Instant Pot Buffalo Wings–throw a bag of frozen chicken wings in your electric pressure cooker and cook for just 3 minutes for perfectly cooked chicken wings! Toss the wings in some buffalo sauce and then serve with celery sticks and blue cheese dressing.
Get the SLOW COOKER version of the recipe here
Each week in 2020 I’m sharing a recipe inspired by one of the 50 states. So far I’ve covered…
- Alabama
- Alaska
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- Hawaii
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- Illinois
- Iowa
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
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- New Mexico
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See all the state recipes in one place.
Today’s recipe is inspired by the Empire State, New York. The origin of New York’s nickname is unknown although some credit George Washington, who referred to New York state in December 1784 as “at present the seat of the Empire.”
When I think of New York I think of New York City, of course. The Empire State Building, the Statue of Liberty, yellow taxi cabs, Wall Street, Broadway, subways, the NYC marathon, Times Square, etc. There is so much in New York City! But there are other parts of New York state besides New York City. And today’s recipe comes from Buffalo, New York.
Instant Pot Buffalo Wings
Buffalo wings started in Buffalo, New York. There are a few stories about how buffalo wings came to be but the story that is told the most often states that the wings started at the Anchor Bar in Buffalo.
In 1964, Teressa Bellissimo, the bar’s owner, received a shipment of chicken wings by accident and didn’t know what to do with them so she got an idea to deep-fry the wings and serve them in hot sauce with blue cheese dressing and celery sticks. The crowd absolutely loved the wings and they eventually made it onto the menu. Now wings are found at every Superbowl party and are served in restaurants and bars all over the country.
The authentic Buffalo wings recipe suggests frying unseasoned and unbreaded chicken wings until crispy. Then the wings are tossed into a hot sauce with melted butter.
Of course, since we are making wings in the Instant Pot it won’t be the authentic fried version of the recipe. But instead will be my version of buffalo wings with the use of the Instant Pot. And since they aren’t fried they will be a bit healthier.
Cooking chicken wings in the Instant Pot is super simple. And you know what’s fun about it? You can cook a bunch of frozen wings at the same time and then after they’re cooked you can season and sauce them differently. For example, I made these buffalo wings but at the same time I made garlic parmesan ranch buffalo wings too.
All you do is put a cup of liquid (water or broth) in the bottom of your Instant Pot. Then you place your trivet* or steamer basket* in the bottom of the pot. Add in as many wings as you’d like (up to the max fill line). I used a bag of frozen wings that was 3 pounds. Then you’ll cook for 3 minutes. The pot will take a little while to come to pressure, especially since the chicken is frozen and the pot is full. After they’re done cooking you’ll lay the wings on a sheet pan broil for a few minutes until they are a bit crispy. Add the wings to a big bowl that has your favorite buffalo wing sauce and then toss the wings in the sauce and enjoy! You’ll bite into the most tender wings ever. Greg said, “these are restaurant quality!”
More recipes you’ll love…
Here are some other good party food ideas:
The best 7 Layer Dip
Slow Cooker Taco Dip
Instant Pot Buffalo Chicken Chili
Instant Pot Buffalo Chicken Gyros
Slow Cooker Buffalo Chicken Dip
Easy slow cooker spinach dip
Slow Cooker Velveeta Rotel Dip (with Sausage!)
Slow Cooker Artichoke Spinach Dip
Instant Pot Buffalo Wings
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 3 minutes (plus 10 minute NPR)
- Total Time: 19 minutes
- Yield: Makes 3–4 servings of 4-5 wings each 1x
Description
Super flavorful and tender chicken wings with minimal effort!
Ingredients
- 1 (2.5 pound) bag of frozen chicken wings
- 1 cup water
- 1/2 cup buffalo wing sauce (I like Sweet Baby Ray’s*)
Instructions
- Pour one cup or water in the bottom of your Instant Pot. Place trivet or steamer basket in the bottom of the pot.
- Add the chicken wings into the steamer basket.
- Cover the pot and secure the lid. Make sure valve is set to “sealing.” Set the manual button (or pressure cook button) to 3 minutes. When the timer beeps let the pressure release naturally for 5-10 minutes. Then release the rest of the pressure by moving the valve to “venting.”
- Remove the lid. Turn your oven to the broil setting. Use tongs to place the chicken wings (skin side up) on a sheet pan. I lined my pan with a silicone mat* for easy cleaning.
- Put the sheet pan under the broiler, about 5-6 inches. Broil for 3-4 minutes until skin is crispy.
- Use tongs to place chicken wings into a bowl. Add in the buffalo wing sauce and toss until wings are coated.
- To enjoy the wings fully, dip the wings in blue cheese dressing and serve with celery sticks.
Notes
I used my 6 quart Instant Pot Duo 60 7 in 1*.
- Category: Chicken
- Method: Instant Pot
*Karen Petersen is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.
Tried these yesterday, except I finished them off in the air fryer on max setting instead of under the broiler.
They were delicious and as I did a 3rd of the recipe in a 3 qt IP it felt like a super quick way to get portion of wings from frozen to my plate in a very short timeframe.
good idea on the air fryer!
What temp do you set you ip for the chicken wings
I cook on high pressure
If I use 5 pounds of wings do I increase the cook time to 6 min?
No, I would keep the time the same. The pot will take longer to come to pressure.
Usually your recipes are bang on and I have dozens of them saved. Many I’ve made multiple times and many I still have yet to try but this one didn’t quite work out for me. My wings were thawed and I cooked on high for 3 min then let sit for about 7 minutes before QR. But when I opened the lid, the wings on the bottom were still raw. I’ve put them in for 3 more min and hopefully they’ll be fine now but just FYI that some may need more than 3 mins.
That’s interesting. Were any of them cooked? Did you do 2.5 pounds?
Being from Buffalo, this recipe warms my soul. The Anchor Bar has THE best wings in the world, and every true wing fan knows to use blue cheese and never ranch. Plus homemade hot sauce. Can’t wait to try them in my Instant Pot! Thanks!
Hi Laura, I would love to see your homemade hot sauce recipe!
Are they crispy?
The broiler helps a bit. Not totally crispy like if you’d fried them though.
Do you turn the wings over or just brush the same side with sauce?
You really can do it either way!
Make your own sauce as we do in Buffalo….Franks Hot Sauce and butter. I also add garlic powder , Worcester sauce and a dash of vinegar. DO NOT serve with ranch. Only use blue cheese
Yum yum! sounds so great!
It’s impossible to make Wings in the IP. They are not meant to be steamed. They are crispy. Wh husband grew up with the creators grandsughter!
I have an 8 quart Instant Pot. Should I make any changes?
Just put 1.5 cups water in the bottom of the pot so it can come to pressure.
I can’t wait to try these..looks perfect. I have the same pot that u have
Nice!
I also you regular coke or beer in place of the water or broth.
Cool!
Hi Karen, looks delish, I can’t wait to try this recipe. Do you have an idea how long fresh wings would take? Thanks
Cook for the same time listed. The pot will come to pressure much faster.
Thanks