Air fryer chicken drumsticks come out super crispy and are coated in a sticky honey garlic glaze. Just 20 minutes to the best glazed chicken legs!
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By now, you should know that I use the word ‘crispy’ in all my Air Fryer recipes! I can’t help it though. Some of my favorite ‘crispy’ things to make in an air fryer are Buffalo Cauliflower Wings, Lemon Honey Pepper Chicken Wings, and Air Fryer Chicken Patties (to name just a few).
About this recipe
So why make chicken legs in the air fryer, when you can simply bake them in the oven? For one, an air fryer is more energy-efficient than an oven. For another, it's easier to clean up and much quicker than the oven. The chicken skin crisps up so much better in an air fryer – because it is able to concentrate more heat into a small space. The result? Crispy chicken skin!
I don’t like to end things just at crispy chicken legs. To make this recipe the way I like it, I’ve made a honey garlic glaze on the stovetop, while the chicken legs are air frying. The glaze takes just 5 minutes to make. Once the drumsticks are air fried, toss them in a bowl with the glaze. Your air-fried chicken drumsticks will be coated in a sticky, lush honey garlic glaze. Convinced yet?
Ingredients
To make these air fryer chicken drumsticks, you will need
(please head to the end of this page for detailed ingredient measurements)
Notes on Ingredients
Chicken legs - Use chicken drumsticks with skin on, if crispy skin is your thing.
Seasoning - For the seasoning, I have used Paprika, Black Pepper, and Salt. You can also use Italian seasoning or any combination of dry seasoning that you like.
For the honey garlic glaze:
Butter (not pictured above), honey, and garlic cloves
Step by step recipe with images
To make the air fryer chicken legs, start by patting the drumsticks with kitchen paper. This step helps in ridding the chicken drumsticks of extra moisture, which then helps the chicken crisp up even more.
In a mixing bowl, mix together olive oil, paprika, black pepper, salt. Add in the chicken drumsticks and mix well. The legs should be well coated in the seasoning mix.
In a preheated air fryer basket (I have used an Instant Vortex here), place the chicken legs in a single layer, without crowding them.
Air fry the chicken legs at 390 F for 18 minutes. At the 10 minute mark, take out the basket and flip the chicken over so that they cook evenly. Once done, the chicken legs will look like this:
Separately, make the honey garlic glaze. In a small saucepan, heat butter until melted, add the garlic cloves and saute until aromatic (2-3 minutes). Add the honey saute for a minute more and and turn off the heat.
Take out the air fried chicken drumsticks and add to a bowl with the honey garlic glaze. Toss the chicken drumsticks until well coated in the glaze. Serve immediately.
Similar Recipes
Air Fryer Whole Roasted Chicken
Air Fryer Chicken Drumsticks
Equipment
- Air Fryer
Ingredients
For the honey garlic glaze
- 1 tablespoon Butter or use olive oil
- 2 tablespoons Honey
- 4 Garlic Cloves finely chopped
Instructions
- In a mixing bowl, mix together olive oil, paprika, black pepper, salt.
- Add in the chicken drumsticks and mix well. The legs should be well coated in the seasoning mix.
- In a preheated air fryer basket (I have used an Instant Vortex here), place the chicken legs in a single layer, without crowding them.
- Air fry the chicken legs at 390 F for 18 minutes. At the 10-minute mark, take out the basket and flip the chicken over so that they cook evenly.
- Separately, make the honey garlic glaze. In a small saucepan, heat butter until melted, add the garlic cloves and saute until aromatic (2-3 minutes). Add the honey saute for a minute more and and turn off the heat.
- Take out the air fried chicken drumsticks and add to a bowl with the honey garlic glaze. Toss the chicken drumsticks until well coated in the glaze. Serve immediately.