Boneless Wings: On-Trend Labor Savers

For a shareable, on-trend appetizer—and a versatile ingredient—look no further than boneless chicken wings. From on-trend appetizers to easy entrees, boneless chicken wings bring a plethora of options to your menu. 

Boneless Wings Take Flight

Boneless chicken wings are projected to grow 24% on menus over the next four years, according to Datassential,¹ which is especially significant considering that regular bone-in wings are stagnant in that time frame. 

In fact, a OnePoll study found that, when selecting between the two, more people prefer boneless wings over bone-in.² Boneless wings are a hit with customers because they are easier to eat and less messy than bone-in wings. They also are typically considered leaner and protein-packed since they are made with breast meat.³

Boneless chicken wings offer many benefits to operators as well as customers as a versatile ingredient. They can be the foundation for a variety of appetizers and entrees, from tacos and flatbreads to sandwiches and bowls. 

For example, this on-trend Hot Honey Chicken Bao Taco is simple to make thanks to PERDUE®, NO ANTIBIOTICS EVER, READY TO COOK, SPICY BREADED CHICKEN BREAST CHUNKS WITH RIB MEAT. These fully cooked, breaded, boneless breast wings can go from fryer to table in minutes. They also provide a consistent flavor with built-in, on-trend spice, perfect for building quick, labor-saving recipes.

Get inspired with the following tips and trends for driving traffic and profits with boneless chicken wings.

Spice It Up

Chicken wings are a great way to bring in-demand spicy flavors to your menu. While classic buffalo sauce has long been the go-to choice for heat seekers, the desire for even spicier options has driven chefs to explore a vast array of peppers, spices and hot sauces. From the tongue-tingling kick of jalapeño and ghost peppers to the smoky complexity of chipotle and the tangy heat of Sriracha, the options for fiery flavor profiles are seemingly endless. Popeyes Ghost Pepper Wings, for example, are marinated in a ghost pepper spice blend for at least 12 hours, then hand-battered and breaded and served with a buttermilk ranch sauce.⁴

In addition to traditional heat, sweet-and-spicy flavor combinations, such as spicy honey, mango habanero and lemon pepper, are trending on wing menus, according to Datassential.⁵ Buffalo Wild Wings features this sweet-heat combo on the menu with their Sweet Chile Lime Sauce, which blends honey, lime and chili peppers and can be added to their boneless wings.⁶

With lemon, mango, honey and lime all projected to grow on menus in the future, mixing citrus and tropical notes with spice will be key for achieving that beautiful heat-sweet balance of flavors.⁷

Global Fusion

Another way to bring on the heat—and the flavor—to boneless chicken wings is global flavors. As culinary boundaries continue to blur, chefs are experimenting with diverse seasoning profiles and international sauces to create tantalizing wing variations. 

Appetizer wings featuring global accents and flavor-fusion sauces are a top trend in appetizers and sides, according to the National Restaurant Association.⁸ Korean barbecue, for example, is expected to grow 194% on wing menus over the next four years, with Jamaican and Thai chili not far behind.⁷

Globally inspired sauces are an easy way to infuse internationally inspired flavors into your menu. Sports bar chain Beef ‘O’ Brady’s, for example, offers Jamaican jerk, teriyaki and sweet Thai chili sauces as a part of their wings menu.⁹

This Curry Chicken Rice Bowl with Gochujang Dressing is a great example of how it’s easy to showcase global fusion with the right sauce and boneless chicken wings. Featuring an easy dressing that combines ranch dressing with gochujang and PERDUE®, NO ANTIBIOTICS EVER, READY TO COOK, HOMESTYLE BREADED CHICKEN BREAST CHUNKS, WITH RIB MEAT, this on-trend fusion bowl comes together in no time.

Dry Rubs 

In addition to sauces and marinades, spices and dry rubs are another way to infuse global and other on-trend flavors into boneless chicken wings. According to chef and food writer Rob Carliss, “Dry rubs offer patrons a less-mess eating option than sticky sauces, while stimulating the palate differently and dialing up the flavor experience.”¹⁰

Carliss recommended combining chaat masala, an Indian spice mixture, with mango powder and dried hot sauce powder for an on-trend spicy, global wing offering.¹⁰

BBQ 2.0

Gone are the days of sticking to standard barbecue sauce. Since barbecue is such a popular pairing with wings, there are many ways to innovate on this classic. Buffalo Wild Wings, for example, levels up its barbecue offerings with the Honey BBQ Boneless Bar Pizza, which features boneless wings handspun in Honey BBQ sauce on top of pizza dough with bacon crumbles, pickled hot peppers, mozzarella and cheddar jack cheese, chopped green onion with a medium and Honey BBQ sauce drizzle.¹¹

Regional barbecue sauces can also be a way to elevate wing menu offerings. Wingstop’s Carolina Gold BBQ Boneless Wings feature the classic flavors of mustard, vinegar and brown sugar, true to the sauce’s origin.¹²

Feature Boneless Wings On Your Menu

Boneless wings are clearly a powerhouse ingredient that can act as a stand-alone menu item or as a labor-saving ingredient for tacos, bowls, pizzas and more. 

Learn more about how Perdue Foodservice Boneless Chicken Wings can benefit your operation.

1. Boneless Wing the SNAP™ food profile, Datassential, June 30, 2023 
2. Mangru, Vanessa, “Drummette or flat? Americans reveal their chicken wing preferences,” SWNS Digital, July 26, 2022, https://swnsdigital.com/us/2022/07/drummette-or-flat-americans-reveal-their-chicken-wing-preferences/
3. Bone-In vs. Boneless Wings: Pros and Cons, Hungry Howie’s, June 3, 2023, https://www.hungryhowies.com/article/bone-vs-boneless-wings-pros-and-cons
4. Miller, Bob, “Popeyes Brings Back Ghost Pepper Wings Alongside New Mango Lemonade,” Chew Boom, May 1, 2023, https://www.chewboom.com/2023/05/01/popeyes-brings-back-ghost-pepper-wings-alongside-new-mango-lemonade/
5. Wings Menu Adoption Cycle, Datassential, December 2022
6. “Buffalo Wild Wings Debuts New General Tso’s Sauce And New Sweet Chili Lime Sauce,” The Fast Food Post, May 31, 2023, https://www.fastfoodpost.com/buffalo-wild-wings-debuts-new-general-tsos-sauce-and-new-sweet-chili-lime-sauce/
7. Wings: On Menus, Datassential, Q1 2023
8. What’s Hot 2022 Culinary Forecast, National Restaurant Association, Nov. 16, 2021, https://go.restaurant.org/rs/078-ZLA-461/images/2022_What%27s_Hot_Report.pdf
9. Award-Winning Jumbo Wings, Menu, Beef ‘O’ Brady’s
10. Carliss, Rob, “Boosted Chicken Wings: 5 Ways In,” Flavor & The Menu, June 14, 2022, https://www.getflavor.com/boosted-chicken-wings-5-ways-in/
11. Miller, Bob, “Buffalo Wild Wings Launches New Boneless Bar Pizzas,” Chew Boom, Aug. 17, 2022, https://www.chewboom.com/2022/08/17/buffalo-wild-wings-launches-new-boneless-bar-pizzas/
12. “Wingstop Debuts New Flavor That Tastes as Good as Gold,” Cision PR Newswire, Dec. 5, 2022, https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/wingstop-debuts-new-flavor-that-tastes-as-good-as-gold-301694721.html