Smoked Lemon Pepper Wings

WARNING! These smokey, tangy wings are highly addictive!

If you’re anything like me, you’re always looking for the next best wing flavor. These smoked lemon pepper wings are a real crowd pleaser and come with a huge flavor profile. 

I’ll show you how you can make crispy, delicious smoked lemon pepper wings with your own simple flavor-packed rub and sauce.

Fresh or Frozen?

When buying wings, you want to get fresh, not frozen, as the texture and flavor will be much better. 

Whenever I purchase wings, I always get the whole wing, then cut the chicken wing into the drum and the flat.

They are easy to cut apart, and you save quite a bit of money for two minutes of extra work. Use a good sharp chef’s knife when separating them.

How to get crispy skin when smoking chicken wings

Have you smoked chicken wings before only to be disappointed by rubbery skin?

When wings are cooked at a low temperature, the fat in the skin doesn’t get a chance to render and go crisp, resulting in the dreaded leathery texture.  

There are a couple of things you can do to ensure you get the crispiest skin. 

First off, add a bit of cornstarch to the rub. Cornstarch helps dry out the skin, which means less moisture and crispier skin. Be sure to toss it in with your seasoning, mix it well, then get a nice even coating all over those wings.

The other thing you can do is place your chicken on a wire rack in the fridge for a few hours.

This helps the wings dry out. The less moisture there is, the crispier the wing will get. 

Time and temp for smoked wings

It should take around one hour to cook these wings smoking at 275°F. 

Wings are safe to eat when the internal temperature is 165°F, but because of the higher fat content, they taste best cooked to 175-185°F. 

After an hour, the wings will be cooked, but I like to finish them with a 5-10 minute grill over direct heat to ensure that the skin is nice and crispy.   

How to make smoked lemon pepper wings

1. Fire up the smoker

Preheat your smoker to 275°F.

For this cook, I used my Kamado Joe with apple wood which compliments the lemon profile of the rub. Any smoke wood will work for chicken. 

One large wood chunk is all that is needed for this cook.

I place my wood chunk next to the burning coals – not directly in them. This helps produce a cleaner, better-tasting smoke profile. I also like to give the wood chunk a few minutes to burn until the heavier smoke dissipates. 

If you find that wood chunks produce too much smoke, you can use wood chips and just put a few handfuls in as needed.

Also, feel free to mix it up and try two kinds of wood at once and customize it to your liking. 

2. Prep your wings

Separate your wings by removing the drums from the flats and discarding the wing tips (or you could freeze them to add to stock at a later date).

Coat your wings with a binder, like hot sauce or olive oil. This helps the rub stick better. 

You can cook your wings straight away or, as I mentioned above, season and let them sit in the fridge for a couple of hours to dry out, this also helps to let the rub set in.

3. Smoke the wings

Once your smoker is stabilized at 275°F, place your wings directly on the grates and close the smoker.

After 30 minutes, it’s time to give them a flip. Let them smoke for another 30 minutes to infuse that delicious smoky flavor. 

4. Make the wing sauce

I used a whole head of roasted garlic. To do this, cut the top off the garlic, pour over some olive oil, and then cook for 30 minutes.

If you put the garlic on the roast when you put the wings on, it will be ready when you need to make the sauce.

You can also substitute for 2 tsp of garlic powder or 1 tbsp minced garlic.

Add all your ingredients into a pan and cook them down slowly until the butter is fully melted. Stir well and set aside. 

5. Grill over direct heat

Once your wings have been smoking for an hour they are almost done. I like to hit my wings with 7-10 minutes of direct heat to crisp up that skin. Flip them every 2-3 minutes to prevent them from burning – you want to be able to taste that smoky flavor! 

Once they reach about 185°F internal temp, pull them off.

The great thing about chicken wings is they are hard to overcook. You can pull them off at 165°F or get them crispier and cook them longer. They will still come out juicy and delicious, I promise! 

6. Sauce the wings

To finish, place them in a large bowl, pour in your sauce, and toss the wings until they are fully coated.

These wings are so good! Sit back, grab yourself a cold one and enjoy them with someone who loves wings as much as you. 

If you’re looking for more wing inspiration, check these out:

• Smoked chicken wings with garlic parmesan sauce
• Buffalo wings with blue cheese sauce
• Easy chicken wing brine
• Smoked Fried Wings with Honey Garlic Sauce