Fried chicken wings with various sauces.

How Long To Deep Fry Frozen Chicken Wings?

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Crispy fried chicken wings are delicious! They are pretty simple to make, especially if they are at room temperature or thawed ahead of time, but frozen wings are a little bit trickier because you cant fry them too long that they burn but need enough time to cook through, so how long do you deep fry frozen chicken wings?

You can deep fry frozen chicken wings for 10-15 minutes, but you must ensure the oil is not above the smoking point, or you risk the possibility of oil splatters everywhere, boiling over, and even a fire. You can remove the chicken after 10 minutes and refry it for another 5 for the best results.

We will discuss a few essential points in this article, namely:

Fried chicken wings with fried potato slices.

Should You Deep Fry Chicken Wings From Frozen?

You can deep fry any frozen chicken, including the wings. The fantastic thing about wings is that they are typically smaller pieces, and because of that, there is only a little bit of meat on the bone, so it does get done pretty well.

Try to keep in mind that it is always better to thaw your chicken first. Frying frozen wings can be dangerous because of the contrasting ice-cold temperature to extreme hot oil.

If you want to fry your chicken wings from frozen, it is crucial to take the necessary precautions, which we will address through this article. Remember the frying time is vital in making sure your chicken thaws while cooking and gets done in the middle.

How Long Should You Deep Fry Chicken Wings?

You can deep fry your frozen chicken wings for approximately 10-15 minutes, and they will cook perfectly. That is considering you follow the correct steps and techniques of deep-frying food from frozen.

The length of frying your frozen chicken wings will determine not only if it gets golden and crispy on the outside but if the meat cooks through on the inside. Sometimes if you don’t fry it long enough, it stays frozen and pink in the middle near the bone. In the same way, if you fry it too long, it might become too brown and burn while also drying it out.

The Method Of Deep Frying Frozen Chicken Wings

There’s a few essential steps to take when deep-frying frozen chicken wings:

  1. Dust or scrape of any ice sticking to the wings from freezer burn. Ice will create an “explosion” in the hot oil.
  2. Make sure all the wings are separated as they might not get cooked through if they are stuck together.
  3. Heat the oil to around 350°F before putting the wings in the oil. Any hotter than that means the oil is over smoking point, and there will be a risk of flames.
  4. Slowly place the chicken wings in the oil. If you are using a pot or frying pan, add the chicken a few at a time with a slotted spoon. If you use an electric fryer, add the wings to the basket.
  5. Slowly lower the basket into the oil and lift it out again.  Doing that allows the bubbles created from the cold icy chicken wings and heated oil to settle down.

Release the basket back into the oil and allow it to fry for 10 minutes.

  • Lift the basket out, and let the wings sit for 2-3 minutes, and then place it back into the oil to fry for an additional 5 minutes.

Removing the chicken wings after 10 minutes helps the chicken to cool down slightly while the heat thaws the meat further. It also helps to keep the crispy outer layer from burning before the inside cooks through. The chicken will thoroughly cook through when you fry it for the next 5 minutes, giving you the perfect crispy golden brown, tender wings.

What Oil Is Best To Deep Fry Chicken Wings?

Sunflower oil

The best oil for deep frying any food, especially frozen food like poultry wings, is good quality, high smoking point vegetable oil. Canola and sunflower oils are excellent options as they are multipurpose vegetable oils.

If you don’t use the correct oil, how long you fry your frozen wings won’t matter because there is always a way it can spoil. Either the chicken won’t get done thoroughly, or oil will splatter everywhere, causing a hazard. Then there is always the possibility the wings could burn or get too soggy.

What Happens When Deep Frying Frozen Chicken Wings?

Fried chicken wings with fried potato slices, top view.

It’s all about science. Water and oil don’t mix. Ice and hot oil especially don’t go well together. Oil has a high boiling point compared to water and continues to heat. Because of the extreme temperature, when dropping water into the oil, it splatters and bubbles.

When you put frozen foods into heated oil, it creates a boiling effect and can overflow out of the cookware or fryer. That bubbling effect from the ice-cold frozen food happens in the oil when you fry chicken wings from frozen.

It is necessary to ensure your oil is at the correct temperature and as much ice is scraped off the chicken pieces before adding it to your hot oil.

So, How Long To Deep Fry Frozen Chicken Wings?

How long should you deep fry frozen chicken wings, you ask? 10 minutes initially, remove the chicken pieces and fry them for an additional 5 minutes. Your chicken wings will be delicious, tender, and cooked through if you use that method along with the essential precautions and techniques mentioned above.

Now, there’s no need to buy chicken buckets at KFC anymore. You can make your own fried crispy chicken wings at home anytime those cravings hit!


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