Crispy Air Fryer Chicken Wings are super crispy, delicious, and on your plate in under 25 minutes. I used a gochujang-based rub, but you can use your favorite rub for these simple wings.
I am addicted to chicken wings. But not all wings. I’m sort of picky in that respect. Let me explain. I’m not a huge fan of Buffalo sauce. It’s good but it’s also very salty and sometimes too hot. But really, it’s the salt for me that is the deal breaker. I always feel like my tongue has been on a salt lick all day. Just not good.
That’s why I am focusing on making delicious and crispy wings at home. Because I want to control the ingredients on the wings and the sauce that I dip the wings into. I don’t want all that salt and oil and who knows what else on my wings. Besides, it’s fun to do the taste tests!
Tips for crispy airy fryer chicken wings
Water is your nemesis when you’re trying to make Crispy Air Fryer Chicken Wings. So, make sure your wings are dry. Use a paper towel and dry them off very well. Yes, even if you’re going to season them before cooking. There is still moisture in the skin of the wings.
If I’m using a seasoning mix for the wings, I toss the mix with a little baking powder. The baking powder does something to the skin of the chicken. It’s a chemical thing that changes pH levels and makes the chicken skin crispier. Make sure it’s an aluminum free baking powder.
Give the wings some room! I keep thinking of that Julia and Julia movie where they talk about not overcrowding the pan when cooking mushrooms. The same is true for chicken wings. Give them room! Give the hot air a chance to circulate all around the wings making sure every inch is crispy.
Cook Crispy Air Fryer Chicken Wings on a lower temperature to get the insides cooked. Then crank up the heat and give the outside a chance to crisp up. I’m lucky in this respect. I have one of those multi cookers that pressure cooks, slow cooks, roasts, air fries, and makes rice and yogurt. I’ve not tried to make the last two in there. I have a good rice cooker and we don’t eat a ton of yogurt to warrant making it.
My husband buys the already cut pieces of chicken wing. I fuss at him because I know how to break down a chicken wing. They’re more expensive and I can have wings and the tip to make stock with. Besides, it’s not that difficult to separate the wings.
What are the parts of a chicken wing?
Before we can talk about how to separate the wings, we need to learn the parts of the chicken wing. There are three parts to a chicken wing. The first is the tip. That’s the end of the wing and has little to no meat on it. I save all of these in a bag in the freezer. When I have enough saved up, I use them to make stock. It’s a great way to make sure there’s no waste in these wings.
Next to that is the wingette. I’ve heard some people call it the flap or the flat. It has two bones running through it. It’s also thinner and smaller which means it cooks faster than the third piece. I put these on the bottom rack of my air fryer. No. I don’t use the basket when I’m making wings.
The third piece is the drumette. It’s like a mini leg or drumstick. It has the most meat of all the pieces. And most people love eating them more than the wingette. I personally like the wingette better. I like all the skin and tender meat in the wingette. The drumette takes longer to cook and is sometimes considerably larger than the wingette.
How to cut whole chicken wings?
Put the wings skin side down on your cutting board. From this side you can sort of see the joint and where it separates with each section. Use your finger to find where the joint separates. Carefully place your knife in the middle of the joint and it should cut right through the wing.
There is cartilage between the joints which is easier to cut. If you hit resistance with your knife, then you’re not quite in the right place. Remove your knife and check the joint again before slicing.
Alton Brown had a show about wings. He squeezed the wing together. Think of bringing your forearm to your shoulder. Sort of like that. Then he carefully took his knife and sliced the top of the joint. This is an easy way to locate the joint if you’re having difficulties finding it with your fingers.
For me, form a V with the chicken wing with the joint on the board and the two pieces of wing sticking up. If I slice down the middle of the V it usually is the joint of the wing. The same with the tip piece. For it, it is the easiest way to slice through separating the three pieces quickly. Then I toss the tips in my freezer bag and prepare the drumette and wingette for air frying.
How do you make crispy air fryer wings?
I don’t use the basket for these Crispy Air Fryer Chicken Wings. It crowds the wings and I can’t make one package at one time. One package to me is about a pound and a quarter. It usually has 5 or 6 while wings in there which is 10 or 12 wing segments. I put the wingettes on the bottom rack. They’re farthest from the heat source. Then I put the drumettes on the top rack closest to the heat source.
I also spray Crispy Air Fryer Chicken Wings with cooking spray before I cook them. Yes. I spray them with cooking spray. I’m convinced it gets them super crispy! Even if you don’t use the baking powder, this helps the skin get super crispy.
Finally, I cook them low to get the internal temperature elevated. Once it’s about halfway cooked, I crank up the heat to 400 and cook them the rest of the time to get them super crispy. If they still don’t look as crispy, cook them at 2-to-3-minute intervals until they’re as crispy as I want.
Of course, the type of cooker matters. I have the Nina Foodie 8 in 1. So, the times and temperatures might be a bit different for your air fryer. Sort of like microwaves. They don’t all cook the same based on size and output.
What do Crispy Air Fryer Chicken Wings taste like?
Super delicious! I used a gochujang-based seasoning blend so they’re a little spicy with a lot of flavor. And they’re crispy! I do not miss the restaurant fried wings at all. I don’t miss all the salt that’s on those wings, too. Chicken wings taste so good by themselves. Sometimes I just use garlic salt and a little pepper.
When the wings are simple and super crispy, you don’t really need all that seasoning on them. But feel free to use whatever seasoning bled you want. I’ve used this gochujang seasoning mix often. I’ve used an Old Bay garlic and herb blend, lemon pepper, smoky honey, so many seasoning blends.
Crispy Air Fryer Chicken Wings
Crispy Air Fryer Chicken Wings are super crispy, delicious, and on your plate in under 25 minutes. I used a gochujang-based rub, but you can use your favorite rub for these simple wings.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds chicken wing pieces
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 tablespoons Gochu Seasoning
- 1 teaspoon garlic salt
Instructions
- Toss the wings with the olive oil and spices.
- Cook the wings at 325 for 10 minutes.
- Turn the temperature up to 400 and cook the wings for 6 minutes.
- Flip the wings over and cook an additional 6 minutes.
- Serve with carrots sticks, celery sticks, and dressing.
Air Fryer/Oven Fried Recipes
- Air Fried Teriyaki Chicken Wings from That Recipe
- Air Fryer Buffalo Cauliflower from Jen Around the World
- Air Fryer Chicken Fajitas from Cheese Curd In Paradise
- Air Fryer Corn on The Cob from Palatable Pastime
- Air Fryer Mexican Street Corn from Karen’s Kitchen Stories
- Air Fryer Salmon Cakes from Cindy’s Recipes and Writings
- Easy Air Fryer Tortilla Pizzas from Hezzi-D’s Books and Cooks
- Crispy Air Fryer Chicken Wings from A Kitchen Hoor’s Adventures
- Oven-Fried Avocado Tacos with Cilantro-Lime Creme from The Spiffy Cookie
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