Air Fryer Chicken Legs (Drumsticks)

Air fryer chicken legs are crispy on the outside, tender and juicy on the inside, and you are going to go crazy for these! (Also know as air fryer chicken drumsticks.) 

Which one do you call it: chicken legs or drumsticks? Side note: If you are without an air fryer, I also have baked chicken legs here.😉👌🏻

These are seasoned somewhat similarly, with a few slight tweaks. And they are crazy delicious!

 

Ingredients

As always, use the best quality ingredients you have access to. The ingredient lineup for this air fryer drumsticks recipe is fairly simple.

It is similar to my other chicken leg recipe. Instead of paprika, this recipe uses chili powder.👌🏻

Preparation

Preparing air fryer chicken legs is easy! Here’s how to do it.

While the air fryer is preheating, put the drumsticks in a bowl, and drizzle with oil. Sprinkle on the seasonings, and use your hands to help rub the seasoning in.

Arrange the chicken legs in the fryer basket, making sure to leave enough space between each leg.

Note: you will almost certainly need to cook two batches for eight chicken legs. If you only do 4 or 5 drumsticks, you could get away with one batch.

Tip: use the slider in my recipe card below under “servings” to change the number of legs you want to make. It’ll adjust the other ingredients to scale.

How long to cook chicken legs in the air fryer

So how long do chicken legs need to cook in the air fryer? These were cooked completely in 20 minutes, and they were flipped half way through.

This can vary for very large chicken legs.

To be sure, you can use a meat thermometer, and cook an extra minute or two, if needed. The internal temperature you want is 165 degrees Fahrenheit/ 75 degrees celsius.

Serving suggestions

What goes well with sir fryer chicken legs? Here are some suggestions, complete with recipe links.

• Roasted sweet potatoes
• Air fryer baked potatoes
• Instant Pot wild rice pilaf
• Southern cornbread dressing
• Caprese orzo salad
• Corn salad with avocado, tomato and lime
• Roasted green beans with shallot
• Lemon garlic roasted Brussels sprouts
• Greek potato salad
• Instant Pot black-eyed peas and ham
• Greek salad
• Wedge salad

Be sure and check out all my side dish recipes here.

Air Fryer Chicken Legs Recipe

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5 from 2 votes

Print

Air Fryer Chicken Legs (Drumsticks)

Prep time: 5 minutes Cook time: 20 minutes Cuisine: American

Course Main Course

Cuisine American

Keyword air fryer chicken drumsticks, air fryer chicken legs

Prep Time 8 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 28 minutes

Servings 8 legs

Calories 147 kcal

Author Marjorie @APinchOfHealthy

Ingredients

• 8 chicken drumsticks (I recommend skin on, but skinless will work too)
• 1 1/2 tablespoons avocado oil
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt (more or less, to taste)
• ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper (more or less, to taste)

Instructions

1. Preheat the air fryer to 400 degrees F, usually takes about 5 minutes.
2. Meanwhile place the chicken drumsticks into a large bowl and drizzle and coat them in the oil.
3. Mix up the spice rub - garlic powder, onion powder, chili powder, salt and pepper in a small bowl.
4. Pour the rub over the chicken and use your hands to rub the seasoning into the chicken so it is well coated all over.
5. When the air fryer is ready, spray the air fryer basket with cooking spray and place the chicken into the basket in a single layer.
6. Close the basket and cook for 20 minutes, turning the drumsticks over halfway through the cooking time.

7. Remove, let cool for a few minutes and serve with your favorite sides.

Recipe Notes

Nutritional information is approximate and was calculated using a recipe nutrition label generator.

 

Nutrition Facts

Air Fryer Chicken Legs (Drumsticks)

Amount Per Serving

Calories 147 Calories from Fat 90

% Daily Value*

Fat 10g15%

Saturated Fat 2g13%

Trans Fat 1g

Cholesterol 70mg23%

Sodium 229mg10%

Potassium 182mg5%

Carbohydrates 1g0%

Fiber 1g4%

Sugar 1g1%

Protein 13g26%

Vitamin A 109IU2%

Vitamin C 1mg1%

Calcium 10mg1%

Iron 1mg6%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.