Chicken drumsticks dredged in seasoned flour and a buttermilk and egg batter and prepared in an air fryer.
Air Fryer Fried Chicken Drumsticks
While I don't eat it every day, and I rarely cook it at home anymore because it can be a bit messy, I do LOVE fried chicken.
Absolutely love it.
The chicken is tender. The coating on the deep-fried skin is so deliciously crunchy and loaded with flavor, it may well be my most favorite part. With easy access to places like Popeye's, and our local fried chicken buffet Hartz, fried chicken is The Cajun's and my top comfort food. We probably eat it more often than we should!
The air fryer is one way to get a batch of fried chicken that's slightly more health friendly. Is it exactly the same as that luscious, deep-fried version? No. You just cannot match that, but it runs a close second!
This is a good place to insert a quick reminder... that this is a blog, not just a "recipe site," and yes, there is a difference! I want to first thank all of you who have supported my work over the years. Your notes to me are uplifting and encouraging, however, if you aren't interested in the chit chat, info, photos, tips and such in a post, as always, you'll find the complete recipe text with measurements and instructions, as well as a printable document, a little bit further down the page. Just swipe or scroll down to the bottom of the post!Now... while I have really grown to love my air fyers, for fried chicken, it took a bit of experimenting. Some of the early efforts were just well, okay...
Oh, don't get me wrong, they were certainly tasty. But they were pale and just odd looking. Delicious, but not very appealing to the eye until I ended with this one.
Besides having a decent wattage air fryer, I have discovered the biggest key to success with air frying.
A good coverage of oil and having the right kind of oil sprayer to do that.
Despite what some folks would have you believe, air frying without oil just doesn't work really well, so yes, you do still need oil y'all! But, not anywhere near as much as deep frying for sure.
After investing in a few different types of sprayers, I'll save you the trouble! Get the EVO sprayer (#ad).
Period.
Each spray is only 1/4 teaspoon per pull y'all and the coverage is excellent, so you only need a few spritzes and you're good for maximum GBD (golden brown delicious) goodness - a necessary component for air fryer chicken - but, with using very little oil.
For the fried chicken today, I'm using drumsticks. I usually buy these in the large value packs when they are on sale and use the vacuum sealer (#ad) to seal them in batches for the freezer. These family packs always have nice sized pieces of chickens. You can use any part of the chicken, though you may need to make adjustments in temperature and cook time and definitely check internal temperature.
Cooking time with an air fryer is also going to also depend on the wattage of your air fryer. Instructions here are based on my oven style air fryer which is a 1500-watt Instant Vortex brand (#ad).
Just remember, as with all cooking, whether it's with a countertop appliance or your full-size oven, every one of them cooks differently and you just have to learn how your appliance cooks against any recipe the first time!
Individual air fryer brands differ in wattage and how they cook, so be sure to monitor any air fryer recipe the first time you make it in order to adjust time as needed. Total time will also depend on type and size of ingredients used.
One thing for certain in my house y'all, is that the air fryer, the grill and the Instant Pot have all been busy this summer!
Here's how to make these Air Fryer Chicken Drumsticks.
As always, full recipe text with measurements and instructions, as well as a printable document, are a little bit further down the page. Just swipe or scroll past the step-by-step pictures below.
Combine flour and seasonings. I'm using self-rising flour for the extra crunch power it gives, salt, pepper, Creole seasoning, paprika and garlic powder. This is actually a great fried chicken dredge for deep fried as well.
Whisk together the buttermilk, eggs and hot sauce.
Dredge the chicken in the seasoned flour.
Then the buttermilk.
And back in seasoned flour.
Generously spray air fryer basket or racks. If using a basket style fryer, place chicken on a separate plate to rest while you preheat the air fryer, and although I didn't do that here for the oven racks, because I had some sticking occur, I recommend doing that for either style actually.
Preheat air fryer to 350 degrees F and set time for 32 minutes. When preheating is done, spray chicken with oil.
Flip and spray other side with oil and transfer basket or racks to the air fryer.
Cook for 15 minutes, remove basket or trays and spray the chicken.
Turn, spray again, return to cooker for 10 minutes longer, swapping tray locations if using an oven style air fryer.
Remove basket or trays, increase temperature to 390 degrees F, spray chicken, turn, spray.
Return to air fryer to cook an additional 7 minutes or until internal temp reaches 165/170 on an instant read thermometer.
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