Description
The search ends here for the best Smothered Turkey Wings recipe you’ll ever have! Well-seasoned wings are roasted until they fall-off-the-bone and paired with a scrumptious gravy that’ll make you smack those lips. A true, down-home Southern staple to enjoy for the coziest anytime dinner or perfect for holiday events/supper!
Ingredients
Scale
For the turkey wings:
- 4 lbs whole turkey wings, flat & drum piece split- tips left on, reserved for later use, or discarded (about 8 total turkey wing parts)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons worcestershire
- 1 tablespoon herbs de provence
- 1 tablespoon lightly dried parsley
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne powder
- 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
- kosher salt & freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 1/2 large yellow onion, chopped- (other half saved for gravy!)
- 1 large green bell pepper, chopped
For the turkey gravy:
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/2 large yellow onion, sliced into half moons
- 3 cloves of garlic, finely minced or pressed
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 4 cups turkey stock (or chicken stock), plus more as needed
- 1/4 cup dry white wine, such as sauvignon blanc or pinot grigio
- 4–6 sprigs fresh thyme, de-stemmed
- 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
- kosher salt & freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 2 bay leaves
Instructions
- Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat the oven to 325°F.
- Pat the turkey wings dry with paper towels. Add the wings into a super large bowl and drizzle with the olive oil. Then add in the worcestershire, herbs de provence, parsley, onion powder, paprika, garlic powder, allspice, and salt/pepper-to taste. Use your hands (fitted with disposable gloves, if desired) to massage everything together, making sure the wings are thoroughly coated in the seasoning mixture and set aside.
- Meanwhile, add the chopped onion and bell pepper into a large, deep roasting pan or baking dish, toss together and arrange in an even layer on the bottom of the pan. Season the onion/bell pepper with a bit of salt/pepper- to taste. Then arrange the seasoned wings right on top of the aromatics, nestling them in an even layer. It’s okay if some of them are touching/slightly overlapping.
- Cover the roasting pan/vessel tightly with foil. Place the pan into the oven and roast the wings for 90 minutes.
- After the first roast, remove the pan from the oven and remove the foil. Increase the oven heat to 375°F. Use tongs to gently flip the wings. When the temperature is reached, place the wings, uncovered, back into the oven. Roast the wings for another 60 minutes.
- Meanwhile, let’s prepare the turkey gravy. Heat the butter and olive oil in a large, deep skillet over medium heat. Once the mixture is sizzling, add in the onion and sauté until tender and golden brown, about 6-7 minutes. Then add in the garlic and continue cooking until fragrant, about 1 minute. Sprinkle the flour over the onions and carefully stir everything to coat. Allow this mixture to cook for 1-2 minutes until the flour dissipates. Then slowly pour the stock into the skillet while whisking the mixture constantly, scraping up any bits on the bottom of the pan. Continue whisking well to ensure that you get any little hidden pockets of flour.
- Once the mixture is smooth, pour in the wine and whisk to combine. Then add in the thyme and whisk in the cream, whisking well to combine. Season the gravy with salt/pepper- to taste and add in the bay leaves. Reduce the heat to medium-low and let the gravy simmer until nicely thickened, stirring often, about 10 minutes. Taste the gravy and adjust seasoning to preference, if desired. Feel free to add in more stock to adjust gravy to your desired consistency. Once the gravy has thickened up nicely, reduce the heat to the lowest setting to keep warm until the wings are done with the second roast.
- After the wings’ second roast, remove the pan from the oven- don’t shut off the heat. Carefully pour the gravy over the wings. Then grab a utensil and gently stir the wings around, making sure everything is smothered and covered in the gravy- the wings will not be fully submerged in the gravy. This is good because we want some turkey parts exposed to caramelize in the final roasting.
- Place the pan back into the 375°F oven and roast the wings, uncovered, for 1 hour. Then remove the pan from the oven and shut off heat. There may be some pockets of accumulated fat. Use a large spoon to skim off or a turkey baster to suck out the fat, as needed.
- Serve these smothered turkey wings alongside your favorite side dishes. I love serving these turkey wings with rice/mashed potatoes with extra gravy and aromatics spooned right over it all. Enjoy!
Notes
- Stock is more preferred here, but broth can also be used.
- Gluten-free needs? Swap out the all-purpose flour and replace with any gluten-free baking flour as a 1:1 ratio. Other alternative options for gluten-free needs include arrowroot and tapioca flour.
- Please read the blog post in its entirety for more tips + tricks.
Keywords: turkey, smothered turkey wings, turkey and gravy, gravy, roasted turkey, thanksgiving, Christmas, turkey dinner, turkey recipe