Air Fryer Chicken Wings
Extra-crispy wings with no frying oil, thanks to a little baking powder and a two-stage cook, tossed in classic buffalo butter sauce or served dry.
Ingredients
Ingredients for servings
Enter a number of at least ½, in steps of ½.
Original recipe serves 4. Ingredient amounts adjust automatically. Cooking times and pan size may need adjusting separately.
Wings
- 2 lb chicken wings, split into flats and drums, tips removed
- 1 tbsp baking powder, aluminum-free, not baking soda
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
Buffalo sauce
- 1/2 cup Frank's RedHot sauce
- 4 tbsp butter, melted
- 1 tsp honey
- 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
To serve
- 1/2 cup blue cheese or ranch dressing
- 4 ribs celery, cut in sticks
Steps
Step 1: Pat the wings very dry with paper towels. For the crispiest skin, let them sit uncovered on a rack in the fridge for 1 hour or up to overnight.
Step 2: In a big bowl, mix the baking powder, salt, garlic powder, paprika and pepper. Add the wings and toss until every piece has a thin, even coat.
Step 3: Lightly oil the air fryer basket. Arrange the wings in a single layer with a little space between them (cook in batches if needed).
Step 4: Air fry at 250°F for 15 minutes to render the fat.
Step 5: Flip the wings, turn up to 400°F and cook 15 to 20 minutes more, shaking the basket halfway, until deep golden, crackly and at least 175°F inside.
Step 6: Whisk the hot sauce, melted butter, honey and Worcestershire in a big bowl. Toss the hot wings in the sauce right away.
Step 7: Serve with blue cheese or ranch and celery sticks.
Swaps
- Dry rub: Skip the sauce and toss with lemon pepper or your favorite barbecue rub plus a drizzle of melted butter.
- Sauce: Garlic Parmesan (melted butter, grated garlic, Parmesan, parsley) or barbecue sauce.
- Heat: Add 1/4 tsp cayenne to the buffalo sauce.
Tips
- Wings are safe at 165°F but taste better around 175 to 185°F, when the connective tissue softens.
- Toss with sauce right before serving so the skin stays crisp.
The story
HAM Cooking. Let’s fire it up.
Air fryer wings used to be the consolation prize for people who didn’t want to deep fry. Not anymore. With one sneaky pantry ingredient, these wings come out so crispy you’ll hear the crunch from across the room.
That ingredient is baking powder. It raises the pH of the skin, which helps it brown faster and dries the surface out. It also creates tiny bubbles in the skin as it cooks, so you get a crackly, blistered texture like a fried wing. Use baking powder, not baking soda, unless you like your wings tasting like a bar of soap.
The low temperature start gently renders the fat out of the skin, so it doesn’t turn rubbery. Then the high heat finishes them golden and crisp. Toss them in buffalo sauce at the last second and serve immediately. Napkins are not optional.
HAM out.
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