Crispy fried chicken wings coated in a spicy, tangy sauce.
Invented in 1964 at the Anchor Bar in Buffalo, New York, by Teressa Bellissimo, who fried up some leftover wings as a late-night snack for her son and his friends. Wings were a throwaway cut at the time; the dish single-handedly turned them into a butcher-counter premium within a decade.
Anchor Bar 1964 invention; Frank's RedHot was already 44 years old by then. Blue cheese tames the vinegar-cayenne.
Deep-fried chicken wings, naked (no breading), tossed in a bright orange slick of melted butter and Frank's RedHot. Skin stays crackly under the sauce; meat pulls clean off the bone. Served with celery sticks and blue cheese dip — the dairy is structural, not garnish, since it cuts the vinegar burn. If the sauce is gloppy or sweet, it's not a Buffalo wing.
The sauce is a 1:1 emulsion of cayenne-vinegar hot sauce and melted butter, nothing else. Butter is load-bearing — without dairy fat, the vinegar reads as harsh acid; with it, the heat rounds out and clings to the skin instead of running off. Wings must be fried twice or fried hot enough that skin renders before sauce hits, or the coating slides.
Variations
Korean garlic-soy (yangnyeom) wings; Vietnamese fish-sauce wings (Pok Pok, Portland); honey-Old-Bay in DC; lemon-pepper-wet in Atlanta.
On the Palate
Where Buffalo Wings sits in the American flavor cloud
The sauce is just melted butter whisked 1:1 into cayenne hot sauce — the dairy fat is what rounds the vinegar's edge and makes it cling, so tossing crisp-fried wings in a warm, glossy emulsion is the whole move.
Ingredients
How it's made
5 steps · 32 min
- 110 min
Heat oil in a deep fryer or large pot to 375°F (190°C). The oil should be deep enough to fully submerge the wings. Carefully drop the chicken wings into the hot oil, listening for a gentle sizzle as they begin to fry.
Watch outEnsure the oil is hot enough before adding the wings, or they will absorb oil and become greasy instead of crispy.
- 210 min
Fry the wings until they are golden brown and crispy, turning occasionally. This should take about 10 minutes. The skin should be crisp and the meat cooked through.
Watch outListen and look — steady bubbling and a deep golden, hard-looking skin mean the crust is set.
- 35 min
While the wings are frying, melt butter in a saucepan over low heat. Add hot sauce and a splash of vinegar, stirring until the mixture is smooth and well combined. The sauce should be thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.
Watch outKeep the heat low so the butter just melts and blends — if it bubbles hard it can split and turn greasy.
- 45 min
Once the wings are cooked, remove them from the oil and drain on paper towels. Place the wings in a large bowl and pour the sauce over them.
- 52 min
Toss the wings in the bowl until they are evenly coated with the sauce. The wings should glisten with the spicy, buttery mixture.
Watch outToss fast while everything's hot — the wings should come out glossy and evenly slicked, not patchy.
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