If you’re looking for all the tips and tricks to perfect Air Fryer Chicken Wings, I’ve got you covered. Here’s how to make perfectly crispy chicken wings in your Air Fryer from fresh or frozen, sauced or dry-rubbed.
The full recipe with ingredients/instructions is available on the recipe card at the bottom of the post. Important tips/tricks are also included in the blog post.
Air Fryers are famous for making delicious and crispy chicken wings. Chicken wings in the Air Fryer are the perfect appetizer or game-day snack as they are quick to make and are done in 30 minutes or less.
I’ve shared my Korean Air Fried Chicken Wings that are breaded and extra crunchy, but this ultimate guide for chicken wings covers how to make naked wings, saucy wings, fresh wings, and frozen wings. After making and eating tons of wings, I’ve learned a few tips on how to get golden and delicious wings.
- Don’t overcrowd the basket. Your wings need circulation to get nice and crisp. The wings can be touching but the basket should not be filled to the brim.
- Turn your wings every 5-7 minutes. This will ensure that the wings are evenly cooked. I like to use tongs to turn my wings rather than tossing.
- Don’t add seasonings until after air frying. That’s how you will get the maximum flavor on your wings.
- Start with a clean Air Fryer. If your Air Fryer is not clean, your Air fryer may start to smoke while your wings are cooking.
How to Make Air Fryer Wings from Fresh Chicken Wings
First, make sure your chicken wings are dried before placing them in the Air Fryer.
Lay your wings in a single layer in the Air Fryer basket. It’s ok if they overlap or if you have to lay a few on top. The wings will still get crispy so long as you turn them every few minutes.
Close the Air Fryer basket and cook the wings on 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 25-30 minutes shaking every 5-7 minutes. Cook until wings are desired crispiness and have at least reached a temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
Once the wings are cooked, place in a large bowl and season with your favorite dry rub or sauce. If using a sauce, toss the wings in the sauce and place back in the air fryer for 2 minutes on 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Remove the wings and toss in sauce again. This is how to get perfectly sauced wings.
How to make Air Fryer Wings from Frozen Chicken Wings
I found that in order to get my frozen chicken wings crispy in the Air Fryer I had to do a little extra work. Fact is frozen wings have a ton of excess water and once you start Air Frying, that water leaks into the bottom of the basket, causing a lot of steam in the Air Fryer. That’s not the optimal environment for crispiness. In order to get frozen wings crispy, I do the following.
Lay the frozen wings in the Air Fryer basket and start cooking on 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 30-35 minutes turning every 5-7 minutes.
Halfway through cooking, remove the Air Fryer basket and drain the excess liquid. Make sure the basket is placed over a large bowl so you don’t leak chicken juice everywhere. Once all the liquid in the bottom of the basket has drained, return the basket to the base and start Air Frying again. Cook until your wings are fully cooked and your desired crispiness.
Additional Note: The draining of the liquid is an optional step and it truly depends on the Air Fryer basket. In my Phillips Air Fryer, the wings can get crispy even with the additional liquid in the basket. However, in my Bella Pro Air Fryer, I have to drain the liquid to get it crispy.
Toss in your favorite dry rub or sauce.
And there you have it, perfectly crisp and delicious Air Fryer chicken wings from frozen.
Common Questions for Air Fryer Chicken Wings
Do I need to pre-heat my Air Fryer? Each Air Fryer will have instructions on whether the Air fryer should be preheated or not. My advice is to follow those instructions. However, if you don't preheat, your wings will still be fine.
Do I need to spray my chicken wings with oil? Not if they are not breaded. Chicken wings will produce their own grease while cooking, which will allow the Air Fryer to crisp them up. If they are, a light spray of chicken oil will ensure that breading is nice and golden.
What’s the best breading for chicken wings? There are a ton of options when it comes to breading if you want to go that route. You could use potato starch, flour, crushed pork rinds, as well as baking powder. These help give an extra layer of crunch.
How to reheat chicken wings? To reheat leftover chicken wings, place in your Air Fryer and cook on 400 degrees for 5-7 minutes.
And there you have it, your guide to perfect and delicious chicken wings in the air Fryer? If you’re interested in reading more of my guides to become the perfect Air fryer chef, check these out:
Suggested Rubs and Sauces for Wings?
- Honey Mustard
- Lemon Pepper
- Garlic Parmesan
- BBQ Sauce
- Buffalo Sauce (¼ cup hot sauce, 4 tablespoon butter, cooked over medium low heat until combined)
- Ranch (3 tablespoon dry packet ranch, ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper)
- Jerk Chicken Wings
For more chicken in your Air Fryer recipes, try these out:
- Fried Chicken
- BBQ Chicken Breast
- Air Fryer Chicken Nuggets
- Lemon Pepper Chicken Thighs
- Healthier General Tso's Chicken
Watch this video tutorial and see how I make these chicken wings from start to finish.
How to Make Air Fryer Chicken Wings (Fresh or Frozen)
Ingredients
- 2 lbs chicken wings fresh or frozen
- Favorite seasoning dry rub or sauce
Instructions
Fresh Chicken Wings
- Dry your chicken wings.
- Place your wings in the Air Fryer basket.
- Close the Air Fryer basket and cook the wings on 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 25-30 minutes shaking every 5-7 minutes. Cook until wings are desired crispiness and at least have a temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Once wings are cooked, place in a large bowl and season with your favorite dry rub or sauce. If using a sauce toss the wings in the sauce and place back in the air fryer for 2 minutes on 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Remove the wings and toss in sauce again.
