Crispy chicken legs in an Air fryer for 30 minutes.
Seasoned with a dry rub, this chicken leg recipe is a favourite in our home.

These air-fryer chicken legs are easy to make without the usual mess and take only a few steps to serve from your air fryer to your dinner table.

The drumsticks carry the perfect balance of crunch from the dry seasoning and tasty juicy meat that will keep your family and friends asking for more.

Side dishes for Air fryer chicken legs

• Serve with your favourite potato side dishes.
  • air-fried frozen chips or wedges.
  • Mashed potato.
  • Potato salad.

• Serve with any type of rice dish you make.
  • lemon rice.
  • chicken fried rice or vegetable fried rice.

• Serve with a pasta dish.
  • red curry pasta.
  • coconut curry paste.
  • Pasta arrabbiata are great options.

• Vegetarian side dishes.
• Any type of roasted veggies.
  • You can also simply serve these air-fried drumsticks with your favourite dipping sauce.
    Sriracha sauce, homemade BBQ sauce, sweet chilli sauce, ketchup etc

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chicken marinades to try

• honey garlic marinade.
  • 1/4 cup honey +1 tablespoon of garlic powder + 2 tablespoons of soy sauce +1 tablespoon of oil.

• Lemon pepper chicken marinade.
  • 1 tablespoon of lemon zest + 2-3 tablespoon of fresh lemon juice +1 tablespoon of garlic powder
    + 1/2 teaspoon of black pepper + salt + 1 tablespoon of oil.

• Teriyaki sauce marinade
  • 1/4 cup teriyaki sauce +1 teaspoon grated ginger(or powder) +1 teaspoon garlic powder + 2 tablespoons of sugar.

• hot barbeque sauce marinade.
  • 1/4 cup olive oil +1/4 cup BBQ sauce +1 teaspoon of red chili powder + 1/2 teaspoon of paprika 
    + 2 teaspoons of garlic powder + 1/4 teaspoon salt +1/4 teaspoon of pepper.

• Chicken fajita marinade.
  • 1/4 cup olive oil + 2 tablespoons of lime juice + 1 tablespoon of vinegar + 1 teaspoon of red chilli powder + 1/2 teaspoon of ground cumin +1 teaspoon +1 teaspoon of garlic powder + 1/4 teaspoon of salt + 1/4 tsp ground pepper + 1 tbsp fresh chopped cilantro. 

These marinade quantities can simply be enhanced or increased by tasting and adjusting flavors as per your need.

making the best air-fryer chicken legs

• Make sure to use chicken drumsticks with skin on.
  
• Once the drumsticks are washed, pat dry thoroughly so the seasoning is able to stick to them.
  
• Preheat your air fryer and brush some oil on the basket surface so the chicken legs don’t stick to them as they are air-fried.
  
• Avoid laying the chicken legs on top of each other. placing the drumsticks in a single layer will allow them to cook evenly while not rubbing the seasoning on each other.
  
• Avoid crowding the chicken legs by adding too many. While a smaller air fryer can hold 3-4 legs, a larger air fryer can easily hold 5-6 chicken legs while leaving room for the air to flow.
  
• To double this crispy air fryer chicken legs recipe, all you need to do is double the seasoning and buy more drumsticks to air fry in batches to feed a larger crowd.

Tools and utensils needed

• Medium-sized bowl to combine the seasonings.
• Kitchen paper towels to pat dry the drumsticks.
• Large bowl mix the seasoning with the drumsticks.
• Disposable food prep gloves.
• Basting brush
• Tongs.
• Tray or plate to place the coated chicken drums.
• Air fryer, you can check the prices of the best air fryers on Amazon here.

More air fryer chicken recipes.

air fryer chicken leg quarters

Air fryer chicken tenders(breaded)

air fryer chicken tenders(no breading).

air fryer chicken wings

Air fryer hot wings(buffalo wings)

RECIPE DIFFICULTY-EASY

Ingredients to make chicken legs in air fryer

The ingredients mentioned below use standard measuring cups and spoons.

6 chicken drumsticks(skin on)
2 tablespoons of flour
1 teaspoon of baking powder
2 teaspoons of paprika(substitute with sweet or smoked paprika or chilli powder)
1 teaspoon of onion powder
1 teaspoon of garlic powder
1 teaspoon of pepper powder
Salt to season
2 tablespoons of oil

making Air fryer chicken legs(drumsticks).

To make air fryer chicken drumsticks, first,
Wash and place the drumsticks in a colander to drain any excess water.
Pat the chicken drumsticks(legs)thoroughly with kitchen paper towels so they are dry.
Set aside.
Into a bowl, add flour(2 tbsps), baking powder(1 tsp), and paprika(2 tsp, substitute with sweet or smoked paprika or red chilli powder).
Add onion powder(1 tsp), garlic powder(1 tsp), pepper powder(1 tsp), and salt to season.

Mix with a spoon to combine.
Place a little of the seasoning on the tip of your tongue, you should taste the salt as well as the garlic flavour.
Add more salt and garlic carefully so you taste these flavours.

Once you have the seasoning combined, place the chicken drumsticks(legs) in a large bowl.

Add the seasoning into the bowl of drumsticks.

Wear a disposable glove and coat the chicken legs with the seasoning.
Make sure to coat the chicken drumsticks well with this dry rub so there is a thick layer.
I was able to coat the chicken drumsticks without any oil but if you feel that the spice rub is not sticking onto the drumstick then add 1/4 teaspoon of oil.
Once the chicken drumsticks are ready, place them on a tray.

Heat the air fryer to 200c(400F) for 3 minutes.

Brush the air fryer basket with oil.
Place the chicken drumsticks in a single layer in the air fryer basket.

If you are using a small air fryer just place 3-4.
If you have a bigger air fryer you can air fry them in batches of 5-6.

Set the air fryer timer for 20 minutes and air fry them for 10 minutes.

While the chicken legs are air frying.

Add the oil(2 tbsps) into the remaining seasoning in the bowl and combine well.

Once the 10 minutes are done, use a tong to gently flip the chicken legs over.

Brush or dab the dry rub marinade onto the chicken legs as much as you can and air fry for another 10 minutes.

Once the combined cooking time of 20 minutes is complete.

Shake the basket, brush the remaining marinade onto the air-fried drumsticks and fry for another 5 minutes more.

Repeat the process to cook all of the chicken drumsticks.

Transfer to a tray and let them rest for 3 minutes.
Serve with your favourite side dishes(some popular side dishes are given above)with a few lime wedges.

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