Air Fryer Chicken Wings
Air Fryer Chicken Wings
Chicken wings, patted dry and tossed with baking powder, salt and pepper, then air-fried in a single layer until the skin turns deep golden and crisp. No batter, no deep fryer — the baking powder is doing the work that flour and hot oil would normally do.
Baking powder raises the pH of the chicken skin, which speeds up browning, and combined with salt it pulls moisture to the surface so the skin dries out and blisters instead of staying soft. The result is a crisp, crackling exterior around meat that stays juicy, with no breading to fall off.
The technique traces back to food writer J. Kenji López-Alt’s oven-fried wing experiments from the late 2000s, later adapted to the air fryer. His version also includes an optional overnight dry-brine — spreading the seasoned wings uncovered on a rack in the fridge — which dries the skin further before it ever meets heat. It isn’t required, but it’s the step that pushes the crisping furthest for anyone planning ahead.
These are game-day food, a bar-food classic made at home: toss them in Buffalo sauce right after cooking, while the skin is still hot and crisp, or serve them plain alongside a blue cheese or ranch dip. Either way, sauce them just before serving rather than in advance, so the skin doesn’t go soft.
Ingredients
Serves 4
The wings
- 900 g chicken wings, split into drumettes and flats, tips removed
- 2 tsp baking powder, aluminum-free (not baking soda)
- 1 tsp fine sea salt (or about 1½ tsp kosher salt)
- ½ tsp black pepper
- 1 tbsp neutral oil (avocado or canola) or olive oil, optional
The rub (optional)
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- ½–1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp chili powder
To serve
- Buffalo sauce (or serve plain with a dip, such as blue cheese or ranch)
Directions
The wings
Pat the wings completely dry with paper towels — this matters more than any of the seasoning. Any surface moisture left on the skin steams instead of crisping once the wings hit the air fryer.
In a large bowl, toss the dry wings with the baking powder, salt and pepper. Add the oil and any of the optional rub — garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, chili powder — at the same time, and toss until every piece is evenly coated.
For extra-crisp skin, spread the seasoned wings on a wire rack and refrigerate them uncovered for anywhere from 4 hours to overnight before cooking. This step is optional — the wings still crisp up well without it — but the extra time in the fridge dries the skin further and makes a noticeable difference.
Arrange the wings in the air-fryer basket in a single, uncrowded layer, leaving space between pieces so hot air can reach all sides; cook in batches if they don’t all fit. No need to preheat.
For the standard method, air-fry at 400°F (204°C) for 18 to 22 minutes, flipping the wings halfway through (or every 5 minutes, if you prefer), until the skin is deep golden and crisp. For a juicier interior, use the two-stage method instead: start at 250°F (121°C) for 15 minutes to render the fat, then flip the wings, raise the temperature to 400°F (204°C), and cook 15 to 20 minutes more until crisp. Smaller wings finish nearer the low end of either range, larger ones nearer the high end.
However you cook them, check that the internal temperature has reached at least 165°F (74°C); wings taken to 175–185°F (79–85°C) come out with noticeably better texture.
To serve
Let the wings rest for about 5 minutes before serving. Toss them in Buffalo sauce at this point if using, right before they go to the table — sauce them too early and the skin softens.
Notes
- Baking powder, not baking soda. Soda’s stronger alkalinity gives the skin a soapy, metallic taste.
- Use aluminum-free baking powder if you can. It avoids a metallic edge, especially at the higher end of the amount called for here.
- Cook time depends on wing size. Past the first flip, figure about 5 minutes more for small wings, 8 for medium, 11 for large.
- Leftovers keep 3–4 days refrigerated. Reheat them in the air fryer at 350°F (177°C) to re-crisp the skin — a microwave leaves it soft.
See Also
Buffalo Sauce