Frozen Chicken Wings
- Lay the frozen wings in the Air Fryer basket and start cooking on 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 30-35 minutes turning every 5-7 minutes.
- Optional step: Halfway through cooking, remove the Air Fryer basket and drain the excess liquid. Make sure the basket is placed over a large bowl so you don’t leak chicken juice everywhere. Once all the liquid in the bottom of the basket has drained, return the basket to the base and start Air Frying again. Cook until wings are desired crispiness and at least have a temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Toss in your favorite dry rub or sauce.
Video
Notes
- The draining of the liquid is an optional step and it truly depends on the Air Fryer basket. In my Phillips Air Fryer, the wings can get crispy even with the additional liquid in the basket. However, in my Bella Pro Air Fryer, I have to drain the liquid to get it crispy.
- Wings need to cook to at least 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Suggested Dry Rubs and Sauces
- Lemon Pepper
- Ranch
- BBQ (I used this brand from King of Foods in the video)
- Buffalo Sauce
Lee says
Tossed the chicken wings in baking powder and let them sit for 15 minutes as I always do, then followed your instructions to the T. They were fantastic! My daughter thought I'd deep fried them! Thank you.
Sheila Pearse says
Hi Tanya
I guess I should start by saying I hate cooking. My son bought me a cosori air fryer and I had no idea how to use it so I did a search and came up with your site. Thank you very much for all the fabulous recipes. I soon realized I didn't like cooking in batches so I bought a kalorik 26qt oven. It is phenomenal. I followed your recipe for roast and it was perfection. Well it was almost perfection. I did overcook it but it was a valiant effort for the first try. I cooked it on the rotisserie. I put a couple of slices of bread in the drip tray which made clean up really easy as it soaked up all the juices. I did the wings last night and WOW awesome. Thank you very much for your wonderful recipes. You are my go to site now.
Have a great day!!!
jennifer brush says
I used an old presto pressure cooker and the wings were done in 10 minutes. What am I missing about using an air fryer instead? I loved the sauce.
Tanya says
The air fryer will make the wings crispy.
Patricia says
Hi Tanya,
I am ecstatic to have found your site! I purchased an air fryer a few months back but had only used it twice prior to last night.
Late last week I pulled some wings out of the freezer and last night at about 9:30 I didn't want the wings to spoil and decided to put them in the air fryer. I went to Pinterest to find instructions for wings and yours was the first and last that I viewed.
I wanted spicy! So I prepped my wings according to your post and placed them in the fryer. About 3/4 of the way through I sprinkled them with some Tony Chachere. I could not be happier with the result! They were extra crispy on the outside and moist on the inside with just the right amount of spice. Even though it was nearly 10 pm when they were finished I couldn't help but try one and ended up eating six pieces! And, after reheating them this evening I ate the rest while typing this review! They were AMAZING! And now I'm sorry I purchased the smallest fryer I could find. I like cooking extra to have left overs for lunches and when I don't have a lot of time. May have to move up!
If everything you post is as good as this I will be hooked on your page! I couldn't agree more with your sentiment that ingredients are too expensive and time to valuable to waste on mediocre food.
Keep up the excellent work!
Tanya says
Thanks so much! Glad the frozen wings worked out for you. They come in handy.
Christene S says
I make these wings at least once a week. I like the ability to make 6 wings or 20 wings! My kids are out of the house now so my air fryer is my BFF. And they turn out perfect every time. I like to make lemon pepper or Buffalo but want to try a good Cajun dry rub. Thank you for putting in the time and I'm looking forward to finding more of your recipes!
Patty says
We bought a bag of frozen chicken wings and I just made 6 pieces for my first try. They were awesome! I can't believe I did this. I seasoned the wings afterward with salt, pepper, Ms. Dash Table Blend and Lawry's. Thanks so much for your recipe help and encouragement. Now I will try the breaded chicken wings. I know my grandsons will love these and I can't wait to make them a batch!
Calvin Chambers says
My first time using my air fryer and my wings turned out perfectly!!! Thanks for the tips!!!
Tanya says
Awesome! So glad they were helpful 🙂
LisA says
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Judy Swee says
How to clean the air fryer cos sometime it come out smoke
Tanya says
I use Dawn dish detergent to clean it after each use.
Lynn says
Would you do exactly the same instructions for drummies?
Tanya says
Yes, if they are very small you may need to reduce the cook time by a little.
Chance says
I never EVER comment on any recipe I use BUT I stumbled upon this one and it was so easy making my frozen wings ! They tasted really good and all side were CRISPY!
Jennifer says
Great recipe! My family loves them.
Keith says
How do you print these recipes
Tanya says
There is an option to the print in the recipe card.
Jim says
Hello Tanya,
As always you are my "go to" lady when I use my new air fryer and I thank you for all I've learned and enjoyed.
This wing recipe is GREAT! I cooked almost two pounds and then sprinkled them with Memphis BBQ spice and they were terrific!
I was glad to get this in my email and I look forward to all your emails and recipes.
Once again, Thanks for all you do! - Jim
Tanya says
Thank you Jim! So glad you enjoyed the wings and I'll be sure to keep those emails coming 🙂
Paul says
You forgot to say at what temperature to cook unfrozen wings.
Tanya says
Thanks so much Paul. I just updated the post. It's 400 degrees Fahrenheit for both fresh or frozen, the cook time will just be a few minutes longer with frozen.