Tag: charcoal grilled wings

Hooters Daytona Beach Style Wings using the Vortex (Copycat Recipe)

Oh my goodness me. I don’t know why I waited so long to make this Hooters Daytona Beach Style wings using the Vortex copycat recipe. They were absolutely amazing. Vortex wings are already great to begin with. That great charcoal smoke flavor. Crispy skin. Super-juicy and tender meat. Just great stuff. These wings, boy, are they ever even more amazing. An even crunchier coating. And the sauce? Slightly sweet, slightly hot and very delicious. These are fantastic wings. This will be making my normal wing rotation for sure.

If you have a charcoal grill, such as a Weber kettle, you need a Vortex. It’s great for more than wings, but if you buy it just to make amazing wings, it’s money well spent! Heck, I love wings this way so much that I have an 18″ Weber charcoal grill dedicated almost full-time to just cooking wings!

Copycat Hooters Daytona Beach Style Wings using the Vortex

Sauce ‘Em Heavy. Sauce ‘Em Light.

After tasting the sauce for these copycat Hooters Daytona Beach Style wings using the Vortex copycat recipe I knew I was going to end up putting more sauce on the wings than I usually do. I don’t like to drown my wings in sauce. I like to taste the wings, too. But boy, this stuff was so tasty that I couldn’t help myself. It was crazy finger-licking good.

Extra Sauce Because It’s Extra Good

Make extra sauce and put it on hamburgers, hot dogs, smoked pulled pork, and oh yeah, ribs! And of course, it’s great for dipping chicken nuggets. No, they’re not boneless wings. If I have a pet peeve it’s calling chicken nuggets ‘boneless wings’! What the heck? Ok, I’ll stop now before I get myself worked up!

Rotating The Lid

Depending on the size of your charcoal grill, you may want to rotate the lid 90 degrees every 15 minutes during cooking. I’ve found that this makes no difference on my 18-inch grill. And almost no difference (if any, really) on my 22-inch grill. If I don’t have the grill completely filled with wings around the Vortex I make sure the vent is above the wings to draw the heat and smoke over them. No rotating required.

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Also try my chili crisp wings using the Vortex!

Copycat Hooters Daytona Beach Style Wings using the Vortex
Print Recipe
5 from 1 vote

Copycat Hooters Daytona Beach Style Wings using the Vortex

Crazy finger-licking good.
Prep Time45 minutes
Cook Time45 minutes
Total Time1 hour 30 minutes
Course: Appetizer
Cuisine: American
Keyword: grilled wings, wings
Servings: 6
Calories: 397kcal

Equipment

Ingredients

For the wings

For the sauce

Instructions

For the wings

  • Place wings into a large bowl or resealable container.
  • Combine flour, paprika, salt and pepper. Sprinkle over the wings and toss to coat.
  • Cover and refrigerate 30 minutes while you get the grill going.
  • Place the Vortex into the center of your grill and add in the charcoal. Open the bottom vents on your grill by 1/3.
  • Light a charcoal chimney full of charcoal. Alternatively you can fill your Vortex with charcoal and light them inside the unit.
  • Let the charcoal get fully ashed over then add to the Vortex.
  • If you want extra smoke flavor, place a small wood chunk or two over the center of the Vortex and let it ignite and smoke.
  • Add the chicken to the grill, in a circle around the Vortex.
  • Close the grill and cook for 30 minutes. If you are using a large charcoal grill (22" or bigger) you might want to rotate the lid 90 degrees every 15 minutes. I haven't found this to be necessary on smaller (18" and 14") grills.
  • Brush the wings with the sauce. Turn them over and sauce the other side.
  • Grill another 15 minutes.
  • Flip the wings again. Sauce some more. If desired, place the wings directly over the Vortex on the grate for a few minutes to char them up a bit.
  • Remove and serve.

For the sauce

  • Combine all of the sauce ingredients in a saucepan over medium heat.
  • Bring to a gentle boil. Reduce heat to a simmer.
  • Simmer for 5 minutes.
  • Keep warm until ready to use.

Nutrition

Calories: 397kcal | Carbohydrates: 14g | Protein: 30g | Fat: 25g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g | Monounsaturated Fat: 10g | Trans Fat: 0.3g | Cholesterol: 116mg | Sodium: 978mg | Potassium: 312mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 827IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 35mg | Iron: 2mg

Nutritional values are approximate and will not include any store-bought wing sauce or seasoning nutritional values.

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Dry Buffalo Wings using the Vortex

I love cooking chicken wings on my charcoal grill using the Vortex. I always get crispy, moist, tender wings using the Vortex. The wonderful chicken dark meat has a slight smokiness to it. The wings have a great grilled flavor that I don’t want to hide with a bunch of sauce or seasoning. But a little added flavor is a good thing. That’s why I love my dry Buffalo wings using the Vortex. I have total control on how much seasoning I add.

These wings are not served covered in sauce. Instead they are served dry. Just seasoned. That’s it. That’s all they need!

Dry Buffalo Wings using the Vortex

Crispy Skin. Still.

One of the great things about dry Buffalo wings using the Vortex is that the skin stays crispy. Crazy crispy, in fact. You don’t always get that with sauced wings. I think dry wings are a great thing. They’re always a welcome change from sauced wings.

No Sugar Zone

I recommend not using any kind of seasoning containing sugar. The high heat of the Vortex may cause it to burn. If you really want that sweetness, add the seasoning only after the wings have cooked. You can just use salt and pepper for seasoning during cooking.

Want More Smoke?

If you want your wings to have a bit more smokiness to them, and not just what you get from the charcoal, add a chunk of wood over the center of the Vortex. Do it early on, not long after you’ve lit the charcoal, to give the wood time to catch on and start generating smoke. If you think you’re getting more smoke than you want, just remove the wood chunk. Make sure you put it somewhere non-combustible as it will smolder for a long time!

