Air Fryer Drumsticks
Chicken drumsticks rubbed with smoked paprika and garlic and air fried for 25 minutes until the skin is crisp and the meat is cooked through.
Photograph credit: Delicious Crispy Fried Chicken Drumsticks by Ashik Christy · Pexels License · Pexels
Air Fryer Drumsticks: Step by Step
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Pat the drumsticks very dry with kitchen paper. Toss with the oil in a large bowl.
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Mix the baking powder, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper. Sprinkle over the drumsticks and turn until evenly coated.
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Heat the air fryer to 200°C / 390°F. Arrange the drumsticks in a single layer without touching.
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Air fry for 25 minutes, turning them over halfway through.
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Check that the temperature in the thickest part reads at least 75°C / 167°F and the juices run clear. Rest for 5 minutes before serving.
Keep an Eye on These
- Dry the skin thoroughly before the rub goes on.
- Use baking powder, not bicarbonate of soda, which tastes soapy.
- If your drumsticks are large, add 5 minutes and check the temperature.
Good to Know About Air Fryer Drumsticks
Drumsticks sit somewhere between wings and thighs: dark meat with a lot of skin, which makes them forgiving to cook and very well suited to an air fryer. The fat under the skin renders out into the drawer, leaving the skin thin and brittle.
The trick to crisp skin is a dry surface. Pat the drumsticks with kitchen paper, then toss them with a little oil and a rub that includes baking powder, not baking soda. The baking powder raises the pH of the skin slightly and encourages it to blister and crackle.
Cook to 75°C / 165°F in the thickest part, not by the clock. Dark meat is safe at a lower temperature but is better at 75°C / 165°F or above, when the connective tissue has broken down and the meat pulls cleanly from the bone.
Give the drumsticks room. If they touch, the contact points stay pale and flabby. Turn them at the halfway mark and again for the last 5 minutes if one side looks lighter than the other.
To Go With It
Coleslaw · Corn on the cob · Potato wedges · Barbecue sauce
Leftovers
Keeps for 3 days in the fridge. Reheat in the air fryer for 6 minutes at 180°C / 355°F to crisp the skin again.
What's in a Serving
Per serving, an approximate calculation from the ingredient list. Treat it as a rough guide: weights that include bone are counted as if all of it were eaten, so the figures run high. How the figures are worked out.
Your notes on this recipe
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Compiled by Turab
Checked by script for timings, diet labels and nutrition arithmetic. How the recipes are checked.
First published ; last changed .
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