Southern Soul Food Smothered Turkey Wings

This old-fashioned Easy Smothered Turkey Wings recipe is served with thick, creamy gravy and is traditionally served with rice. This is a baked Southern dish my family eats for Sunday dinners and soul food holiday meals.

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Why You Will Love This Recipe

• Rich Flavor Profile: Smothering involves slow-cooking the turkey wings in a savory, well-seasoned broth or gravy. This cooking method allows the flavors to meld, resulting in a rich and delicious dish.
• Tender and Juicy Meat: Smothered gravy helps to tenderize the meat, making it moist and juicy. The low and slow cooking process allows the collagen in the wings to break down, resulting in a more tender texture.
• Comfort Food Appeal: This is a comfort food dish. The hearty combination of tender turkey, flavorful gravy, and often served with sides like rice or mashed potatoes will evoke a sense of home-cooked comfort and down-home cooking.
• Versatility in Seasonings: The smothering sauce can be customized with a variety of seasonings, herbs, and spices, allowing for a versatile and customizable flavor profile. This makes it easy to adapt the dish to personal taste preferences.
• Budget-Friendly Option: Turkey wings are often more affordable than other cuts of meat, making this a budget-friendly choice for a satisfying and flavorful meal.
• Southern Soul Food Traditions: Smothered dishes are common in various culinary traditions, especially in Southern cuisine in the United States. These will work well for Thanksgiving and the holiday season, but we also enjoy this for Sunday dinners and supper.

Where to Buy Turkey Wings

Some standard grocers will keep brands like Butterball and Jenni-O on hand year-round. Many retailers only carry them seasonally around fall. A local butcher is usually really helpful.

Do You Use Whole Wings or Split?

This is up to you. Split wings (split into drums and flats) will cook at a more even temperature. This is also better for even browning of the skin.

The wing is made up of 3 parts: the drumette, the wingette, and the wing tip. The drumette looks like a small drumstick and usually has more meat.  It’s mostly dark meat, is slightly juicier than the wingette.

The wingette is often called the flat, is the middle section that is made of two bones running horizontally through the middle of it with meat in the middle.  Because it’s thinner, this part normally crisps up easier when cooking them with the thicker drumette portions.

The wing tip doesn’t have much flavor, but you can save it if you plan to make homemade broth.

You can separate the wings yourself by cutting at the elbow joint to separate the drum from the wingette. From there you can remove the wing tip to display a flat if you wish.

How to Make the Gravy

You will need to keep the turkey drippings from the pan from when the turkey initially bakes with onions. This will add so much flavor to the gravy. You combine butter, olive oil, flour, smoked paprika, garlic powder, turkey drippings, broth, and heavy cream to make the best gravy. It’s super thick, rich, and comforting.

You may also enjoy our Smothered Okra recipe.

How to Make Smothered Turkey Wings

Detailed measurements and full instructions can be found in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Add sliced onions to the bottom of a baking dish.
3. Drizzle both sides of the wings olive oil and then sprinkle the spices onto both sides of the wings.
4. Place the seasoned wings over the onions.
5. Cover the dish with foil and bake for an hour and a half.
6. Remove the pan from the oven and remove foil. Remove the turkey wings from the baking dish and set aside.
7. Drizzle the gravy over the turkey.
8. Bake.

How Long to Bake

You will first bake the wings to get them mostly cooked through, then you will add the gravy and bake them again so that the flavor from the gravy seeps into the wings. Bake them for an hour and a half initially, then add your, gravy and bake again for an additional 30 minutes or until the meat from the wings is falling off the bone.

How to Tell When the Turkey is Done

You will need to use a meat thermometer. Insert the meat thermometer into the thickest part of one the turkey wings. According to the USDA, Poultry must be cooked to a minimum internal temperature of 165 degrees.

Can You Use Turkey Legs or Drumsticks?

Yes. Turkey legs will follow a similar cook time and at the same temperature.

Can You Use Chicken Wings?

Absolutely. Check out my Smothered Chicken Wings recipe. You can also use chicken drumsticks. Be sure to test if the chicken is done by inserting a meat thermometer into the thickest parts of one of the pieces of chicken. Chicken must be cooked to an internal temperature of at least 165 degrees.

How to Store Them

Cooked wings can be stored in the fridge tightly covered for 3-4 days.

Freezer Tips

You can freeze leftover wings tightly covered and sealed. For best taste, they will last up to 3 months. Defrost the wings overnight in the fridge and reheat.

What to Pair With These Wings

Southern Soul Food Mac and Cheese
Baked Crab Legs
Seafood Mac and Cheese
Southern Cornbread Dressing
Southern Candied Sweet Potatoes
Southern Mustard Greens
Southern Okra and Tomatoes
Southern Style Green Beans
Southern Baked Beans
Southern Black Eyed Peas
Instant Pot Black Eyed Peas
Seafood Mac and Cheese
Creamy Ranch Mashed Potatoes
Air Fryer Frozen Burgers
Chitterlings Recipe

Turkey Wings and Legs Recipes

Baked Turkey Legs
Smoked Turkey Legs
Grilled Turkey Legs
Baked Turkey Wings
Slow Cooker Turkey Wings
Air Fryer Turkey Legs
Air Fryer Turkey Wings
Stuffed Turkey Legs
Slow Cooker Turkey Legs

More Turkey Recipes

Traeger Smoked Turkey
Traeger Smoked Turkey Breast
Air Fryer Turkey Breast
Cajun Spiced Roasted Turkey
Leftover Turkey Chili
Leftover Turkey Nachos
Leftover Turkey Wild Rice Soup
Turkey Bone Broth Recipe
Instant Pot Turkey Breast
Turkey and Cheese Sliders

Get a list of the Best Southern Soul Food Thanksgiving Recipes and the Best Authentic Soul Food Recipes here and check out our Smothered Potatoes and Onions, Smothered Steak and Smothered Pork Chops recipe.