If you just got a new air fryer and are wondering how to make Instant Pot air fryer chicken wings, you're in the right spot! Making chicken wings in the air fryer is a quick and simple way to get the fried crisp and taste of fried wings, without all the fat and guilt.
Our easy air fryer chicken wings recipe includes step-by-step instructions for making delicious simple wings with just garlic salt, pepper, and oil, and also for making air fryer buffalo chicken wings. And we are making all of this WHOLE LOTTA YUM goodness in under 30-minutes!
Instant Pot Chicken Wings in Air Fryer
We just purchased our air fryer (this is the model we bought-love it!), and cooking chicken wings in the air fryer was the very first item on the list to master! And BOY did we do it!
After tons of research, we decided to purchase an air fryer/toaster oven combo and it replaced our old countertop toaster oven. Instant Pot sells another model through Walmart will most of the same features but for less.
We were so determined to create the perfect air fryer chicken wing recipe, that we made air fryer wings 4 times in the first week! I will disclose, we had NO problem at all eating wings this many times because...
.....they were just THAT GOOD!
When you have delicious, crispy chicken wings, they're seriously the best even without coating them in a sauce. And to be honest, Instant Pot air fryer chicken wings are so yummy cooking them with oil, garlic salt, and pepper with no sauce added is our FAVORITE way to eat chicken wings.
We tend to serve our Instant Pot air fryer wings with other air fryer finger foods such as homemade air fryer french fries, air fryer potato skins, or air fryer mini corn dogs.
Why You'll Love This!
- Our crispy air fryer chicken wings take just 20 minutes to cook!
- You can skip the deep frying but still have that fried juicy texture when you make Instant Pot air fryer chicken wings.
- Just simple ingredients are needed to make this delicious wings recipe.
- Our Instant Pot air fryer wings are low-carb, keto, dairy-free, gluten-free, and paleo.
- Oven-baked wings don't get as crisp, yet take more than double the cooking time.
If you love making chicken wings in the air fryer as much as we do, be sure to check out our other wings recipes including Air Fryer Whole Chicken Wings, Dry Rub Baked Chicken Wings, Frozen Chicken Wings in Air Fryer, and Lemon Pepper Wings Air Fryer.
On Keto? Grab our FREE keto foods list here OR Snag our Keto Binder HERE
Ingredient Notes
You just need 4 ingredients to make chicken wings in an air fryer, you don't need to add much to the wings to get them delicious and flavorful.
- chicken wing sections
- oil - canola, vegetable or olive oil
- sea salt
- ground pepper
- Hot Wing Sauce - optional
Variations
- You can also use a chicken wing dry rub, BBQ sauce, garlic parmesan chicken wings seasoning, or Korean chicken wings sauce. All of these will work in an Instant Pot air fryer. Add the dry rub before cooking the wings in the air fryer oven. Add the other sauces at the end of cooking so that the sauce won't burn.
Step by Step Instructions
Regardless of the air fryer model that you have, the principles and steps will still be the same. Some models do cook faster than others, so I'd suggest referring to your owner's manual to see what they consider the ideal cook time for the air fryer wings recipe. OR use this recipe as a starting point, and just add a little cooking time if needed.
Prep Ingredients
We purchased pre-trimmed wings that are already divided into sections.
Dry the wings in between two layers of paper towels. Removing the extra water from the outside of the wings will make this recipe extra crispy during cooking.
In a medium-sized bowl, stir together the chicken wings, oil, salt, and pepper.
Spray the air fryer basket with non-stick cooking spray. This isn't essential but it does make for easier clean-up after your wings are cooked.
Lay the wings in a single layer on the air fryer basket, making sure to leave a little space in between each wing to help with circulation. The Instant Pot Omni Plus air fryer model that we have held about 14 chicken wing sections for one batch.
Air Fryer Chicken Wings Temperature
You are going to cook your Instant Pot air fryer chicken wings in a preheated 400F unit. Most air fryers have a preheat feature, but if your model does not you can simply turn the unit on while you are prepping the wings.
***NOTE: The Omni Plus has a built-in pre-heat so we did not pre-heat the air fryer oven before starting the recipe as we have with many other recipes on our site that use a different type of air fryer.
Air Fryer Chicken Wings Cook Time
Cook the chicken wings on 400F for 9 minutes and then flip.