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Also try my duck fat chicken wings using the Vortex.

Dry Buffalo Wings using the Vortex
Print Recipe
5 from 1 vote

Dry Buffalo Wings using the Vortex

Perfect wings every time.
Prep Time3 hours
Cook Time45 minutes
Course: Appetizer
Cuisine: American
Keyword: grilled wings
Servings: 6
Calories: 80kcal

Equipment

Ingredients

Instructions

  • Place the wings into a large resealable container or baggie.
  • Add the oil and half of the seasoning. Seal and shake to coat well.
  • Refrigerate for 3 hours.
  • Place the Vortex into the center of your grill. Open the bottom vents on your grill by 1/3, while keeping the top vent open completely.
  • Light a charcoal chimney full of charcoal. Alternatively, you can fill your Vortex with charcoal and light them inside the unit.
  • Let the charcoal get fully ashed over then add to the Vortex.
  • Add the chicken. For the flats have the skin side up, and for the drumettes keep the meaty part away from the fire.
  • Close the grill and cook for 15 minutes.
  • Rotate the lid 90 degrees and cook for another 15 minutes.
  • Flip the wings. Rotate the lid another 90 degrees and cook 15 more minutes.
  • Check if the wings are as crispy as you like. If not, rotate the lid another 90 degrees and cook another 15 minutes.
  • Transfer wings to a bowl and toss with more of the seasoning.

Notes

I’ve not found that rotating the grill has any effect on how great this wings turn out. So don’t sweat it if you forget to do it.

Nutrition

Calories: 80kcal | Fat: 9g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Iron: 0.002mg

Nutritional values are approximate and will not include any store-bought wing sauce or seasoning nutritional values.

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Charcoal Grilled Crispy Cajun Wings

I’ve been wanting to make these charcoal grilled crispy Cajun wings for a while. It’s not that I don’t make wings over charcoal often. I do. But I use a thing called a Vortex BBQ. It helps me get amazingly crispy skin using very high temperatures. That’s not what I’m doing here, though. I wanted to prove that I can make fantastically crunchy skin wings without my Vortex. And boy did I. These great wings take just a little effort, just a little time, and come out fantastic. And the sauce is nothing to sneeze at either! These are great tasting wings too!

Charcoal Grilled Crispy Cajun Wings

It’s Super Easy

There are just two simple steps to making charcoal grilled crispy Cajun wings. First, you need to air dry the wings coated in seasoned baking powder (not baking soda) overnight in a fridge on a wire rack. This helps dry out the skin, making it easier to get it crispy later. And second, when it comes time to cook the wings, make sure you have a pile of super-hot coals on just one side of your grill. That leaves you a less hot zone, called indirect grilling, to cook your wings without worrying about burning them. The high heat circulates around the wings helps crisp up the skin. And of course charcoal adds such a great flavor that you just can’t get in an air fryer, deep fryer or oven!

Charcoal Grilled Crispy Cajun Wings Setup

Don’t Forget The Sauce

Sure, you can use any sauce you want on these wings. But you’ll want to keep that Cajun theme going and make a batch of the sauce below. It has a nice spicy kick to it with a great flavor that compliments the seasoned wings perfectly.

I do still highly recommend a Vortex BBQ. It’s not only great for wings but also ‘fried’ chicken, ribs and oh so much more!

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  • ✅ 【STAINLESS STEEL】 Long Lasting Stainless…
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Also try some crispy Buffalo wings made using a gas grill!

Charcoal Grilled Crispy Cajun Wings
Print Recipe
5 from 1 vote

Charcoal Grilled Crispy Cajun Wings

Crispy spicy deliciousness!
Prep Time12 hours
Cook Time1 hour
Total Time9 hours
Course: Appetizer
Cuisine: American
Keyword: crispy, grilled wings
Servings: 2
Calories: 1229kcal

Equipment

Ingredients

For the wings

For the sauce

Instructions

For the wings

  • Place the wings in a large bowl or resealable container.
  • Combine the baking powder and Cajun seasoning.
  • Sprinkle half of the seasoning mix over the wings. Using your hands, toss the wings to coat.
  • Add the remaining seasoning and repeat.
  • Transfer the wings to a wire rack over a baking sheet. Place in the fridge 12 hours or overnight to dry out the skin.
  • Load up the charcoal chimney about 3/4ths of the way with charcoal and light. Once the charcoal is all lit and lightly covered in ash, dump the coals into the grill along one side. This will create two zones: a hot direct heat zone over the coals and a cooler indirect heat zone for the wings.
  • Add the charcoal grate and close the grill. Open the top and bottoms vents all the way. Let the grill preheat for 5.
  • Place the wings on the indirect heat side of the grill. Close the lid and turn so that the vent is above the wings.
  • Cook until the wings are lightly browned and crispy, usually 45 minutes. While the wings are cooking make the wing sauce.
  • Transfer the wings to a large bowl. Pour as much sauce as desired over the wings and toss to coat. Serve hot.  Click here for our guide on how to sauce your wings.

For the sauce

  • Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat.
  • Stir in the hot sauce and Worcestershire.
  • Reduce heat and keep warm until ready to use.

Notes

Serve with your favorite dipping sauce on the side, if desired.

Nutrition

Calories: 1229kcal | Carbohydrates: 5g | Protein: 84g | Fat: 96g | Saturated Fat: 35g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 16g | Monounsaturated Fat: 35g | Trans Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 410mg | Sodium: 1083mg | Potassium: 852mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 2860IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 430mg | Iron: 6mg

Nutritional values are approximate and will not include any store-bought wing sauce or seasoning nutritional values.

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  • Made for wings and more
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Buy on Amazon