Air Fryer BBQ Chicken Wings

Air Fryer BBQ Chicken Wings are a delicious and savory appetizer that you'll love! Brush these crispy wings with your favorite BBQ sauce for a combination that'll leave your taste buds begging for more!

Air Fryer BBQ Chicken Wings are like a party for your mouth! The crispy skin combined with the juicy chicken and sweet & savory sauce makes for an irresistible flavor profile that is perfect for just about any occasion! You can also pair these wings with a simple salad to make a healthy and filling complete meal. If you are thinking about chicken for dinner but not interested in wings, you can try our Air Fryer Chicken Breast.

Ingredients Needed for Air Fryer BBQ Chicken Wings

• Chicken wings (split into drums and flats)
• Cooking oil
• Garlic salt
• Bbq sauce

In this recipe, the chicken wings get tossed in the BBQ sauce after cooking. Feel free to use your favorite BBQ sauce - any sauce is delicious on these easy air fryer wings!

How do you Split Chicken Wings

When buying fresh raw chicken wings, you'll likely find them already broken down at your local grocer. But oftentimes I find that purchasing chicken wings at specialty foods stores and local butcher shops takes a little extra prep work. Here's how to break them down into flats and drums:

• First, locate the two joints in the wings.
• Snip through the joints to separate the pieces using a pair of kitchen shears.
• Discard the wing tips and use the flat pieces and drums in your recipe.

How to Make Chicken Wings

1. First, rinse your chicken pieces and pat them dry with paper towels. Try to remove as much moisture as possible so the wings will crisp well in the air fryer.
2. Place the wings into a mixing bowl and pour the oil over them.
3. Sprinkle the garlic salt over the chicken, then toss to coat.
4. Place a piece of foil or parchment in the bottom of your air fryer basket and arrange the chicken pieces over top. Make sure not to crowd the pan so that the wings will cook thoroughly. Cook the wings in your air fryer for 16-20 minutes at 400 degrees, flipping halfway through.
5. When the wings are done cooking, remove them from the air fryer basket and place them into a clean mixing bowl. Pour your BBQ sauce over the chicken.
6. Using a pair of tongs or a spoon, toss the chicken pieces to evenly coat them in the sauce. Then, serve and enjoy!

Can you eat chicken wing tips?

While technically edible, chicken wing tips are really just bone, cartilage, and a little skin. There's very little, if any, meat within the tip, so I typically discard them when separating the wings into pieces.

How do I get crispy wings?

As mentioned in the cooking instructions, the best way to get crispy wings is to pat them dry after rinsing before you fry them.

Since oil and water don't mix, you'll want to make sure to remove as much moisture from the wing skin as possible. Pat them dry with paper towels and let them rest for a bit before coating so that any excess water will evaporate.

There's a bonus reason to pat the wings dry before cooking - by crisping the wing skin you'll retain moisture in the meat. Nobody wants a dry chicken wing, after all!

You can also help your chicken wings to crisp using this air fryer trick:

In the last 2-3 minutes of cooking, carefully pull out the air fryer basket. Give the wings a generous spray with some cooking oil and return them to the air fryer to finish frying.

The result? Ultra crispy wings that are nearly impossible to resist!

What goes well with wings for dinner?

Chicken wings aren't just an appetizer! Here are some ways to turn your air fryer wings into a delectable and filling meal:

• Pair with fried rice for a quick Asian-inspired weeknight meal
• Serve with air fryer asparagus - the perfect low carb combination!
• Add to a plate of roasted potatoes and air fried green beans to make a hearty dinner
• Serve with sweet potato hash and broccoli for an incredibly tasty meal

More delicious air fryer Recipes!

• Air Fryer Hamburgers
• Air Fryer Grilled Cheese
• Air Fryer Hot Dogs

Pro Tip: This recipe can be made in the air fryer unit with a basket or the air fryer oven. If you are using the air fryer oven, use the middle rack and select the "Air Fry" function.

PRO TIP: When cooking meat it is extremely important that you measure the internal temperature to make sure your meat has been cooked to completion. I highly recommend that you get a meat thermometer to keep handy when cooking in your air fryer!

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Print Recipe

5 from 5 votes

Air Fryer BBQ Chicken Wings

Air Fryer BBQ Chicken Wings are a delicious and savory appetizer that you'll love! Brush these crispy wings with your favorite BBQ sauce for a combination that'll leave your taste buds begging for more!

Prep Time10 mins

Cook Time20 mins

Total Time30 mins

Course: Appetizer

Cuisine: American

Keyword: barbecue, barbecue wings, bbq, bbq wings, bone in wings, chicken wings, wings

Servings: 4

Calories: 228kcal

Ingredients

• 1 lb chicken wings split into flats and drums
• 1 tbsp oil
• 1 tsp garlic salt
• 1/2 cup BBQ sauce

Instructions

• Gently rinse your chicken pieces and pat dry with a paper towels.
• Place the chicken pieces into a mixing bowl.
• Pour the oil over the chicken.
• Sprinkle the garlic salt over the chicken, then toss the chicken to coat evenly.
• Place parchment paper or foil in the bottom of your air fryer basket. (This will allow for easier cleanup.)
• Place the chicken into the air fryer basket.
• Air fry the chicken at 400 degrees for 8-10 minutes.
• Flip the chicken wings and cook for another 8-10 minutes.
• In the last 2-3 minutes, open the air fryer basket and generously spray the chicken with cooking oil to help crisp them. (optional)
• Remove the chicken pieces from the air fryer basket and place them into a bowl.
• Pour the BBQ sauce over the chicken and toss to coat.
• Enjoy!

Video

Notes

• I have found the sweet spot of cooking to be around 16 minutes.  
• Thicker wings will take longer.
• Air Fryers vary, so cooking times and temperatures might vary slightly.

Pro Tip: This recipe can be made in the air fryer unit with a basket or the air fryer oven. If you are using the air fryer oven, use the middle rack and select the "Air Fry" function.

Nutrition

Calories: 228kcal | Carbohydrates: 15g | Protein: 12g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 47mg | Sodium: 993mg | Potassium: 178mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 12g | Vitamin A: 170IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 19mg | Iron: 1mg

Air Fryers can vary greatly. Please take the time to learn your specific air fryer. You may need to adjust times and temperatures based upon your air fryer. All though this website attempts to provide accurate nutritional information, the information should only be considered an estimate. Varying factors such as different product types, different brands, etc. can change nutritional information. It is your responsibility as a consumer to read all labels to make sure the ingredients fit your dietary needs as well as calculate your own nutritional information as a double check.

Let's talk! Drop me a comment below telling me if you are a chicken wing lover. Have you made my air fryer BBQ chicken wing recipe? I'd love to hear how you liked it!