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My Air Fryer Buffalo Wings are the answer to satisfying cravings for crispy, saucy wings without the mess of deep frying. Perfectly golden and crisp on the outside, juicy on the inside, and tossed in classic spicy buffalo sauce, they’re everything you love about wings—made lighter and easier in the air fryer. Great for game day, parties, or a quick weeknight indulgence!
😋 Air Fryer Buffalo Chicken Wings Ingredients
Here’s what you need to make air fryer chicken wings:
- 1 lb bone-in chicken wings (454 grams)
- ½ tablespoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon chili powder
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- Cooking oil spray
- 1/3 cup Frank’s RedHot Original Sauce (or your favorite wing sauce)
- 1½ tablespoons butter
- Blue cheese dressing or ranch dressing, carrot sticks, celery sticks (for serving, optional)
If you buy whole chicken wings, you need to cut them at the joints into wings, drumettes, and wing tips (as shown). Use the wings and drumettes in this recipe and make bone broth with the wing tips.
Please keep in mind that all air fryers cook differently. You may need to adjust the cooking times depending on the air fryer you use.
🔥 How to Cook Air Fryer Buffalo Wings
Pat the chicken wings dry with paper towels and put them in a medium-sized bowl. Stir the baking powder with the chili powder and garlic powder. Sprinkle the baking powder mixture over the wings and stir to combine well.
Hot tip! The baking powder is important to help the wings crisp up. I used a similar principle to help the pork belly skin get crispy in my Air Fryer Pork Belly recipe.
Lightly mist the air fryer basket with cooking spray. Spread the chicken wings in a single layer. Mist the wings with the cooking spray.
Bake the wings for 15-18 minutes at 400 degrees Fahrenheit (200C), flipping the wings after 10 minutes. Fully cooked chicken wings should reach a minimum safe internal temperature of at least 165F (74C).
While the chicken is air frying, melt the butter with the Frank’s RedHot sauce in a small saucepan on the stovetop. Stir until thoroughly combined.
When the chicken wings are done cooking, use tongs to dip each crispy chicken piece in the Buffalo sauce mixture. Make sure each piece of chicken is entirely coated with the hot sauce. Serve immediately with blue cheese dressing, carrot sticks, and celery sticks (if desired).
Watch How to Make It!
Air Fryer Buffalo Wings Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 lb. bone-in chicken wings (454 grams)
- ½ tablespoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon chili powder
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- cooking oil spray
- ⅓ cup Frank's RedHot sauce (or your favorite wing sauce)
- 1½ tablespoons butter
- blue cheese dressing, carrot sticks, celery sticks (for serving, optional)
Instructions
- Pat the chicken wings dry with paper towels and put them in a medium-sized bowl. Stir the baking powder together with the chili powder and the garlic powder. Sprinkle the mixture over the chicken wings, and stir to combine well.
- Lightly mist your air fryer basket with cooking spray. Spread the wings in a single layer. Mist the wings with the cooking spray.
- Bake the wings at 400°F (200°C) for 15-18 minutes, flipping the wings after 10 minutes. Fully cooked chicken wings should reach a minimum safe internal temperature of at least 165°F (74°C).
- While the chicken is in the air fryer, melt the butter and Frank's RedHot in a small saucepan on the stovetop. Stir it well until thoroughly combined.
- When the chicken is done, dip each crispy chicken piece in the hot sauce mixture using tongs. Make sure each piece of chicken is entirely coated with the hot sauce. Serve immediately with blue cheese dressing, carrot sticks, and celery sticks (if desired).
Equipment
Notes
💭 Expert Tips from Dietitian Summer Yule
This is a level 2 recipe (transition or weight maintenance). A serving of wings with dressing and veggies can make for a satisfying, moderate-calorie meal. However, keep in mind that traditional Buffalo sauce tends to be high in sodium, so this recipe may not be ideal for low-sodium diets. Buffalo wings are typically deep-fried to crispy perfection, then tossed in a tangy hot sauce blended with melted butter. By using an air fryer, you get that same crave-worthy crispness—without the extra oil. It’s a lighter, lower-calorie, low-carb, and keto-friendly take on one of the most beloved chicken wing flavors. Nutrition information is for one serving of the Buffalo wings only with no dressing or sides.
nutrition info disclaimer
All recipes on this website may or may not be appropriate for you, depending on your medical needs and personal preferences. Consult with a registered dietitian or your physician if you need help determining the dietary pattern that may be best for you.
The nutrition information is an estimate provided as a courtesy. It will differ depending on the specific brands and ingredients that you use. Calorie information on food labels may be inaccurate, so please don’t sweat the numbers too much.
“To taste” means to your preferences, which may have to be visual to follow food safety rules. Please don’t eat undercooked food x
Nutrition
➕ How many calories in a chicken wing?
There are 89 calories in air fryer chicken wings with skin (per 35g) and 39 calories in air fried chicken wings without skin (per 21g), according to Cronometer. My air fryer Buffalo wings recipe has approximately 99 calories per wing. The calories in a chicken wing will depend on how it is cooked and the dry rub or wing sauce used.
In comparison, deep-fried chicken wings average 159–201 calories per wing. Opting for air-fried wings instead of deep-fried can cut the calories in half—or even more.
Get the complete nutrition information for air fried chicken wings in the recipe card above.
🍗 Air Fryer Chicken Wings Calories Chart
| Number of Chicken Wings | Air Fried Wings Calories* |
|---|---|
| 1 | 39-89 |
| 2 | 78-178 |
| 3 | 117-267 |
| 4 | 156-356 |
| 5 | 195-445 |
| 6 | 234-534 |
| 7 | 273-623 |
| 8 | 312-712 |
| 9 | 351-801 |
| 10 | 390-890 |
| 11 | 429-979 |
| 12 | 468-1068 |
* Use the lower end of the calorie range for skinless wings and lighter sauces, and the higher end for wings with skin or sauces that contain more oil or sugar. For the most accurate numbers, check the nutrition information from your specific restaurant or ingredient brand.
👨🍳 More Air Fryer Recipes
- Chicken Nuggets in the Air Fryer
- Air Fryer Breaded Mushrooms
- Healthy Frozen Hash Browns in the Air Fryer
- Air Fryer Frozen Cauliflower Crust Pizza
You may also enjoy the recipes and tips in our article on the best Frozen Foods for the Air Fryer.
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Hello! I’m Summer, a registered dietitian and home chef who loves to cook, eat, and create recipes for you! Every recipe on this site has been tested by me to help ensure your success in the kitchen. All eaters are welcome here 🙂
Clever way to take something wonderfully decadent, and not surprisingly, ridiculously indulgent, and to make it a reasonable part of healthy eating. Didn’t think it was possible to square that circle, Summer, but somehow you managed it. Look at you, taking a foodie fantasy and giving it a nutritionist’s goodness!
By the way, I share your fascination with the “exotic” fruit section of the produce department. How many times have I found myself staring, wondering how I could incorporate this discovery into a new recipe?
Haha, I was an eater of delicious food for many decades before I became a dietitian; I think it is imperative to meld what I’ve learned from the experience of both!
I cannot tell you the number of times I’ve purchased something new (to me) from the exotic produce section only to figure out what to do with it later. The more of us that purchase, the more things the stores may stock! In full disclosure, I might have a personal interest in encouraging others to check out the cool and unusual fruits and veggies. 🙂