Continue cooking for 11 more minutes until the skin is crispy. Check your wings after a total cook time of 18 minutes, all air fryer models are just a little bit different.
We've also made the air fryer chicken wings recipe without flipping the wings and they are just as delicious! If you're in a hurry or don't want to deal with flipping the wings, it's perfectly fine to skip this step. The total cook time of 18-20 minutes would still be the same.
If you want to add a store-bought wing sauce like Frank's Red Hot, you'll want to air fry the wings first and then brush the sauce on after the wings are done cooking. To get a slightly charred appearance, just broil the wings for 30 seconds in either with your air fryer broiler (be sure to move the rack to the top setting) or pop in your regular oven to broil.
Serve and enjoy!
Recipe Tips
- Pull the chicken wings out of the fridge 15-20 minutes before cooking to help get the chicken to cook as evenly as possible.
- If you're air frying whole chicken wings, they might take a couple of minutes longer to cook compared to wingettes and drumettes.
- If you opt to not flip your chicken wings after 9 minutes, allow them to cook for 18-20 minutes total.
Common Questions
Don’t have an air fryer yet but want to know how to cook these delicious and easy wings in your oven?
Preheat your oven to 400F.
Simply cook on a baking sheet covered with aluminum foil for a total cook time of 45-50 minutes, until crispy and cooked through. Be sure to flip your wings after 30 minutes.
Another reason these air fryer fried chicken wings are so popular is that they fit with most dietary plans! If you’re following a keto diet like my husband, you’ll be happy to hear that these are keto air fryer chicken wings, too.
Since just a few simple ingredients are used, the wings are low carb, don’t need starch to make them crispy, have no added sugar, or artificial ingredients.
That makes them not only keto air fryer chicken wings, but also paleo, and gluten-free, too.
Yes! Using an air fryer lid on your Instant Pot is just as easy as using an Instant Pot air fryer oven. The main difference? Using the Instant Pot lid and pressure cooker holds fewer wings than an air fryer oven.
More Chicken Recipes
Looking for more chicken recipes?
- Fajita Chicken Bake
- Green Chili Chicken Recipe Bake
- Enchilada Chicken Casserole
- Chicken Zoodle Soup
- Chicken Broccoli Divan Casserole
Come connect with us on Instagram! Be sure to tag us (wholelotta.yum) when you make a recipe. You can also find us on Facebook, and Pinterest.
Recipe
Instant Pot Air Fryer Chicken Wings
Ingredients
- 1-1.5 lb chicken wing sections
- 1 tablespoon oil canola, vegetable or olive oil
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ¼-1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
- Hot Wing Sauce optional
Instructions
- Dry the wings in between two layers of paper towels. Removing the extra water from the outside of the wings will make these extra crispy during cooking.
- In a medium-sized bowl, stir together the chicken wings, oil, salt, and pepper.
- Spray the air fryer basket with non-stick cooking spray, this isn't essential but it does make for easier clean-up after your wings are cooked.
- Lay the wings in a single layer on the air fryer basket, making sure to leave a little space in between each wing to help with circulation. The Instant Pot Omni Plus air fryer model that we have held about 14 chicken wing sections for one batch.
- Cook the chicken wings on 400F for 9 minutes and then flip.
- Continue cooking for 11 more minutes until the skin is crispy. Check your wings after a total cook time of 18 minutes, all air fryer models are just a little bit different.
- We've also made the air fryer chicken wings recipe without flipping the wings and they are just as delicious! If you're in a hurry or don't want to deal with flipping the wings, it's perfectly fine to skip this step. The total cook time of 18-20 minutes would still be the same.
- If you want to add a store-bought wing sauce like Frank's Red Hot, you'll want to air fry the wings first and then brush the sauce on after the wings are done cooking. To get a slightly charred appearance, just broil the wings for 30 seconds in either with your air fryer broiler (be sure to move the rack to the top setting) or pop in your regular oven to broil.
Notes
Maria says
Can I use frozen wings if I defrost them first? I haven’t been able to find fresh trimmed wings cut into sections.
WholeLottaYum says
Hi Maria, You can also cut the wings into sections yourself if that's the only kind your store has. And yes! you can cook wings from frozen also, they won't turn out as crispy but they'll still be delicious! We have an entire post on cooking frozen chicken wings in an air fryer https://wholelottayum.com/air-fryer-frozen-chicken-wings/