Mango Habanero Chicken Wings

Mango Habanero Chicken Wings are sweet, spicy, and tangy! The skin is crispy and covered with a homemade mango habanero sauce and the tender meat falls right off the bone. Follow our baking or broiling instructions to make these delectable wings in just a few easy steps!

Try these zesty wings as an appetizer at your next party or add them to your weeknight dinner rotation. If you make them for dinner, enjoy them with fried potatoes or rice and a veggie like roasted asparagus. If you make them as an appetizer, just double or triple the recipe.

Our easy recipe provides steps for broiling or baking depending on your preference. Broil them if you want them slightly charred or bake them if you want them to just be crispy. Either way you can't go wrong!

Jump to:

• About Mango Habanero Wings
• Ingredients
• Substitutions/Variations
• Instructions
• What Goes with Mango Habanero Wings
• Recipe FAQs
• Storage
• Cooking Tips
• Related Recipes
• Did You Like This Recipe?
• 📖 Recipe

About Mango Habanero Wings

• Taste - These mango habanero wings are uniquely spicy and fruity.
• Texture - The wings have the perfect crispy and sticky outside and juicy inside.
• Effort - This wings recipe is easy. All you need to do is prepare and season the wings, bake them, then toss them in sauce.
• Time - It takes about 5 minutes to prep the wings then either 15 minutes or 45 minutes to broil or bake the wings, then 5 minutes to toss the wings.

Ingredients

Wings

• Chicken wings - You can use either flats, drumettes, or both.
• Olive oil - Olive oil helps to make the wings crispy.
• Lemon juice - Fresh lemon juice adds brightness.
• Baking powder - Baking powder creates more surface area on the wings and helps them get crispy.
• Kosher salt - kosher salt accentuates the rich sauce flavors.
• Freshly ground black pepper - Pepper adds a little spice.
• Garlic powder - Garlic powder adds a light garlicky flavor to the wings.
• Smoked paprika - Paprika adds a smoky and spicy sweetness.

Mango Habanero Sauce

• Mango pulp - Mango pulp provides a fruity sweetness.
• Habanero peppers - Habanero adds a spicy tanginess.
• Garlic - Garlic adds the quintessential herby aroma.
• Shallot - Shallot provides a light oniony flavor.
• Honey - Honey adds a light sweetness to balance the spice.
• Orange juice, lime juice, or tangerine juice - The juice adds a citrusy fruitiness.
• Seasoned rice vinegar or apple cider vinegar - Use seasoned rice vinegar or apple cider vinegar to brighten up the sauce.
• Cilantro - Cilantro provides a fresh and peppery taste.

See recipe card for quantities.

Substitutions/Variations

• Spicy - Add more habaneros or include the seeds to imbue extra heat.
• Citrus juice - Use orange juice, lime juice, or tangerine juice, or a mix of all three.
• Tomatillo - Tomatillos are sweet and tangy. Replace half of the mango pulp with chopped tomatillos.
• Stone fruit - Add a sweet stone fruit twist by substituting half of the mango pulp with peach or nectarine pulp.
• Passion fruit - Add a sweet and tangy passion fruit flavor by replacing part of the mango pulp with passion fruit puree.
• Whole wings - Use flats and drumettes or whole wings for this recipe. If you use whole wings, make sure to spread the wings so they cook evenly and get crispy.
• More garlic - If you love garlic, add more!
• No mango habanero sauce - Make these wings without sauce for lightly flavored but still delicious oven baked wings.

