IconicEst. 1920Louisiana / Cincinnati

Frank's RedHot

The sauce that invented Buffalo wings.

Frank's RedHot was used in the original buffalo wing recipe at the Anchor Bar in Buffalo, NY in 1964. The aged cayenne pepper base and butter-ready viscosity made it the defining wing sauce before anyone was using the phrase 'wing sauce.'

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The full story

Frank's occupies a strange position in hot sauce history: it became globally famous for a recipe that was invented without its knowledge. The Anchor Bar's Teressa Bellissimo mixed Frank's with butter to create buffalo wings in 1964, and the rest is American food history. The sauce itself is less aggressive than Tabasco — sweeter, lower acid, designed to blend rather than punch. That's why it works in cooking: as a marinade, a wing coating base, or a buffalo dip ingredient, it behaves. The 'I put that s**t on everything' campaign in 2011 made it the best-selling hot sauce in the US.

Why it matters

Frank's invented the flavor profile that defined American bar food. Buffalo wings don't exist without it.

Best for

Wing nights, cooking applications where you want cayenne heat without aggressive vinegar, and anyone building a foundational hot sauce collection.

Signature pepper

cayenne

Signature lineup

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Buffalo Wing Sauce

Pre-buttered for wings — no mixing needed.

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