The best chicken wings are tender, juicy, and perfectly crispy! That’s exactly what you get when you cook wings in an air fryer. This recipe uses a simple dry rub to add bold flavors, and a cooking method that yields some of the best wings you’ll have!
This is one of my Air Fryer recipes I know you’ll want to keep on hand!
It’s Fall which means sports are in full swing. Here in the US we get excited about game day when it comes to NCAA, NFL, or the MLB playoffs!
Nothing says game day like some amazing appetizers, finger foods, dips, and drinks.
Chicken wings are a classic appetizer, but they can take a while to cook, or are drenched in oil from the fryer.
Typically I love to bake my wings, so they’re crispy, but without having to stand over a pot of hot oil (plus if they’re baked I can convince myself they’re healthy and have more of them right?).
But oven baked wings take about 45 minutes or so, and cooking them in the air fryer takes less time. Plus they’re perfectly crispy while still being juicy inside!
This is a great base recipe that you can then serve alongside your favorite wing dips (creamy gorgonzola sauce anyone?), or slather in your favorite wing sauce.
How to make air fryer chicken wings?
This is just an overview; the full ingredients and directions are in the recipe card toward the bottom of this post.
- Combine seasonings. I find combining them first means the rub will go on evenly.
- Drizzle. Tossing the wings with a little bit of oil helps the seasonings really stick, and helps crisp up the chicken once cooked.
- Season and rub. The best tool for this is your hands, so you can really massage the seasonings into the chicken.
- Add to air fryer. Make sure you’re leaving some room in between each wing.
- Air fry. Since you’ll be cooking in batches, I like to keep a baking sheet in a 250°F oven, so I can transfer the wings there, once cooked, so they stay warm.
Helpful Tip!
For this recipe there are two things about the wings that will be very helpful. You’ll want to pick up chicken wings that have already been separated into the flats (also sometimes called wingettes), and drumettes. If you pick up a package of full chicken wings, you’ll need to cut them into the two pieces yourself. If using frozen wings (of any kind), make sure they’re fully thawed and patted very dry.
Variations of this recipe
- Wings – you can use a mix of flats and drumettes, or one or the other. If using frozen wings, make sure they’re completely thawed.
- Spicier – if you’re a fan of some heat with your wings, try adding some cayenne pepper to the mix.
- Saucy – if you’d like to add some of your favorite wing sauce and have it be caramelized on the wings, you can remove the wings once fully cooked, toss them in the sauce, and cook the sauced wings for just a couple more minutes, until they’re as charred as you’d like.
- Oil – in place of olive oil, you can try using vegetable, avocado, or canola oil.
- Parchment – if you’d like an easier clean up, you can try adding a cut piece of parchment paper to the basket right before you add the chicken and cook. I don’t recommend adding the parchment during the preheating process, as it could catch on fire. Please know that not all air fryers and parchment are created the same, so use your best judgement when it comes to using paper in your air fryer.
- Alternate cooking method – if you can’t wait to try these wings, but don’t have an air fryer, don’t worry. You can make these in the oven as well. Be sure to check the “chef tips” section of the recipe below for the full instructions.
FAQ’s
There are plenty of tricks to getting crispy chicken wings without the deep fryer, but this recipe employs three to them. First, the chicken is patted very dry, so the oil and spices are really soaked into the chicken. Second, the chicken wings are added in a single layer, leaving room between each wing. Adding too many wings to the basket will cause them to steam, which cooks the wings, but they won’t be crispy. Lastly, the chicken is added skin-side down, which helps crisp it up.
Absolutely! There are so many great options out there, so if you have a favorite, please feel free to use it.
Making chicken wings ahead of time
For the best results, I don’t recommend making these wings completely ahead of time. You don’t want to risk the chicken being dry and losing the crispness.
However, you can absolutely mix the spices together and keep them in an airtight container at room temperature.
This cuts down on the prep time so you can get to enjoy these chicken wings as soon as possible!
Storage
Leftover wings should be refrigerated in an airtight container and enjoyed within 4-5 days.
The best way to reheat these wings in the air fryer at 360°F for 5-8 minutes.