Instructions

Baked Habanero Mango Wings

• Preheat oven to bake - Place the rack in the middle of the oven and heat the oven to 400°F.
• Prepare chicken - Add olive oil, lemon juice, baking powder, kosher salt, black pepper, garlic powder, and smoked paprika to a large bowl and stir until combined. Dry chicken wings with a paper towel and place in the mixing bowl. Then toss the wings in the mixture until completely coated. (Photo 1, 2, and 3)
• Arrange chicken - Arrange the chicken in a single layer on a foil-lined baking sheet or a greased cooling rack on top of a baking sheet. Leave some space between each wing and avoid crowding so the chicken cooks evenly and gets crispy. (Photo 4)

• Bake chicken - Then place in the oven and cook for 40-50 minutes, turning the wings over halfway through. Cook until the skin is crispy and golden and the internal temperature is 165°F (74°C). (Photo 5 and 6)
• Make sauce - While the wings bake, add mango pulp, habanero peppers, garlic, shallot, honey,  citrus juice, and seasoned rice vinegar to a high-powered blender. Blend until smooth then transfer to a saucepan and stir in kosher salt. (Photo 7 and 8)

• Reduce sauce - Bring the sauce to a simmer and cook until it starts to reduce, about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Then remove from heat and allow to cool. (Photo 9)
• Toss in sauce - Remove the chicken wings from the oven and transfer to a clean mixing bowl. Toss in the mango habanero sauce until coated. Then arrange back on the baking sheet and cook for an additional 5-8 minutes at 400°F. The wings will be sticky and the meat will be tender. (Photo 10 and 11)
• Serve - Transfer to a clean serving platter and top with chopped cilantro on top. Serve immediately. (Photo 12)

Broiled Mango Habanero Wings

• Preheat oven to boil - Place the rack in the middle of the oven and heat the oven to broil on high.
• Prepare chicken - Add olive oil, lemon juice, baking powder, kosher salt, black pepper, garlic powder, and smoked paprika to a large mixing bowl and stir until combined. Dry chicken wings with a paper towel and place in the mixing bowl. Then toss the wings in the mixture until completely coated.
• Broil chicken - Arrange the chicken in a single layer on a foil-lined baking sheet or a greased cooling rack on top of a baking sheet. Leave some space between each wing and avoid crowding so the chicken cooks evenly and gets crispy. Then place in the oven and cook for 10-14 minutes, turning halfway through. Make sure to quickly remove the baking sheet and close the oven door when you turn the wings over to avoid the hot air from escaping. Cook until the skin is crispy and golden and the internal temperature is 165°F (74°C).
• Make sauce - While the wings bake, add mango pulp, habanero peppers, garlic, shallot, honey,  citrus juice, and seasoned rice vinegar to a high-powered blender. Blend until smooth then transfer to a saucepan and stir in kosher salt. Bring the sauce to a simmer and cook until it starts to reduce, about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Then remove from heat and allow to cool.
• Toss in sauce - Remove the chicken wings from the oven and transfer to a clean mixing bowl. Toss in the mango habanero sauce until coated. Then arrange back on the baking sheet and cook for an additional 5-8 minutes at 400°F. The wings will be sticky and the meat will be tender. Transfer to a clean serving platter and top with chopped cilantro on top. Serve immediately.

Pro tip - Do NOT touch your eyes - Be extra careful when handling habanero peppers. They are extremely hot and will burn your eyes. Use disposable gloves or thoroughly wash your hands after touching the peppers.

What Goes with Mango Habanero Wings

These homemade wings are an easy and flavorful main course or appetizer. We love to make them for a weeknight meal or for game day with family and friends. For game day, they pair well with other wings like our Honey Lemon Pepper Wings or Soy Garlic Wings. For dinner, we usually enjoy them with a delicious side like our Pan Fried Potatoes or rice and a tasty veggie like our Lemon Shishito Peppers or Elotes Corn.

Looking for a dipping sauce to go with these wings? Check out our Greek Yogurt Ranch or Garlic Parmesan Sauce or enjoy them with a spicy dipping sauce like our Spicy Sriracha Aioli.

Recipe FAQs

Storage

Refrigerate leftover habanero mango wings for up to 3 days in an air-tight container. In order to reheat the wings, reheat them in the oven at 300°F until warm. You can also freeze the wings in a freezer safe bag for up to 2 months.

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