…and we have eaten many chicken wings!!! LOL These were incredibly easy to throw together with a whir of my Cuisinart food processor (how did I live without this thing??!)! We made them for our 4th of July celebration. I threw them together and put in the fridge to marinate as we enjoyed the day in the park, came home threw them on the grill and whipped up your Watermelon Salad recipe to serve alongside. Divine!!! The chicken wings got a perfect char on the gas grill and the flavor combo was over the top good! I had some tzaziki sauce on hand and it was the perfect dipping sauce! That Watermelon Salad!!! Sooo good!!! This will be a repeat meal all summer for sure! Thank you, Suzy! 💕
Awww! Thank you for this kind review, Amy!!
Delicious moist wings. Grilled lemons are a must. We had with tzatziki mixed with some chili sauce and the grilled lemon juice. No need for any other sauces. Will make again for sure
Oh so good! This will be one of my go to recipes for wings. We grilled the lemons as the recipe called for…delish!
Made this for dinner tonight, cooked in oven instead of grilled due to weather but the flavor was fantastic. Great and easy marinade that I plan on using over and over!