My Favorite Air Fryer!
I love the larger, rectangular basket, and the basket is nonstick, removable, and dishwasher safe!
Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me @the_chunky_chef on Facebook and Instagram!
Ingredients
- 2 lbs chicken wings
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp paprika regular or smoked
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1/2 tsp chipotle powder can substitute with chili powder
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
Instructions
Prepare
- Preheat air fryer to 400°F. Pat chicken wings very dry with paper towels, then place in a large mixing bowl.
Make dry rub
- In a small bowl, combine the garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, oregano, chipotle powder, salt, and black pepper. Stir to combine.
Coat chicken wings
- Drizzle chicken wings with oil and stir/toss to coat them.
- Sprinkle about half the dry rub over the chicken and use your hands to stir/toss the wings with the rub, massaging the spices into the chicken.
- Repeat with the remaining dry rub.
Air fry
- If desired, add a piece of parchment paper (cut to the size of the air fryer basket) to the bottom of the basket. Do this right before adding the chicken wings to the air fryer. It's not necessary, you can air fry the wings directly in the basket.
- Working in batches, add several chicken wings in the air fryer, skin side down. Do this in a single layer, leaving a little space around each wing to allow for even cooking.
- Air fry for 8 minutes, then flip them over and cook another 8 minutes, or until they reach an internal temperature (with an internal meat thermometer) of 165°F.
- Since you'll be working in batches, I recommend keeping a baking sheet in a 250°F oven (if you have one), and transferring each batch of cooked wings to the oven while you air fry the next batch.
Serve
- Serve hot, with your favorite dipping sauce (ranch, bleu cheese, bbq, buffalo), and some carrot and celery sticks.
Want to save this recipe for later? Click the heart in the bottom right corner to save to your own recipe box!
Chef Tips
- The total time for this recipe will depend on the size of your air fryer basket and how many wings you can cook per batch. The time listed is for one batch.
- I’ve estimated this recipe will serve approximately 4 people, however the exact serving size is up to you.
Oven Directions:
- Make dry rub and coat chicken as directed above.
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Preheat oven to 400°F. Line a large baking sheet with 2 sheets of aluminum foil (or 1 heavy duty sheet). Top that with an oven safe cooling rack and spray it with non-stick cooking spray and set aside.
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Add chicken wings to prepared cooling rack-topped baking sheet and bake for 45 minutes.
Nutrition Disclaimer
The Chunky Chef is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
Lori says
Mine were not crispy at all. How come?
The Chunky Chef says
Did you pat the wings very dry before adding the oil and seasonings? Did you cook them in a single layer, with a bit of space in between them? Otherwise they’ll sort of steam, and won’t be crispy.
Laurie Kroll says
Did this on a last minute whim and they turned out great – thanks!
Linda says
Fantastic recipe! It is now my go to, my husband absolutely loves wings and keeps asking me to make them☺️ I toss them with our favorite wing sauce and put them back in the air fryer for about 3 minutes, perfect every time!
Bridget says
Wow!!! So simple, and so so good. This will be added to my rotation for sure. I used the air fryer and all instructions were right on
Agnes says
I would like to try these in the oven, but I don’t see the specifics for frying them in the oven in the “chef tips” section. Do you use the same temperature as the air fryer? Do you cook them the same amount of time as the air fryer?
The Chunky Chef says
Oh goodness, apparently the oven directions I typed in there didn’t save for some reason. I just updated the recipe card and they’re showing up now though 🙂
Cheryl Gephart says
I loved this recipe, very tasty and easy to make. My son is a wing fanatic and said “These are phenomenal”. I did toss them in his favorite wing sauce after they cooked too.
Stephanie Tutt says
These were delicious. Will make again
Sandra says
This was a huge hit at my house! Everyone loved it! Thanks!
Catalina says
Oh my goodness! I would like to have these chicken wings right now! They are even healthier!
katerina @ diethood.com says
These wings are incredible!! A must make!
Erin says
Always a hit on our table! I’m definitely making this!
Beth says
These look extremely good. I’m a big fan of chicken in the air fryer when it’s done well. I love how crispy and a bit blackened these are!