The Munich team was 1-0 down at half time, thanks to a goal by Daniel Caligiuri in the 26th minute.
Lewandowski had been on the bench until then, as it was unclear whether he had fully recovered from an injury.
However, the Polish ace was then brought on, with coach Pep Guardiola hoping the striker would shake things up a bit.
He was not disappointed.
Lewandowski had only been on the pitch for six minutes when he began his scoring spree.
He notched up a hat-trick in under four minutes, before bamboozling Wolfsburg goalie Diego Benaglio with two more goals.
“This was crazy,” Lewandowski exclaimed after the match.
“I just shot and did not think much about what was happening.
“Five goals – that's an incredible evening.”
However, he insisted he would not be painting the town red after the match.
“I am staying at home tonight, chilling,” he said,
“We have important games in front of us and have to stay focused.”
Wolfburg coach Dieter Hecking was left bowled over.
“What am I supposed to say? A world-class striker has taken five shots on goal and could have scored seven.
“But despite all his quality, this must not happen to us. There is no way of explaining this. What we have to say: five goals in nine minutes, that's not supposed to happen!”
Robert Lewandowski, who is captain of the Polish national side, has been playing for Bayern Munich since 2014, following a four-year stint with Borussia Dortmund.
His goal-scoring feats on Tuesday broke a series of records. Among them, his hat-trick in 3 minutes 22 seconds is the fastest in Bundesliga history. (nh/rk)
Source: UEFA