I grew up eating chicken drumsticks and Ive recently fallen in love with air fried chicken. So I knew I would eventually try air fryer chicken legs.
I dont know why I waited so long! This is a recipe you have to make for your family!
AIR FRYER CHICKEN LEGS
Before we get too deep into making air fryer chicken drumsticks, these arent chicken legs that are going to come out looking like they came out of a fried chicken bucket.
Using the air fryer, youre cooking with hot air that circulates around the food to give you a crunchy and crisp exterior. Thats why it works great for frozen food like frozen chicken strips.
So for air fryer fried chicken legs, you use just a bit of oil or marinade and get a tender, juicy chicken leg with crispy skin that is just delicious!
Its really simple to make though and thats why I love using my air fryer! Easy to cook in and easy to clean up! Oh, and it saves time too! What more could we ask for as busy parents?
All you have to do when cooking chicken legs in the air fryer is make the marinade, coat the chicken, and cook in the air fryer! In no time at all, youll have a simple chicken main dish that pairs well with almost anything!
HOW TO COOK DRUMSTICKS IN AIR FRYER
If you include the prep time for the marinade, this recipe takes just under an hour to make. But once you have the marinade made, it only takes about 20 minutes to get your chicken on the plate. While your chicken is cooking, you can work on a simple side dish like butter parmesan garlic corn or twice-baked mashed potatoes.
The basic steps for cooking any chicken in the air fryer is:
- Preheat the air fryer (if required by your model).
- Coat chicken in marinade or season chicken (another one of my favorite ways to make air fried chicken).
- Put the chicken in the air fryer without crowding the food (the air needs space to circulate around the food).
- Set a digital timer. If your air fryer has a dial timer, I suggest using a timer on your phone or some other digital timer for more accurate cook time.
- Cook the chicken legs.
- Check the internal temperature. Chicken should be cooked to 165 Fahrenheit. If it hasnt reached that temperature, cooking for a few more minutes.
Those are the basics for pretty much all of my air fryer chicken recipes! Its so simple that it allows you to easily play with flavors when you marinade or season before you cook the chicken!
AIR FRYER COOKING TIPS
If youre new to using your air fryer or just need a few tips, here are some of the basics that Ive learned along the way that give me the best-tasting food!
Dont crowd the food.
I mentioned this above its important to give your pieces of chicken space from each other. If there is room for the hot air to circulate around the food, it will cook more quickly and more evenly.
Pat food dry.
If youre cooking food that doesnt have a breading on it, you will want to pat it dry before putting it into the air fryer. That will remove any water on them and help the food crisp rather than steam as it cooks. This is especially true with chicken.
Shake the basket.
Be sure to shake the basket a few times when youre cooking smaller items like chicken wings, chicken nuggets, fries, etc. This will help you get more even cooking.
Adjust the temperature.
You dont want to use too high of a temperature when cooking in your air fryer because you may just dry out your food.
If youre cooking something you normally cook in the oven, I recommend that you air fry about 25-30 degrees lower and cook for about 20% less time than in the oven.
For example, if you have a recipe that calls for something to cook for 40 minutes at 425F, you could cook in the air fryer for about 32 minutes at 400F.
Use a digital thermometer.
You want to get a digital thermometer that is easy to read, especially for cooking meat in the air fryer. You want to check the internal temperature of your chicken, steak, and pork before eating.
Wash your air fryer regularly.
Dont let your air fryer sit around dirty. Hand wash the basket and tray after every use. Any crumbs left behind will burn the next time you cook and can ruin your food.
Air Fryer Chicken Legs
- 1 Tbsp honey
- 1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- 4 Tbsp soy sauce
- 1 Tbsp seasoning salt
- Tbsp garlic powder
- juice of one lemon
- 8 chicken drumstick legs
- In a small bowl, mix together the honey, Worcestershire sauce, olive oil, soy sauce, seasoning salt, garlic powder, and lemon juice.
- Place the chicken legs in a gallon size zip-top bag. Pour the honey mixture over the chicken legs and seal the bag. Move the legs around in the bag to coat with marinade, then place the bag in the refrigerator to marinade for at least 30 minutes or up to overnight.
- Prepare the air fryer basket by adding a liner or rack to the basket. Place the chicken legs on top, making sure the legs dont touch each other or the sides of the basket to prevent sticking. The chicken legs may need to be cooked in batches.
- Set the air fryer to cook at 400 degrees for 10 minutes. When the cook time is up, flip the legs and cook for an additional 10 minutes.
Please note that all nutritional values are estimates. Exact values depend on the specific products used.
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