These lemon pepper wings are crispy fried chicken wings brushed with lemon pepper butter. An easy appetizer or main course that’s even better than the restaurant version!

You can’t eat just one of these deliciously addictive lemon pepper wings! They’re great for game day alongside other hearty appetizer recipes, or serve them over Instant Pot mashed potatoes with a side of roasted broccoli for a fabulous dinner option.

A tray of lemon pepper wings garnished with parsley and lemon.

I can never resist ordering chicken wings at restaurants. They’re incredibly crispy on the outside, yet juicy and tender on the inside. Add a savory lemon pepper butter and you have the absolute best lemon pepper wings imaginable!

Lemon Pepper Chicken Wings Ingredients

Ingredients including chicken wings, butter, flour and seasonings.

To make this recipe, you will need chicken wings, flour, salt, pepper, oil, butter, lemon pepper seasoning and parsley.

How do You Make Lemon Pepper wings?

This recipe starts with party style chicken wings, which are simply chicken wings that have been cut into two pieces. I feel that party wings are easier to eat and cook more evenly than whole chicken wings. Coat the wings in seasoned flour, then deep fry them in small batches until crispy and golden brown. Let the wings cool on a paper towel to absorb excess grease, and repeat the process until all the wings are fried. In a small bowl, combine melted butter and lemon pepper seasoning to make the sauce. Brush the sauce all over the wings, then sprinkle with fresh parsley and serve. I like to garnish my wings with lemon wedges and sprigs of parsley, but those are optional additions.

Step by step shots showing how to bread and fry chicken wings.

Tips For the Perfect Wings

  • Use a thermometer to make sure your frying oil is at the correct temperature. You want your oil to be somewhere between 350 and 375 degrees F. If the oil is too hot, the wings will burn before the insides cook through. If the oil is too cold, your wings may absorb excess oil and be overly greasy. The right temperature oil will help to seal in all those flavorful juices!
  • I typically use peanut oil to fry my wings, although any oil with a high smoke point will work, such as vegetable oil, avocado oil or canola oil.
  • You can serve your wings as-is, or add a dip on the side such as ranch dressing or blue cheese dressing.
  • When I purchased my lemon pepper for this recipe, I read the ingredients of 4 different brands and they varied quite a bit. Some lemon pepper brands contain salt, others use citric acid instead of actual lemon zest, and some even use yellow food coloring! I recommend choosing one with a more natural ingredient list that includes black pepper and real lemon.

Quick Tip

These wings are best served immediately when they’re piping hot and super crispy.

A brush putting seasoned butter onto chicken wings.

Recipe FAQs

How do you make a lemon pepper sauce?

My lemon pepper sauce is a simple mixture of lemon pepper seasoning and butter. Brush the sauce all over the wings for maximum flavor.

How spicy is lemon pepper?

Lemon pepper is fairly mild on the spice scale. It contains black pepper, but does not contain any spicier chili peppers.

What can I substitute for lemon pepper?

If you don’t have a bottle of lemon pepper seasoning in the house, make your own by combining 1 1/2 teaspoons black pepper, 1 teaspoon salt and 1 1/2 teaspoons freshly grated lemon zest.

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Baked Lemon Pepper Wings

If you prefer, you can bake these wings in the oven. To make baked wings, you’ll want to skip the flour coating and instead brush your wings with 3 tablespoons of olive oil and season with salt and pepper to taste. Bake your wings on a wire rack set on a baking sheet at 425 degrees F for 45-50 minutes, or until deep golden brown and crispy. Brush with the lemon pepper butter as directed in the recipe, sprinkle with parsley, then serve. You won’t get quite the same coating as you will in the frying method, but the baked version is still totally delicious!

A plate of lemon pepper wings served with ranch.

Flavor Variations

This recipe is fabulous as-is, but you can customize the sauce or add dips to take it to the next level.

  • Sauce: Instead of mixing lemon pepper into the melted butter, try other spices such as BBQ rub, Cajun seasoning, garlic powder, onion powder, Italian seasoning or even chili powder. You can also grab some fresh lemons and add a squeeze of lemon juice to the butter mixture.
  • Dips: While ranch is a classic pairing with wings, other great options include BBQ sauce, fry sauce, yum yum sauce or honey mustard sauce.
  • Chicken: No wings on hand? You can bake up chicken drumsticks or thighs and brush the lemon pepper sauce over them for a similar taste.

If you love lemon pepper, you’ll adore these flavorful little wings. They’re a welcome addition to any party, or serve them up as a fun and unexpected dinner option!

More Chicken Wing Recipes

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4.99 from 64 votes

Lemon Pepper Wings

AuthorSara Welch
A tray of lemon pepper wings garnished with parsley and lemon.
These lemon pepper wings are crispy fried chicken wings brushed with lemon pepper butter. An easy appetizer or main course that’s even better than the restaurant version!
Time
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time25 minutes
Total Time35 minutes
Course Appetizer
Cuisine American
Serves 8

Ingredients 

  • 3 lbs chicken wings party style wings cut into sections
  • 1 cup all purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • 1 teaspoon pepper
  • oil for frying
  • 1/4 cup butter melted
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons lemon pepper seasoning
  • 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
  • lemon wedges and parsley sprigs for serving optional

Instructions 

  • Place the flour in a large bowl and season with the salt and pepper. Stir to combine.
  • Place the chicken wings in the bowl; gently toss to coat with flour mixture.
  • Heat 4 inches of oil in a large pot to 350 degrees F.
  • Add the chicken wings to the pot in batches of about 6-8 wings. Fry for 10-12 minutes or until wings are deep golden brown and cooked through. Repeat with remaining wings.
  • In a small bowl, combine the butter and lemon pepper seasoning. Brush the butter mixture over the chicken wings and toss to coat. Sprinkle with parsley and serve.
  • Garnish with lemon wedges and parsley sprigs if desired.

Notes

  1. Use a thermometer to make sure your frying oil is at the correct temperature. You want your oil to be somewhere between 350 and 375 degrees F. If the oil is too hot, the wings will burn before the insides cook through. If the oil is too cold, your wings may absorb excess oil and be overly greasy.
  2. I typically use peanut oil to fry my wings, although any oil with a high smoke point will work, such as vegetable oil or canola oil.

Nutrition

Calories: 315kcal | Carbohydrates: 12g | Protein: 18g | Fat: 20g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Cholesterol: 85mg | Sodium: 699mg | Potassium: 174mg | Vitamin A: 310IU | Vitamin C: 0.7mg | Calcium: 20mg | Iron: 1.7mg

Hello! I’m Sara!

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4.99 from 64 votes (34 ratings without comment)

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Comments

  1. 5 stars
    Made this to pair with our pizza night and it was amazing. It was gone the second I placed the plate on our backyard table. Everyone loved it! Bookmarking this recipe.

  2. These Lemon Pepper Wings are pure heaven for my taste buds! Crispy, buttery, and packed with zesty lemon flavor – restaurant quality at home!

  3. 5 stars
    I don’t typically like wings, but these ones were the ones to change my mind!! Thank you so much for sharing, this will be on regular rotation for sure! 🙂

  4. 5 stars
    I’m not normally a fan of wings, so I made these mostly for my husband and kids — but I ended up LOVING these ones! These are definitely our new favorite wings flavor.

  5. 5 stars
    i just gotta say from a young man you have my family very impressed made them 2 weeks ago the family tore them up even the leftovers and here i am again smashing these out for the family 💯